oates

Connie, the main character in Joyce Carol Oates’ “Where Are You Going? Where Have You Been” is a fifteen-year-old girl, just realizing her beauty. It is summer vacation, and she is spending her time either with boys or daydreaming about them. Connie is a typical teenage girl with a desperate need for independence. She does not get along with her mother, and her father is seldom around. He works a great deal of the time, and when he comes home, he likes to eat and go to bed. Connie has a girlfriend who she enjoys going to the mall with. While at the mall, the girls like to meet boys and watch movies. It is a place where the girls can express themselves in a way different from the ways in which they portray themselves at home. The story’s climax begins the day after one of Connie’s trips to the mall. Her family has gone to a barbecue across town, and she is alone in the house. The events of the story lead up to a terrifying confrontation and abduction of Connie by one of the �...