Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?

“Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates is a story will definitely get a reaction from its readers. The story is about Connie who constantly conflicts with her family. The Connie known by her family makes fun of her older sister June and is constantly at odds with her mom, she believes these problems stem from her beauty which her mother used to have but doesn’t any more. She listens to music, hangs out with friends and is constantly worrying about her looks. However, when Connie leaves her family she takes on a different persona. She explores her maturity, trying to understand her sexuality as she begins to date. Connie becomes increasingly aware of her persona, trying to behave in an appealing way for the guys she sees and meets. When she hangs out with her friend, she sneaks off to the local diner, and has a date where she briefly encounters Arnold Friend. Connie notices Arnold as he shouts to her she notices his ostentatious car and his wild hair and then goes back to focusing on her date. However the next day, Arnold pays a visit to Connie while she’s home alone. At first Connie does not realize the magnitude of the situation, he’s just a boy whose come to get her attention. Initially he is appealing in a dangerous bad boy kind of way. Arnold’s character builds during this situation as we see he is a very mismatched person. Connie notes he is not impressive appearance wise, he tries to stands relaxed, but he’s working very hard to emulate this. Also, he has translucent skin, is tiny not much taller than she is and he’s older, she is 15 and he is 30. The moment Connie really notices something is up when she realizes his age, which she tell by looking at him but also because his car has a saying on it from an older class at her high school. Soon after the realization, Arnold begins to make demands of her telling her he wants her to take a ride with him.

As Arnold demands Connie to leave with him, his humanity comes into question.  Arnold tries to convince Connie by using specific details of her life to persuade her, like when he tells her, “I know your parents and sister are gone somewheres and I know where and how long they're going to be gone, and I know who you were with last night, and your best girl friend's name is Betty.” After reading the story, I believe the situation where Arnold wants to convince Connie to come with him is Connie’s mind’s way of facing adulthood. Throughout the story Connie always has two separate personalities, the Connie her parents know, and the mature version of herself when she’s away from them. Arnold is a personified version of adulthood. When he first comes to the house, she puts on her persona to allure Arnold but after she begins to get freaked out she reverts to the girl her parents know, her “true” self. She becomes a child, she doesn’t know what to do after some time to get out of the situation- he keeps trying to convince her, bullying her psychologically, to leave but she doesn’t want to- and while trying to call the police, she cries for her mother and then faints. Eventually gives in to Arnold/adulthood, she finally reconciles both of her selves. 

How to Find a Good Short Story

When was the last time you read a short story in second person? To be honest, I couldn’t remember reading one before. First and third person tend to be the easiest way to build characters and plot. Whenever I thought of second person I felt it was a way of commanding you to do something, not a perspective to write a story from. However Lorrie Moore proved me wrong. The first story I read by her was, “How to Become a Writer.” The short story begins like a list, “First, try to be something, anything, else.  A movie star/astronaut.  A movie star missionary.  A movie star/kindergarten teacher.  President of the World.  Fail miserably.” At first you feel she’s addressing you, but then she provides anecdotes, which take you away from the “list.” The steps segue into these comical anecdotes about how Francie, the main character, found herself changing her major to English and deciding to pursue a career as a writer. The anecdotes take you from fourteen-year-old Francie to her college years. The second person creates an intimacy between you and Francie, you understand you are not her and yet your grasping exactly how she felt and what was going through her mind all these different times. It also helps being a teenage girl, and having moments where you felt similarly. Moore’s perspective of second person really intrigued me as a writer because I had never seen something like this done before, and pulled off. My interest in her writing style pushed me to buy more of her short stories from the book, Self Help. So far I have been really impressed with “Self Help,” I found more second person point of view short stories, which I loved like “How to Be an Other Women.”

Basically, if you're looking for some good short stories, check out Lorrie Moore.