The man introduces himself as Arnold Friend and his companion as Ellie. Friend has a smiling face painted on his car, with his name written on it. Connie notices he is unsteady on his feet. Arnold tries but cannot persuade her to get into his car. He suspiciously knows a lot of information about her and can explain what her family is currently doing. He also lies to her (revealing he is manipulative) when she asks how old he is. Noticing both he and Ellie are much older than her, Connie gets scared.
She backs away, and after being threatened, she locks the door to the house. He continues to threaten her, telling her he will harm her family when they return and that he will hurt her if she touches the phone to call the police. She runs to grab the phone, and in a confusing mix of actions, she feels as though he is “stabbing her” with her own breath. Although it is unclear what happened, Connie sits on the floor, visibly traumatized, while Friend looks on.
You are viewing: Where Are You Going Where Have You Been Plot Summary
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Friend tells her to hang up the phone and exit the house. She obediently complies while feeling as though she is having an out-of-body experience. Feeling empty, she hears Friend say, “my sweet little blue-eyed girl”, while her brown eyes gaze out at the land before her. It is an area she “did not recognize except to know that she was going to it.”
Fig. 3 – At the end of the story, Connie doesn’t recognize the journey before her but knows she must take it.
“Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” Characters
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CharacterDescriptionConnieConnie, the protagonist, is a 15-year-old girl. She is self-absorbed and easily manipulated. Connie’s motherConnie’s mom is mostly a flat character in the story that causes conflict for Connie. Their relationship is strained, but it is her mother Connie calls for when she is attacked, hinting that Connie is still a child in need of security.JuneJune is Connie’s older sister and serves as a foil. Arnold FriendArnold Friend, the antagonist, is an older man who manipulates his appearance by wearing a wig and tight jeans to appear younger than he is. Ellie OscarEllie Oscar is Arnold’s companion. He remains mostly out of the action of the story and seems nonchalant about what is happening.
“Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” Theme
“Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” deals with religious and moral concepts. Oates created this allegorical tale to help expose important concepts and even gave evil a face in Arnold Friend.
The Destructive Power of Vanity
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