“Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates
Possible Topics:
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Youthful Rebellion
Sexual exploration
Quest for independence / experience
Vulnerability of youth
Treachery of evil
Powerlessness of women trapped by vanity
Theme Statements
 By referring to the conflicting social, mythological, and cultural influences in
Connie’s life, Joyce Carol Oates illustrates how confusing growing up and
finding one’s identity can be, especially in the social revolution of the 1960s
when teenagers were confronted with new levels of personal liberation
and, at the same time, more dangers.
 Joyce Carol Oates evokes the fairy tale genre and the biblical passage from
Judges in her short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?”
to warn about the social conditions that have enslaved women throughout
history and continue to endanger young women in their most vulnerable
years of exploration.
 Joyce Carol Oates’ allegorical portrayal of Connie, as the innocent maiden,
tempted by Arnold Friend, as the devil incarnate, parallel the real-world
temptations and dangers of growing up when exploring one’s identity and
independence is a traditional rite of passage.