Where are you going? Where have you been? By Joyce Carol Oates ...

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Read the Bible verse Judges 19:17. It's been argued that this is Oates' inspiration for the title, but I have not read where she has acknowledged this. Do you see ...
Where  are  you  going?  Where  have  you  been?   By  Joyce  Carol  Oates   Study  Questions  –  AP  Literature  –  Mrs.  Kowal    

 

1. Discuss  the  title  of  the  story.      What  is  the  significance  of  the  questions?    Who  might   ask  these  types  of  questions?    Read  the  Bible  verse  Judges  19:17.    It's  been  argued   that  this  is  Oates'  inspiration  for  the  title,  but  I  have  not  read  where  she  has   acknowledged  this.      Do  you  see  a  correlation?     2. Discuss  the  references  to  popular  teenage  music  in  the  story.    Look  at  the  instances   in  the  story  where  music  is  mentioned.    How  does  it  influence  the  theme  of  the   story?    Speculate  as  to  why  the  author  dedicated  the  story  to  Bob  Dylan.      Oates  has   claimed  that  she  was  influenced  by  Bob  Dylan's  song  "It's  All  Over  Now,  Baby  Blue.”   Find  the  lyrics.  Discuss  the  connection.   3. Write  about  Arnold  Friend's  car.      What  does  a  car  typically  symbolize  to   teenagers?    What  do  you  make  of  Friend's  funky  jalopy?    What  do  you  suppose  the   numbers  painted  on  the  side  represent?  What  do  you  suppose  will  be  the  NEXT   number  in  the  series?       4. Discuss  the  character  of  Connie.      She  is  impatience  to  assert  her  independence,  and   Arnold  Friend  is  more  than  willing  to  help  her.    How  is  she  vain?    How  is  she  a   typical  middle-­‐class  teenager?    Do  you  see  any  symbolism  in  her  name?    Is  she  to  be   pitied,  scorned,  or  applauded?    Why  is  Arnold  Friend  so  strangely  attractive  to  her?     5. Discuss  the  very  complicated  character  of  Arnold  Friend.    Is  he  simply  a  bad  guy,  or   is  he  evil  personified?      Can  Arnold  Friend  be  compared  to  infamous  murderers  in   real  life?    Oates  has  admitted  that  she  was  inspired  to  write  this  story  by  a  murder   and  rapist  known  as  "The  Red  Piper  of  Tucson,"  whose  case  was  profiled  in  the   March  4,  1966  edition  of  Life  magazine.    How  do  the  physical  descriptions  of  him   paint  a  picture  of  death-­‐like  qualities?    Or  on  the  lighter  side,  do  you  think  he  may  be   a  caricature  of  Bob  Dylan?    What  was  Dylan's  role  in  the  pop-­‐music  culture?    Do  you   believe  that  Arnold  Friend  is  as  omniscient  as  he  claims?    Do  you  see  any  biblical   allusions  in  Arnold  Friend's  physical  description?    Do  you  see  any  symbolism  in  his   name?  (Hint:  play  around  with  the  letters.    What  do  you  get  when  you  remove  the   two  R's  from  his  name?)   6. What  do  you  make  of  Ellie  Oscar?      Do  you  see  any  symbolism  in  his  name?    Any   ideas  on  what  he  is  meant  to  represent?     7. Can  you  form  an  argument  that  pop  music  is  a  type  of  religion  for  Connie?    Offer   specific  evidence  from  the  story  to  support  this  theory.   8. Discuss  the  irony  in  the  story.      How  is  Connie's  reaction  different  from  what  you   would  expect  of  a  typical  victim  of  abduction?    Connie  goes  almost  willingly,  as  some   sort  of  bizarre  heroic  gesture.      Do  you  believe  that  she  goes  with  Arnold  Friend  to   save  her  family?    Do  you  believe  that  Arnold  Friend  has  any  real  power  over  her   family?    Is  this  a  story  about  reality  or  about  deception?     9. Some  of  the  topics  of  this  story  are  youthful  rebellion,  sexual  maturity,  quest  for   independence,  experience  (which  calls  each  of  us),  the  vulnerability  of  youth  and  the   treachery  of  evil.    Can  you  take  one  of  these  topics  (or  another  of  your  own  topic   ideas),  and  phrase  it  into  a  statement  of  theme?                                                                           10. And  finally,  one  word  of  advice  about  the  ending:    We  don't  really  know  what   happens  to  Connie,  but  we  know  it  isn't  good.    Don't  form  an  argument,  however,   that  Connie  is  necessarily  a  victim  of  rape  or  murder.    As  literary  analysts,  we  don't   get  to  write  the  next  page  of  the  story.