Lawrence--"Horse Dealer??s Daughter"

"Where Are You Going , Where Have You Been

Joyce Carol Oates "Where Are You Going , Where Have you Been " is a rather dark coming of age short story . The reader is introduced to the life of a typically rebellious fifteen year old girl named Connie who encounters a very traumatizing experience at the end of the story the hanging ending forebodes only bad things to come next for the main character . For most of the story , Connie is motivated by teenage rebellion , spurred on by the over-protectiveness of her mother and the

constant comparison with her reliable but "frumpy " sister . Her father is also described as not only being oblivious of the happenings in their family but not really caring to participate in the females ' lives Connie has two very different personalities the sardonic yet technically "good girl " image she projected at home and the extroverted and sexual personality she extruded when out with her friends . She wants to be treated like an adult , to be left to her own devices and trusted and yet she lives a double life . Connie is what can be termed as a dynamic character because , from the definition , her character changes drastically during the duration of the story . Her change is abrupt though , and it happens during the last scene . Her final , harrowing encounter with Arnold Friend forces the two parts of her personality to come crashing together , leaving her dazed and confused . She had wanted to be as mature as possible , but now...