In the short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” the reader witnesses the effects of a determined man preying upon a vulnerable teenager. As he persists to play off her simple teenage mind, she slowly loses herself completely to the fear created by his ruthless persona and the melodic voice that hypnotizes her into a dangerous trance. Her naiveté and innocence, which Joyce Carol Oates directly symbolizes as the presence of music, are quickly removed through her rapist’s penetration of her mind.
At the beginning of the story, Connie is a stereotypical teenage girl: bad relationship with her parents, naïve and innocent, boy-obsessed, superficial in most senses, and possessing a strong passion for music, characteristic of the children of the 1960s. Her life for the most part is simple and carefree. Though she has problems with her parents, they are insignificant in the greater scheme of things. Her life is consumed with trivial activities, pride provided by her beauty and the constant parade of various boys through her life. Music , however, provides her with happiness like nothing else can and an escape from the petty troubles of her days to her “trashy daydreams”. Music is “always in the background” of her life, acting as “something to depend on” and something to free her from her superficial worries and make “everything so good” (6). While boys provide her with entertainment and a sense of self-worth, music gives her “the pure pleasure of being alive” (7). The lyrics and rhythm of the songs that surround her represent the lighthearted joy of the teenage experience. Joyce Carol Oates seamlessly blends musical imagery into the story as a means to portray Connie’s innocence and young desire for sensuality and movement. Connie’s teenage innocence and inexperience, however, leave her unaware of the danger a boy can present and vulnerable to Arnold Friend’s actions. Once her new fake “Friend” robs her of her innocence, the music stops as she witnesses the horrors the world presents and her mind is stolen forever.
Arnold Friend strategically exploits Connie’s gullibility and trust of all things musical to steal all traces of innocence through the rape of her mind. Upon his initial entrance into her life via her driveway, music still pervades her life and therefore her portrayal of him. All her descriptions of this predator deal with his relation to both the music he physically brings and the music he purposefully creates in his voice. His “simple lilting voice” which made it seem “as if he were reciting the words to a song” and his “singsong voice” make her helpless to the power of his personal music (77). He uses actual popular lyrics to relate to her uncultivated mind and trick into the dangerous feeling of momentary comfort. Because she cannot distinguish the beauty of his deliberately-created music from the danger he presents, she doesn’t immediately sense his intentions or his essence of pure evil and therefore seals her fate in the moments she loses to her misconception. Only when she realizes the obviously rehearsed nature of his speech as well as his age does she unveil his true intentions to her mind. By the time she determines his too-perfect representation of music is feigned and that the mixture of his “dreamy smile” and his “perpetual music” does not fit, it is too late (77). By then, he has already commenced his psychological rape and instilled fear too deep within her for her to make the necessary decisions to escape the grasp he has placed on her mind. His sing-song voice has transitioned to a “rapid meaningless voice” lacking its initial reassurance (133). The music has stopped and her innocence has been stolen.
Her uncertainty as to what anchors her to life and lack of a definite identity make it simple for him to pry her from her safe house and to lead her into the unknown, threatening world. At the end of the story, Connie is empty and without meaning in her life; she feels there is “nothing that [is] hers, that belonged to her, but just a pounding, living thing inside [the] body that wasn’t really hers either” (154). Arnold Friend has taken everything of value from her mind leaving her with only her physical body, which soon will also be lost to his evil force. Connie loses control of herself due to her lack of a strongly developed mind which leads to her final demise. The fear he implants in her mind as well as his fatal words completely destroy her ability to make decisions and more importantly any remnants of innocence. Connie is introduced to the real horrors of the world represented by the vast stretches of land “she had never seen before and did not recognize” and is taken away never to return to the carefree days of her adolescence (161). (810)
Discussion questions:
http://video.tvguide.com/search/Laura+Dern
Compare the song to the story. http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/bobdylan/itsallovernowbabyblue.html
At what exact moment does she finally realize her fate?
As soon as he arrives, is there a possible good outcome? Is there anything she could have done differently to change her fate?
How much of a role do you think the family plays? Does the absence of the dad in her life important to her demise?
What is the effect of Connie as the narrator instead of Arnold Friend?
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
The Insecure, Power-Hungry Man of Five-Forty Eight
When first introduced to Blake, the main character of The Five-Forty Eight, the reader is left completely unaware of the insecure man whose main purpose and desire in life is to feed on those persons he deems lacking in “self-esteem” or simply weaker than himself. As the story progresses however, we begin to see the true motives behind his hideous behavior. Inside the character that outwardly lacks morals and guilt is an insecure guy man in search of power to prove his self-worth.
From the beginning of the story, it is obvious to the reader that though he appears self-important at the same time some of his inner-monologue demonstrates his obvious insecurity. He characterizes himself as an “insignificant man” and states that there was “no point in anyone’s following him from his office” (4). He recognizes that though he feigns importance in many situations, in truth he is “undistinguished in every way” in the greater scheme of society (11). His insecurity is furthered by his lack of real acquaintances. His lack of solid relationships with his wife as well as his neighbors leaves him with no real friends whom he can confide in. Even his wife is an “unpleasant stranger”, and yet she is the closest person to him. This deficiency of relations creates loneliness within him and adds to his insecurity. He has no one to reinforce his undeserved self-worth, no one to comfort him, and no one to soothe his insecurities. This form is insecurity is demonstrated clearly when he seeks to “affirm his sense of actuality,” the simple fact that he exists in the minds of others. Though his insecurities seem to excuse him from his actions, his power-hungry attitude towards others cancel all sympathy the reader may feel.
Blake’s almost innate tendency to feed on weaker beings is sensed at the beginning of story, and plays a huge part in the formation of his personality as well as the progression of the story. His constant need for power is the driving force behind this disgusting tendency. It is clearly illustrated through his relationship with his wife and the various women in his life, and also less prominently through his judgmental observations of those around him. His relationship with his wife is one of constant fighting on trivial subjects with the clear domination of Blake due to his authoritative and downright mean attitude towards his wife. His wife’s kind nature and desire to please him leave her the submissive, powerless member of the marriage only affording Blake more power. As to his constant flings with other women, he even states himself, or rather recognizes through thought, that “[m]ost of the women he had known [and preyed upon] had been picked for their lack of self-esteem” (8). His routine of hiring, using and firing along with this mentality demonstrate his need for power over those he knows are easy targets. Each conquest is a way of proving his self-worth as a man and a powerful figure. He recognizes his insignificance in the world and seeks to reverse such a notion in the form of his using women. He also reaffirms his self-worth and importance by criticizing the people around him thus raising himself in comparison. He marks the humans around him as “rich, poor, brilliant or dull” in order to his superiority over the weaker humans (23). It is made obvious through such actions that his need for power and superiority is a direct consequence of his insecurity.
Though one can try to excuse his behavior, at the end of the story I was still left with the notion that he was a jerk (no other way to say it without profanities). It is clear when he walks away feeling “safe” that he has no desire or plan to change (62). There is no way to excuse his behavior. His treatment of others is absolutely despicable and in my case, I wish she had killed him and showed him the same lack of humanity he had showed her. Though she was crazy, I excuse her actions due my pure hatred of Blake. He deserves to die. The end :) (686)
From the beginning of the story, it is obvious to the reader that though he appears self-important at the same time some of his inner-monologue demonstrates his obvious insecurity. He characterizes himself as an “insignificant man” and states that there was “no point in anyone’s following him from his office” (4). He recognizes that though he feigns importance in many situations, in truth he is “undistinguished in every way” in the greater scheme of society (11). His insecurity is furthered by his lack of real acquaintances. His lack of solid relationships with his wife as well as his neighbors leaves him with no real friends whom he can confide in. Even his wife is an “unpleasant stranger”, and yet she is the closest person to him. This deficiency of relations creates loneliness within him and adds to his insecurity. He has no one to reinforce his undeserved self-worth, no one to comfort him, and no one to soothe his insecurities. This form is insecurity is demonstrated clearly when he seeks to “affirm his sense of actuality,” the simple fact that he exists in the minds of others. Though his insecurities seem to excuse him from his actions, his power-hungry attitude towards others cancel all sympathy the reader may feel.
Blake’s almost innate tendency to feed on weaker beings is sensed at the beginning of story, and plays a huge part in the formation of his personality as well as the progression of the story. His constant need for power is the driving force behind this disgusting tendency. It is clearly illustrated through his relationship with his wife and the various women in his life, and also less prominently through his judgmental observations of those around him. His relationship with his wife is one of constant fighting on trivial subjects with the clear domination of Blake due to his authoritative and downright mean attitude towards his wife. His wife’s kind nature and desire to please him leave her the submissive, powerless member of the marriage only affording Blake more power. As to his constant flings with other women, he even states himself, or rather recognizes through thought, that “[m]ost of the women he had known [and preyed upon] had been picked for their lack of self-esteem” (8). His routine of hiring, using and firing along with this mentality demonstrate his need for power over those he knows are easy targets. Each conquest is a way of proving his self-worth as a man and a powerful figure. He recognizes his insignificance in the world and seeks to reverse such a notion in the form of his using women. He also reaffirms his self-worth and importance by criticizing the people around him thus raising himself in comparison. He marks the humans around him as “rich, poor, brilliant or dull” in order to his superiority over the weaker humans (23). It is made obvious through such actions that his need for power and superiority is a direct consequence of his insecurity.
Though one can try to excuse his behavior, at the end of the story I was still left with the notion that he was a jerk (no other way to say it without profanities). It is clear when he walks away feeling “safe” that he has no desire or plan to change (62). There is no way to excuse his behavior. His treatment of others is absolutely despicable and in my case, I wish she had killed him and showed him the same lack of humanity he had showed her. Though she was crazy, I excuse her actions due my pure hatred of Blake. He deserves to die. The end :) (686)
Sunday, September 21, 2008
Blinding Jealousy
From the beginning of the short story “The Cathedral”, the jealousy of the narrator towards the blind man is prominent in his narration and especially his interjections. This jealousy makes acceptance of the any unusual, unknown person impossible. Because he cannot directly place himself in such a relationship, a friendship with a blind man, his understanding is not limited but rather nonexistent. Not until the end of the story, when prejudice and jealousy is set aside can a relationship exist.
Even before the blind man enters the house, the husband’s tone towards the visit of his wife’s friend is one of disappointment and worry. He is not at all “enthusiastic about his visit. He was no one [he] knew. And his being blind bother[s] [him] (1).” Though prejudice is the main reason for such thoughts, the husband also demonstrates jealousy in regard to the deep connection the blind man and his wife have. The jealousy is almost comparable to that he has for his wife’s ex-husband, but in this case the jealousy rests in the present. He sees the blind man as a threat, mainly because the blind man’s relationship with his wife is deeper than his own. His resentment is never cleverly hidden and his wife perceives it with annoyance, only further kindling the flame of jealousy. He begins to feel separated from his wife in their already strained marriage. Instead of putting himself in Robert’s position, the narrator blames him for his inability to see and also for his own resentment towards him. When his leaves and he sits waiting at home, he directs his impatience towards the wife’s dear friend out of jealousy. In the opening scenes, jealousy is the primary motive of all his despicable, annoying actions.
The arrival of the friend only worsens the jealousy of the husband. The wife’s radiant smile and the two’s flowing conversation triggers a sense of separation and also outlines a lack of understanding and intimacy within the marriage. When the wife finally addresses her husband, the husband feels that “she didn’t like what she saw (31).” He feels separated from the group and worthless in the eyes of his spouse. The husband is swept to the sidelines almost placing him as a bystander like the reader. The relationship of the wife and Robert is visibly stronger and more like a marriage in actions and caring than their own in the short story. From the entrance of Robert into the house until the wife’s departure from the room, the wife and her friend form a team working together in harmony, the true makings of a marriage. “This blind man filled his ashtray [with cigarette dustings] and [the] wife empties it (43).” The only reasonable response of the husband is jealousy. He feels momentarily robbed of his marriage and bond with his wife, made worse in his eyes by the fact that he deems any blind man unworthy of such an honor. He is further angered as he listens to their conversation and he “wait[s] in vain to hear [his] name on [his] wife’s sweet lips (46).” He feels threatened by his absence from the lips and mind of his wife; it is as if he no longer exists in his wife’s world, replaced by the blind man. He occasionally interjects his own words into the conversation to emphasize his lost presence in the room and in their lives. His sense of displacement is the primary reason for his jealousy, a natural reaction of anyone in love with another. His jealousy blinds him and disallows him from seeing the true goodness of the blind man.
Though his prejudice does not help his unwillingness to accept the blind man in the beginning of their meeting, the husband’s feeling that he has been replaced is the primary cause for this resentment. At first, he cannot get past this to truly learn about the blind man or experience the unique friendship he offers. Only when he can ignore his jealousy and accept the man does a friendship begin to form. (677)
Even before the blind man enters the house, the husband’s tone towards the visit of his wife’s friend is one of disappointment and worry. He is not at all “enthusiastic about his visit. He was no one [he] knew. And his being blind bother[s] [him] (1).” Though prejudice is the main reason for such thoughts, the husband also demonstrates jealousy in regard to the deep connection the blind man and his wife have. The jealousy is almost comparable to that he has for his wife’s ex-husband, but in this case the jealousy rests in the present. He sees the blind man as a threat, mainly because the blind man’s relationship with his wife is deeper than his own. His resentment is never cleverly hidden and his wife perceives it with annoyance, only further kindling the flame of jealousy. He begins to feel separated from his wife in their already strained marriage. Instead of putting himself in Robert’s position, the narrator blames him for his inability to see and also for his own resentment towards him. When his leaves and he sits waiting at home, he directs his impatience towards the wife’s dear friend out of jealousy. In the opening scenes, jealousy is the primary motive of all his despicable, annoying actions.
The arrival of the friend only worsens the jealousy of the husband. The wife’s radiant smile and the two’s flowing conversation triggers a sense of separation and also outlines a lack of understanding and intimacy within the marriage. When the wife finally addresses her husband, the husband feels that “she didn’t like what she saw (31).” He feels separated from the group and worthless in the eyes of his spouse. The husband is swept to the sidelines almost placing him as a bystander like the reader. The relationship of the wife and Robert is visibly stronger and more like a marriage in actions and caring than their own in the short story. From the entrance of Robert into the house until the wife’s departure from the room, the wife and her friend form a team working together in harmony, the true makings of a marriage. “This blind man filled his ashtray [with cigarette dustings] and [the] wife empties it (43).” The only reasonable response of the husband is jealousy. He feels momentarily robbed of his marriage and bond with his wife, made worse in his eyes by the fact that he deems any blind man unworthy of such an honor. He is further angered as he listens to their conversation and he “wait[s] in vain to hear [his] name on [his] wife’s sweet lips (46).” He feels threatened by his absence from the lips and mind of his wife; it is as if he no longer exists in his wife’s world, replaced by the blind man. He occasionally interjects his own words into the conversation to emphasize his lost presence in the room and in their lives. His sense of displacement is the primary reason for his jealousy, a natural reaction of anyone in love with another. His jealousy blinds him and disallows him from seeing the true goodness of the blind man.
Though his prejudice does not help his unwillingness to accept the blind man in the beginning of their meeting, the husband’s feeling that he has been replaced is the primary cause for this resentment. At first, he cannot get past this to truly learn about the blind man or experience the unique friendship he offers. Only when he can ignore his jealousy and accept the man does a friendship begin to form. (677)
Thursday, September 11, 2008
The Real Disturbed Child in the Teenage Wasteland
The short story “Teenage Wasteland” explores the insecurity of an adult whose selfish desire for acceptance causes him to separate families and to ruin the lives of innocent, unsuspecting teenagers. When we first meet Cal, we want to believe that due to his ability to connect with teenagers will be able to help Donny. Even though Donny’s mother while “passing the living room [] winces”, the reader do not initially interpret this as a foreshadowing to the rest of the short story (38). We are even given hope when his attitude in school improves, but soon after we begin to see Cal’s true colors.
From the moment Cal suggests looser rules for a child already in a lax family, the reader realizes Cal wants not to help Donny but rather feed his selfish need for acceptance. Instead of acting like a mentor, he acts like a friend to them due to his childish desires and therefore disregards the children’s real needs. He uses his authority as an adult to override the parent’s own judgment and rightful authority over their own child. At one point in the story, Daisy begins to realize his overly pretentious attitude towards her and her husband when she says “The tutor had set down so many rules!” (39) Unfortunately she does not act off her frustration so the cycle continues. Daisy is incapable of escaping Cal’s spell, because of the false hope that somehow he will help her otherwise seemingly hopeless child. Her fear of him having the same “miserable adolescence…[that she] had always sworn no child of hers would ever” have causes her to disregard her instincts (38). He completely separates the family by taking control of Donny’s life and in turn creates his own family.
Cal’s lack of a support system and family cause him to steal the families of others. He is a child. His history of being controlled, by figures such as his wife, cause him to reach out for understanding by building a network of those who feel equally controlled by their parents. He helps them escape and bonds with them over their mutual pain. His mental level being that of a teenager for the most part the only eligible candidates for such a job were teenagers. Everyone realizes Cal wasn’t “like a grown-up at all” but few realize the consequences of giving such a mentally unstable “teenager” the responsibility of a child, in fact multiple children (41). Cal even possesses the responses of a child, the inability to blame oneself or one’s friends as a means of self-preservation and protection. He almost has a fear of getting in a trouble, a natural reaction among preschoolers but generally not adults. When Cal gets kicked out of school, instead of blaming his buddy Donny, he blames the school, the obvious innocent party in the incident, adding an equally obvious lie to reinforce his blame. He lives through his children, yet each individual means nothing; only the entire “family” he has created has meaning to his cold heart. As long as he is surrounded by acceptance, he could care less about the individual pain or desires of his patients. While they exist in the family, they are his friends. When they are gone, the relationship is likewise terminated. When Donnie leaves the program, Cal “does not object. He admit[s] he’d made no headway with Donny and said it was because Donny was emotionally disturbed” (42). He is unable to accept a failure and therefore blames the failure on the child, a past friend who no longer exists in his shallow world.
Donny is sucked dry of all desire to live and function as a community member when he loses the artificial family he had depended upon for all those months. Cal takes all he needs for Donny and leaves him cold and alone upon his departure. Donny’s parents, or rather Daisy, do not realize the effects of Cal on their child until Cal has sucked all the elements vital to survival from Donny’s system. First he builds a trust with a child that no force can break, leaving them untrusting of the rest of the world, and when he is gone from their lives they are lost and have inwardly disappeared from the world even before their physical disappearance. Cal has “a smile of hunger” both “feverish and avid” devouring the souls of the children he destroys, leaving them alone and trusting of no one (42). Cal’s desire to fit in kills children like Donny, showing that indeed he is the child in need of help. (764)
From the moment Cal suggests looser rules for a child already in a lax family, the reader realizes Cal wants not to help Donny but rather feed his selfish need for acceptance. Instead of acting like a mentor, he acts like a friend to them due to his childish desires and therefore disregards the children’s real needs. He uses his authority as an adult to override the parent’s own judgment and rightful authority over their own child. At one point in the story, Daisy begins to realize his overly pretentious attitude towards her and her husband when she says “The tutor had set down so many rules!” (39) Unfortunately she does not act off her frustration so the cycle continues. Daisy is incapable of escaping Cal’s spell, because of the false hope that somehow he will help her otherwise seemingly hopeless child. Her fear of him having the same “miserable adolescence…[that she] had always sworn no child of hers would ever” have causes her to disregard her instincts (38). He completely separates the family by taking control of Donny’s life and in turn creates his own family.
Cal’s lack of a support system and family cause him to steal the families of others. He is a child. His history of being controlled, by figures such as his wife, cause him to reach out for understanding by building a network of those who feel equally controlled by their parents. He helps them escape and bonds with them over their mutual pain. His mental level being that of a teenager for the most part the only eligible candidates for such a job were teenagers. Everyone realizes Cal wasn’t “like a grown-up at all” but few realize the consequences of giving such a mentally unstable “teenager” the responsibility of a child, in fact multiple children (41). Cal even possesses the responses of a child, the inability to blame oneself or one’s friends as a means of self-preservation and protection. He almost has a fear of getting in a trouble, a natural reaction among preschoolers but generally not adults. When Cal gets kicked out of school, instead of blaming his buddy Donny, he blames the school, the obvious innocent party in the incident, adding an equally obvious lie to reinforce his blame. He lives through his children, yet each individual means nothing; only the entire “family” he has created has meaning to his cold heart. As long as he is surrounded by acceptance, he could care less about the individual pain or desires of his patients. While they exist in the family, they are his friends. When they are gone, the relationship is likewise terminated. When Donnie leaves the program, Cal “does not object. He admit[s] he’d made no headway with Donny and said it was because Donny was emotionally disturbed” (42). He is unable to accept a failure and therefore blames the failure on the child, a past friend who no longer exists in his shallow world.
Donny is sucked dry of all desire to live and function as a community member when he loses the artificial family he had depended upon for all those months. Cal takes all he needs for Donny and leaves him cold and alone upon his departure. Donny’s parents, or rather Daisy, do not realize the effects of Cal on their child until Cal has sucked all the elements vital to survival from Donny’s system. First he builds a trust with a child that no force can break, leaving them untrusting of the rest of the world, and when he is gone from their lives they are lost and have inwardly disappeared from the world even before their physical disappearance. Cal has “a smile of hunger” both “feverish and avid” devouring the souls of the children he destroys, leaving them alone and trusting of no one (42). Cal’s desire to fit in kills children like Donny, showing that indeed he is the child in need of help. (764)
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