Talk:Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?

Additions?

After reading this article I can conclude a lot of important information about the story was left out. The most important: This story is a dream. From the part where she goes outside to dry her hair, lay back in the sun and turn the radio on is where the dream begins. She has this dream because when she saw Arnold at the dinner, he stuck out to her. He is a father figure for her because there is no father figure in her life. At home, Connie's father comes home from work, eats, reads the newspaper then goes to sleep. He pays no attention to his family. Same with Connie's friend's dad, when he picks them up from the movies, he does not ask any questions. A normal dad would ask how the movie was. "What was it about?" "Did you girls like it?" So on and so on. The end is not, "unknown," it is very clear she was taken, raped and killed by Arnold and "Ellie." Ellie is another thing that adds to my claim this story is a dream. What is he even doing there? He is very odd and does not do anything significant. Oates put him in there for a reason. Ellie = Eddie, the boy she hooked up with at the dinner. There is part in the story where Connie goes to pick up the phone but she hears a roar in her ear and find herself backed up to the wall and her back is wet. At this point Arnold had raped her. The wetness is from sweat and the, "stabbing," is the description of him penetrating her with his penis. At the end, one could say she wakes up but she was ultimately taken to be raped, killed and dumped in the desert.

There are as well many symbols in, "WAYG, WHYB?" A section should be made to describe those as well. The Dinner resembles a church, her home, where she finds safety and belonging there. It is tall and has the Big Boy's-like mascot on the top, like a steeple. The diner feels comfortable to Connie and it is her social atmosphere. The highway represents the line between her real life and the life her parents think she lives. Arnold Friend's name is ironic for the same reason said above. It looks like, "An Old Fiend," or, "Are No Friend." He tries to act cool but Fails, the guy is a tool. The screen door represents Connie's vulnerability to guys who want to use her.

I have no sources on this information because these are all conclusions made by simply reading and understanding the story to is fullest potential.