A fifteen - year - old girl who is obsessed with her looks and with boys, a shady man-boy who wants her for his own, and her family who only wants what is best for her. Herein lies the story of Connie and Arnold Friend as written by Joyce Carol Oates. Connie is a girl who craves attention and who will do anything to get it. Arnold Friend is someone who is wanting to give her the attention she seeks out, even though - her being so young - she is not prepared for that sort of attention. This is all as Connie’s family stands by and watches as she slowly wrecks her life. Oates utilizes biblical references in order to make a parallel between Connie and Arnold Friend in this story to Eve and the Snake from the bible; because of this parallel, one can see that men are made to be superior to women, with men being smart and calculating like the snake and women to be foolish, weak, and gullible as with Eve.
In “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been,” Connie is the usual teenage girl. She is vain and extremely shallow. When her mother asks her about certain girls that Connie may not find attractive, Connie goes, “Oh her, that dope,” making sure to distance herself from people who are in some way “beneath her” (Kennedy 724). She also does not think much of her family, namely her sister, June, and her mother. About her mother, Connie says that she is “simple and kindly,” and that that is why Connie can get away with running around everywhere (Kennedy 724). Connie does not speak well of her sister either by saying that June is “so plain and chunky and steady” (Kennedy 722). Connie believes that because of June’s attributes, their mother prefers June to Connie and that that is why she is always on Connie’s case because she and June are jealous of Connie and of her beauty.
Because June is allowed to go out with her friends, Connie is allowed to also with her own. Connie and her friends always has one girl’s father drive them out to the mall, but when he leaves, they go across the highway to a drive-in in order to prowl around with the older kids who are there and to look for boys.
A certain boy who is there takes a great interest in Connie. As she is leaving with a different guy, her and this other boy’s eyes meet and he smiles and says, “Gonna get you baby” (Kennedy 723). She pays no attention to him and soon forgets about him. She does not forget for long; however, because a few days later when her family goes off to a barbeque, the boy shows up at her house. He starts off his conversation with her by flattering her and attempting to impress her. Although the boy has grabbed her attention, she is still trying to play coy in her replies to him. She does little acts such as fidgeting and looking away and flipping her hair to make him think she is not interested when in fact, she is. Finally, the boy tells her his name is Arnold Friend and he starts in on wanting her to come for a ride with him in his car. She says no, but continues to converse with him anyway.
As their conversation goes on, Arnold Friend starts to show Connie that he knows more about her than she thinks he does. Things he should not know, for someone she has just met. He tells her, “I know your name and all about you, lots of things...like I know your parents and sister are gone somewheres and I know where and how long they’re going to be gone, and I know who you were with last night, and your best girlfriend’s name is Betty. Right?” (Kennedy 727).
Arnold Friend knowing all of this information and more starts to frighten Connie, especially when he starts telling her how she is going to leave with him and that he will be her lover and that she is going to love him. Finally, he scares her so badly that she runs into the house trying to call the police. But he tells her that he will not come in after her unless she picks up the phone. He says, “Soon as you touch the phone I don’t need to keep my promise and can come inside. You won’t want that” (Kennedy 730). As he keeps trying to coerce her into coming with him, he threatens her family. He says, “if you don’t come out we’re gonna wait till your people come home and then they’re all going to get it” (Kennedy 731). Finally, after crying and screaming, she decides to go with him so that her family will be safe.
This story is an interesting parallel to the Adam and Eve story from the bible. In this story, Connie takes the place of Eve and Arnold Friend takes the place of the snake (Barendse 25). In the bible, Adam and Eve are put on earth in the Garden of Eden and are told not to eat from the Tree of Knowledge, for it will kill them. Later on, as Eve is walking through the garden, a snake comes up to her asking about the trees in the garden and why she cannot eat from them. She says, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die” (Genesis 2). The snake tells her that neither she, nor her husband will die if they eat the fruit. He tells her that God just does not want them to be as intelligent about the world as he. At first she denies the snake and says no to eating the fruit, but the more she listens to him, the more she starts to believe him. Finally, she takes some of the fruit and eats it, then she takes some to her husband and has him eat it as well. In doing this, they realize they are naked and when God comes into the garden, they hide from him. When God realizes what they have done, he punishes all three of them - the snake included. The snake is forced to slither instead of walk and Adam and Eve are forced to leave the Garden of Eden and never return (Genesis 21).
Just like with Eve not wanting to listen to the snake, Connie knows she should not listen to Arnold Friend. Ultimately; however, both of these women decide to follow along and listen. But while Connie does it to save her family, Eve does it because she thinks God is keeping things from her and her husband. In the end, they must both pay for their actions. Eve is forced to give up living in the garden and being in God’s praise, and when Arnold Friend takes Connie off, she is losing her family and must give up her home and, possibly, her life. There are many parallels between Arnold Friend and the Snake - who in fact is seen as Satan in a disguise. It is said that Arnold Friend is a representation of Satan because of his all-knowingness and the way he speaks to Connie in a sing-song tone. He represents the evil while Connie represents the good.
