“Where are you going, where have you been?” is a short story written by Joyce Carol Oates. Our protagonist is a fifteen year old girl named Connie. She is in a period of teenage rebellion like many other kids. He uses music and imagination to isolate himself from the world he hates. The only thing that matters to her and the only purpose of her life is whether there is a boy who can take her away from the constraints of her family. This is what she calls "love". Connie's life is very empty. Not only does he not care about his family, but also about his behavior on the outside, what he pursues is only momentary pleasure. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay One night, while Connie was in the mall with her friends, she met a boy who had “soft black hair and drove an old gold-painted convertible” saying “I'll get you”. One day early, when Connie was dumped home alone with her family.The boy Arnold and his friend Ellie showed up with a great look that Connie wanted and started to convince Connie to go out.But when Connie starts to doubt and panic threaten Connie to leave the house using lies and belittling At the end of the story, Connie obeyed the boy's will after her inner struggle, and her tragedy also unfolded, she will have to face the possibility of being hurt by this demonic boy and by her friends. Although her tragedy was caused directly by Arnold, it was also caused indirectly by her family and herself. Connie's tragedy comes from two aspects: male suppression and self-exclusion from females. Male characters that appear in this novel include Connie's father, boyfriend Eddie, Arnold Flander, and her friend Ellie Oscar. Everyone has some connection to the heroine of this novel and her tragic final fate. Among the three, the male characters most closely linked to Connie's tragedy are Connie's father and son Arnold. Connie's father is a representative of American patriarchal society. He is the breadwinner and one of Connie's closest relatives, but he only cares about himself. The lack of communication between him and his daughter made it difficult for Connie to feel the warmth and care of the family, but she felt profoundly alone. To seek comfort that Connie couldn't get from home, Connie had to go out and hang out with her friend. This behavior is extremely dangerous for a beautiful girl who does not have the basic idea of ​​​​society. The father's behavior is actually a kind of cold violence in the family. It was this cold domestic violence that forced Connie to leave home and face unknown dangers. Dad couldn't give Connie enough security, only indifference. In the story, Connie's father does not have his own name, which makes his identity more universal. He can be anyone's father. As a male group, they dominate this society full of indifference and violence against women. Compared to Connie's father's cold violence against Connie, Arnold Friend directly insulted the girl with words, and it is likely that he would physically harm her. When he convinced Connie to leave the house, he continued to vow to destroy Connie's will. Additionally, Arnold Friend threatened Connie with words, causing her to cry "in a sad voice, she was trapped in this cry, just like she was trapped in this house." This metaphor suggests that Connie was controlled by Arnold Friend, just as she was controlled by her family. Eventually, she left home under Arnold's threat and became the devil's prey. In that final moment, Connie could only“seeing the door slowly open, watching the body and long-haired head walk into the sunlight, while Arnold Friend was waiting.” These words show that Connie clearly knew what was waiting for her. But he didn't have enough strength to protect himself from the danger outside the door. The situation at this pointmoment and Bob Dylan's song "It's all over now, melancholy baby" are skillfully integrated: Connie's innocence and even life are about to be destroyed, and Connie will turn into a poor sad little girl. From Arnold Friend, we can find not only the dominance of men over women, but also the aesthetic standards that men set for women. The reason why Arnold Friend tempted Connie is that, according to the aesthetic standards of the male world, Connie is a beautiful girl. In the conversation between Connie and Arnold Friend referring to Connie's sister June, Arnold said, "And your sister, she wears a blue skirt, huh?" He's still walking on high heels, that sad, pitiful worm... he's not like you at all, dear!' June was simply verbally abused by a man like Arnold just because he was "normal, short and fat". Referring to another woman, Mrs Hornsby, Arnold said: "She's too fat, I don't like them so fat, I like you, my dear." These unfair standards towards women have caused this dangerous thing to happen. Three female characters related to Connie appear in this story: Connie's mother, Connie's sister June, and Connie herself. They have very different personalities in the story. The difference in personality creates different experiences in their lives. Connie's mother is a typical American housewife. She has no personality traits, but only appears as Connie's mother. She has no strengths to make herself unique in society. She has to stay at home and become a housewife, but she cannot get any help from her husband. Connie's father went to work, and when he returned home, he just waited to receive the services of Connie's mother. Obey the standards men set for women. The women's role is to stay at home like Connie's mother and her sister June. Connie's mother continued to blame Connie's rebellious behavior by using masculine standards of women. Connie's mother also appeared as Connie's suppressor on the road to freedom and joy. She was once young and beautiful, but now she is old and declining, and her daughter Connie is young and beautiful. Connie's youthful beauty is in stark contrast to her aesthetic decline, so she always belittles Connie's skinny daughter. What he devalued was not only his daughter, but also his own friends. "His mother, calling her sisters, complained to this one, and complained to this one again." Connie's mother never realized her submissive personality and passive situation. Not only was she satisfied with her situation, but she also set standards for Connie so that Connie would be in the same position. When Connie failed to meet this standard, she used her mother's identity to insult her indiscriminately. She didn't try to understand her daughter, but devalued them to highlight herself. As her mother's favorite child, Sister June is a "formed" "angel." She has her job as a secretary in Connie's school. Her work has been recognized by society as conforming to the role and identity of women. She is also an exemplary model of a woman and a good girl. She was praised and favored by her mother only because she helped with household chores, and was "average, short and fat but behaved steadily." These characteristics allowed her to become a housewife like her mother. Other than these, she is like her mother and has no personality. Because she has a lot in common with her mother, she is regarded by her mother.