Escape from Reality

Ashley Garcia
7:45am-9:10am
Tues/Thurs
William Oates, “Where Are You Going, Where have you Been, tells the story of a fifteen year old girl Connie, whois in her own world, and isolates herself from her family. In doing so she engages herself in activities that should not be permitted for young teenage girls. As her family goes on an outing, she declines the invite and stays home alone. Two men arrive at Connie’s home, one in particular that Connie recognizes from the restaurant she was never permitted to attend. This man by the name of Arnold Friend is demanding and eventually forces Connie to leave her home, in response to spare her family’s lives.
Connie is the youngest of her one other sibling, June,whom she is constantly compared to. From Connie’s perspective this distances herself away from her family because she knows that she could never amount to the accomplishments of her sister. In response Connie spends more time with her friends, and one in particular;whose parents don’t interrogate much in what their children do, leaving the teenage girls unattended and free to do what they please. Unfortunately this freedom puts Connie in a situation that she has no power over, and is ultimately a result in Connie never seeing her family again.
The problems are unresolved in the end. An everyday teenage girl that focus’ more on her friends and doesn’t show much interest in her family, unfortunately suffers the worst outcome she’d possibly imagine. Sadly, Oates ends the story with aunknown occurrence as to what happens to Connie. How important is family to you? Let us hope, you value them more than your image.