Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?.
The techniques that Joyce Carol Oates incorporated throughout "Where Are You Going, Where Have you Been," are ineffective in making this a believable narrative. The one technique the author overused throughout the story is symbolism. The symbolism used in the story is unbelievable because it is obvious the author has contrived the effects to force the reader to feel a certain way, therefore making the story appear more fictional. The other techniques she used was foreshadowing and irony. .
For example, they painted the numbers 33, 19, and 17 in tar black on the back of his gold jalopy. Nevertheless, when these numbers are added they equal 69. The number 69 is a connotation to sex and the numbers foreshadowed Connie getting raped. Although the story is not believable, why would someone be driving a car around with black numbers on it, and even if they did, the meaning behind it would not be as dark as in the story. .
Another example of symbolism is with the flies. The author mentions three different times throughout the story. First there was the "Fly infested Restaurant"(par. 6), second "In the back seat poor old June all dressed up as if she did not know what a barbecue was, with all the running yelling kids and flies" (par. 12). Finally, "She pretended to fidget, chasing flies away from the door" (par. 25). Flies are normally symbolic of death. So when Connie was chasing the flies away from the door, this symbolizes her attempt to chase death away from her. The author foreshadows that Connie was going to die. .
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Another technique the author used is irony. Consider the name Arnold Friend his name alone is totally opposite of the character he plays. A friend is someone that you are close to and can count on anytime. Arnold is the complete opposite of that definition.
