Thursday, November 20, 2014

What is the significance and possible symbolism in the title of "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?"

The title overtly applies to the frequent questions which
Connie's mother plagues her with. In response to these questions, Connie lies and is
surprised at the apparent "simplicity" of her mother and the way that she is so ready to
believe and trust Connie and what she says. Not only does the title focus us in
therefore on an experience that is one that all adolescents can relate to, it also
emphasises the strange, nebulous, in-between phase of adolescence that Connie is going
through. The main theme of the story is about how adolescence is such a turbulent time
that can leave adolescents particularly vulnerable to psychological manipulation such as
that administered on Connie by Arnold Friend. Thus the title also calls to mind this
strange, in-between state, by focusing on the way that adolescence is in many ways a
state of limbo between your past, where you have been, and your future, where you are
going. By developing the character of Connie at this stage of her life, the author
depicts a character that is strangely vunlnerable and unsure of her own identity, as is
reinforced by such comments as:


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She wore a pullover jersey top that looked one
way when she was at home and another way when she was away from home. Everything about
her had two sides to it, one for home and one for anywhere that was not
home...



Such passages, along
with the title, help to reinforce the vulnerability of Connie as a
character.

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