Oates, "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?"

http://www.cusd200.org/cms/lib7/IL01001538/Centricity/Domain/361/oates_going.pdf

Pick one of the three option below. No need to write more than 650 words:

1. Examine the words and actions of Arnold Friend as a study in predatory and controlling behavior. What methods does he use in his attempt to manipulate Connie? Does he succeed? Assuming the reader is not familiar with the crimes of Charles Schmid, the source for this character, how does Joyce Carol Oates enable the reader to arrive at the conclusion that Arnold Friend is a dangerous predator and not just another harmless, well-intentioned "friend" who wants to take Connie for a drive?

2. Aristotle wrote in The Poetics that the audience of a tragedy experiences a catharsis of Pity and Terror. We feel pity for the protagonist because his or her fate seems inevitable, beyond his or her control. We feel terror because the same fate could have been our own. How does our experience as a reader of "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?" produce that catharsis of pity and terror? Hints: In what ways are Connie's actions and mistakes "natural" and part of human development? In what ways does the story serve as (according to Joyce Carol Oates herself) a "cautionary tale" because the events described could happen to anyone?

3. Write an essay to support or dispute the following statement: Part of the emotional impact of "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?" comes as the reader observes the "transformation" of Connie from a self-absorbed young teenager to a tragic hero. She gains insight into her own mistakes, accepts the responsibility for them, and makes the ultimate personal sacrifice as the consequence for them.
Make sure you support your argument with evidence from the text.