Teenagers are at an awkward stage where they are treated like children but supposed to act like adults. Many teens are sheltered while growing up, and go through a kind of culture shock, not unlike the protagonist Connie [Joyce Carol Oates’ short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?”] goes through. These are often times in a young adult’s life where he or she tries to figure out the future and his or her place there. These teens can get every stressed an overwhelmed they don’t know as much as they once thought. Independence and the sudden realization of growing up can be startling for many teenagers. Like many teenagers, Connie feels a need to be independent. One of the things she hates most is her mother comparing her and her …show more content…
For example, she daydreams of boys while listening to pop tunes on the radio to pass the time, and scoffs at her sister helping around the house. However, when she is faced with a real situation, she has no idea how to handle it. When she is talking with Arnold from the doorway, he tells her these things that it seems impossible for him to know. It is here where she begins to panic. “But my father’s coming back. He’s coming to get me … She thought, I’m not going to get to see my mother again.” (Oates 7, 9). In her panic, she is grasping at thoughts of her parents. While many may have similar thoughts, children are often quick to think of their parents when in times of need. Independence and the sudden realization of growing up can be startling for many teenagers. Teens often go through some sort of shell or culture shock when he or she sees what the world is actually like. In Connie’s case, she realizes that she cannot live two lives. She cannot be a child at home, and be her skewed, naive version of an adult when she is away. Relationships are not as she had imagined them to be. Some teens experience this by moving away from home for school or just moving out. Her terrified feelings of suddenly growing up are something many can relate