Reaction Paper-Alfie Tutt

Reaction Paper

Gretchen Schulz and R.J.R. Rockwood in their article Fairyland without a map, discuss in detail how Connie’s perception of the world around her has effected her actions. Moreover the article shows how the author uses fairytale stories as motifs to be followed by Connie in the story. After re-reading the story again, the apparent connection between Connie’s perception on the characters, and the motifs impacting the direction of the story, are both easily identifiable.

Arnold Friend plays a vital role because we view him as Connie’s inner world does, Connie determines how “Arnold is, or has to be, at least in her eyes…effectively rearrange and remodel the world of objective reality”(Schulz, Rockwood 114).  Furthermore the authors point out that the book is heavily based on “psychological realism” essentially meaning more emphasis is added to the characterization of a character and their internal responses to circumstances. Connie in the book is the perfect example of how psychological realism is used, the use of psychological realism makes it seem that Friend’s qualities are presented subjectively instead of objective with facts. It is important to point out that Connie embodies the average teenager at this time, as she is fascinated and frightened at the same time which trap her in a traumatic situation in which she does not know what to do, Connie "couldn't decide if she liked him or if he was just a jerk, and so she dawdled in the doorway and wouldn't come down or go back inside”(Oates 4). Later in the article it is pointed out that because of Motifs and symbolism used in the book, Arnold Friend is a character that Connie could not resist being interested in because he embodies the type of music she loves. The article later shows how Connie’s view of Arnold Friend results in her coming out of the womb as “the women in Connie wants to be born” (Schulz, Rockwood 127), creating the connection to Little Red Riding Hood with Arnold Friend being the woodcutter forcing her out her comfort zone.

Connie’s indecisiveness directly connects to her inability to understand whether she belongs in society, constantly stuck between “home and anywhere that was not home…at the boundary between childhood and adulthood, hesitant and yet anxious”. Later in their article, Schulz and Rockwood examine the behavior of Connie as stuck in the difficult transition away from childhood and therefore needing help from others to turn towards maturity and personal identity. Connie’s perception of the world is moreover altered due to the author’s personal style. Oates throughout her life used vivid imagery and symbolism in order to explain stories and further the plot similar to myths or folk tales. The symbolism was shown in other such books as The Assassins, but is even more prevalent in relation to Connie. Oates book uses “Motifs from such tales as "The Spirit in the bottle…Cinderella…and The Three Little Pigs”(Schulz, Rockwood 116). The article points out that Connie’s actions shows that children can compensate creating a happier ending to the situation. One book, The Spirit in the Bottle, is used as a motif because the bottle “is the drive-in restaurant where the tee-agers hangout…the boy on the bottle cap reminds us of the boy named Eddie” (Schulz, Rockwood 118).  Schulz and Rockwood show that the use of The Spirit in the Bottle… creates the mistake of Connie in inciting Arnold Friend’s interest in her. Similar to the fair tale “Connie has uncorked the bottle, but…she is not equipped to recognize…the laughing Arnold friend as the potentially destructive force which must be controlled” (Schulz, Rockwood 119)

However, as pointed out in the article Connie does not follow the trend but furthermore is symbolic for the whole generation, that has dramatically changed since previous ones. As mentioned “the only ‘stories’ Connie knows are those of the sexually provocative but superficial lyrics of the popular songs”(Schulz, Rockwood 116). The problem with these songs is that they present no model of behavior as previously mentioned stories, creating a false imagery of life. I found it interesting how the article briefly makes the connection of Connie’s generation comparative to stories such as the Burghers of Hamelin, as these stories are used as motifs for Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been”.

In conclusion, the article “Fairyland Without a Map”, written by Gretchen Schulz and R.J.R. Rockwood, accurately makes a reference to the strong use of Connie’s inner world in reference to psychological realism. The article also makes a strong connection between fairytales and the story with the use of motifs, creating a meaning to the story.

Work cited:

Gretchen, Schulz, and R.J.R, Rockwood. In Fairyland, without a Map: Connie’s Exploration Inward in Joyce Carol Oates. Literature and Phycology 30, 198-. Print.

Oates, Joyce Carol, and Elaine Showalter. "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?" New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers UP, 1994. Print.