Where Are You Going, Where Have You Beenvs. Tall Tales from the Mekong Delta - Essay Example

of the of the English 1302 Essay Assignment Submitted “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?”vs. "Tall Tales from the Mekong Delta" Introduction The short story is a genre that you don’t often see discussed in mainstream literature. In fact few really good short story writers exist, if at all. We seldom see talent of the calibre of Stephen Crane, Somerset Maugham, O’Henry, Edgar Allan Poe and Raymond Carver. This makes it all the more wonderful to read a really good and compelling short story, and these short masterpieces by Joyce Carol Oates and Kate Braverman prove that the craft is still alive and well.

Both ‘Where are you going, where have you been?’ and ‘Tall Tales from the Mekong Delta’, winners of the Best American Short stories 1967 and 1991 respectively deserve accolades and recognition for bringing to light the difficulties of adolescence and the dominance of the male in exploiting the vulnerabilities of the female even in enlightened and free societies like ours. Discussion The two stories ‘Where are you going, where have you been?’(1967) and ‘Tall Tales from the Mekong Delta’ (1991) by Joyce Carol Oates and Kate Braverman respectively talk about a common problem that has not disappeared or changed despite the lapse of a generation.

(Someone once said that every twenty years there is a new generation, and this is in fact an astute observation if you care to think about it). This is the seduction of young females by alpha males, full of bravado and a devil-may-care attitude. Fuelled by reading stuff on the Internet or popular literature that reiterates that the only thing that matters is confidence, they approach the female with the intention of sweeping her off her feet- with their confidence, that is. Some people would have us believe that this premise in fact dates back to the days of prehistoric man when he simply carried off the female he wanted after showing her that he could provide for her and a family.

Despite scientific claims and evidence from the animal world that it is in fact the female who eventually decides which male she wants to spend her life with, the courtship is almost always started by the male. We have offers to buy drinks leading to offers to take women home, or spend some time together. But here it is worthwhile to remember that Connie and the unnamed female in Tall Tales are victims rather than protagonists. They are on the receiving end of the stick and can’t do anything about it.

Or can they? One is an adolescent who is looking for attention, while the other is a single mother and addict recovering from drug and alcohol abuse. Both are preyed upon by males who want to take them to bed- one would be content to have his way with Connie in the fields near her own house, while the other man Lenny wants to make the female a courier, a provider and live off her income. Both males are shown to have murderous tendencies and there is a fear that they may even carry out their threats.

But the real reason they succeed in these stories is that because there seems to be an innate weakness in the females that tells them they have to succumb to their abusers. Lenny says: ‘I got some tall tales from the Mekong Delta for you, sweetheart. Knock your socks off.’ (Abcarian et al, pp), while Arnold Friend says: ‘It's all over for you here, so come on out. You don't want your people in any trouble, do you?’ (Abcarian et al, pp). Connie could have refused to open the door and called the police without delay.

The single mother in Tall Tales could have also reported Lenny to the police and claimed harassment and stalking. But they do not take that step. We end up asking, is this vulnerability socially constructed or innate? Could be some of both, for all I know. Anyway we will never know, as both females succumb to their captors eventually. Works Cited Abcarian, Richard; Klotz, Marvin & Cohen, Samuel. Literature: The Human Experience. Tenth edition. New York: Bedford/St. Martins, 2010.