English Literature

1. The main character in John Updikes story is a boy named Sammy who works in a grocery store. He is a simple-minded adolescent boy, a fact that is significant in the actions he would do in the story. The storys twist tells the reader that Sammy quits on his job because of the very improper way in which the three female customers (whom he has been observing all throughout the story) have been treated. Maybe he is infatuated with them and this prompts him to quit, but it could also be a sort of protest against the crudeness towards the girls. But even so,  his decision entails a lot of consequences and he realizes this too late. His decision is a representation of his characters impulsiveness and lack of direction.

2. Connie is the main character in Joyce Carol Oates story Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been. In the story, she is lured by a man named Arnold Friend to leave her home and go with him even if Connie could sense that this is dangerous and wrong. Connie is very susceptible to Arnold because she has been slowly entertaining the thought and doubting herself for the longest time. Arnolds character can be compared to the devil that tempts Connie away, and she gives in because Arnold was able to touch her weaknesses. She is convinced that not only is her life at home pointless, but that harm would also come to her family if she does not leave with him. Connie has a weak faith and she has been too wrapped up in her vanity and human shallowness for the longest time, making her an easy prey for the devil.

3. Aside from the fact that both stories use teenagers or young adolescents for their protagonists, the two stories also deal with the themes of responsibility and social awareness. Both stories both touch on the moral lesson that we are responsible for our own actions and every consequence that our decisions entail. Both Sammy and Connie are oriented based on what their society dictates as right or important to them, and they often forget the importance of being responsible to others.

4. Tim O Briens On the Rainy River talks about the personal struggles of a person drafted into the war. The message of the story tells the readers that when one goes to a battle, he or she should not only be physically fit and mentally prepared, but also emotionally capable of handling the war. Being drafted to a war, one is also subjected to pressure from the people around him or her and the demands of the real essence of courage. Hence, going to a war as a soldier will never be an easy decision because it entails responsibility to oneself and to his community.

5. Where are you going, Where have you been
Ethics Connies character in Oates story illustrates that too much affection to worldly treasures as basis for what is good often leads us to commit morally wrong actions and makes us stray from the path of righteousness.