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Analysis Of Arnold 's ' An Old Fiend '

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1. Arnold Friend 's name can be interpreted as being "a friend." Also, by removing the r 's, his name becomes "an old fiend," which can be interpreted as a reference to a demon or even Satan. What other clues are there that Arnold is not who he claims to be? The physical traits of Arnold Friend that the narrator describes are additional clues that Arnold is not who he claims to be. The three physical traits are: his eyelashes look painted, it looks like he is wearing a wig, and he put something in his shoes to make himself taller: “she saw how thick the lashes were, thick and black as if painted with a black tarlike material” (Oates, 1966), “He placed his sunglasses on top of his head, carefully, as if he were indeed wearing a wig, and …show more content…

Her family was not there to protect her from loss of innocence. 3. When Connie realizes how dire her situation is, Arnold says the following: The place where you came from ain 't there anymore, and where you had in mind to go is cancelled out. This place you are now—inside your daddy 's house—is nothing but a cardboard box I can knock down any time. You know that and always did know it. You hear me? What does he mean by this? The house being like cardboard can represent two things: Connie’s relationship to her parents, and innocence. Connie’s relationships with her family and tradition are too weak to save her. Due to her longings for independence, Connie appears to reject traditional roles of women and her mother and sister for following these roles. In the end, Arnold came to take her from these traditional roles and to break her connections with her family. The second representation is that Connie desires to be a woman and she experiments with sexuality. However, her experiments always bring her back to the safety of her family and home. However, Arnold started to talk with her using perverse and suggestive language. This leads to her to a hopeless state, where in the end

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