There are both similarities and differences between "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been" by Joyce Oates and "There Once Was" by Margaret Atwood. Both stories deal with the negative treatment of women. In "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been" it is a physical mistreatment that is shown, whereas in "There Once Was" the treatment is in the form of a mental state. However the tone "There Once Was" is more of a humorous, yet subtle style, compared to the intense, dramatic style that Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been" is written in. However both deal with women being looked down on. 

In "Where Are Young Going, Where Have You Been" the mistreatment of a young girl named Connie is shown through an abusive, overpowering style. In this story Connie is left alone and a man comes to the house and approaches the young girl, asking for her to come with him. "Seen you that night and thought, that's the one, yes sir. I never needed to look anymore." (Oates 343) This quote shows her stalkers disturbing tone towards her, but shows the fact that he has been stalking her and watching her every move. It is times like this throughout the story that the reader can look beyond the text and realize that this "made up" story actually goes on outside in the real world.  Whereas in "There Once Was" the abuse talked about is that of a mental type. In the quote "But she was poor! Poor is relative. She lived in a house didn't she? Yes. Then socioeconomically she was not poor." (Atwood 305) This quote shows the stereotypes of a woman back in the 1960's when this book was written. Both of these texts deal with the mistreatment of a young lady in the mid 1900's, a prime example for the reader to understand the treatment and respect that a woman would expect during this time in history. 

During the 1960's women in the United States were starting to turn a corner in history. Women were beginning to be employed, and getting out of the house and out doing things that they wanted to, instead of what there husband wanted them to.  They were escaping the housewife stereotype. Women were finally granted rights, beyond the law, and women were feeling empowered. However like what is portrayed in the two stories, physical and mental abuse toward women is still a problem at this time. There was a certain stereotype that women felt like they needed to live up too, in order to feel accepted in society. If you were beautiful and attractive you were good, yet if you were unattractive and unappealing in your own eyes you were bad. This is a belief that has been out in society for many years. If someone is not "living up too" this model of belief then they can be led to serious things such as eating disorders. The pressures of having to be someone they were not, was a driving force in mental illnesses. 

These stereotypes are still out there, floating around society, making girls compare themselves to models in magazines and skinny girls they see walking around. All of these together are driving factors in cases of eating disorders such as bulimia and anorexia. Even today there are growing cases of young females trying to obtain the "beautiful" stereotype by putting their bodies through these terrible things. "Anorexia is the most common cause of death, up to 12 times higher than any other condition, among young women ages 15 to 24." (Futures Palm Beach) This statistic from online not only shows the disturbingly high number of women who this affects, but the amount of lives that it takes. This is something that our society has forced on woman who do not "live up too" the perfect model. On the contrary, domestic violence is a very big problem in our society as well. "1 in 4 women will experience domestic violence in her lifetime." (SafeHorizon)  In "Where Have You Been, Where Are You Going" this violence is shown through a man stalking young Connie and forcing his way into her house. When Connie encounters the man she often explains a feeling of dizziness that comes over her body. This feeling of dizziness can be looked at in a broader spectrum in relation to women and how they can defend themselves. In the story Connie's fallback is the Dizziness, this reaction allows Arnold to gain an even stronger hold on her.

In "There Once Was" issues of gender norms are exposed through the author speaking of the stereotype that too many young women try to achieve at this time. Girls that feel like they are not achieving these, or do not live up to what they believe society wants may put themselves in life threatening situations such as eating disorders to reach these stereotypes. During the 1950's women were expected to stay at home and look after the house, cook and clean. There sole purpose was to serve their husband and do what needed to be done to make him happy. These pressures eventually built up and caused stress within the household. This stress also led to domestic violence, where most of the time it was the woman getting abused. The message in this short story is comparing the importance of physical appearance and portraying body stereotypes within children stories. Having our young generation read these starts them at a young age following a stereotype to live up to and abide by. These young ladies who are reading these fairy tales are given this perception that beautiful instantly means good and unattractive is being bad. Reading this short story, you can truly understand and think about all of the stereotype that are out there that young woman try to live up to and achieve. 

The two stories together both portray abuse. One side of the spectrum is physical, and the other side mental. This abuse over women has been going on throughout history whether it is having to be submissive to men, or trying to live up to the "perfect" stereotype. Regardless, it is a problem that is slowly changing form. Sixty years ago a woman was expected to know her place in the house and do as her husband ordered, now woman have the capabilities to do what they want and take orders from no one but themselves. Is this the cause for the slow constant rise of domestic violence? We will never know, but we do know that "Women are more likely to be assaulted by an intimate partner than men." (SafeHorizon) Women in today's society deal with stresses unlike they did in the past. Women now have equal rights and are capable of anything men are. Because of this, stress often builds up, leading to eating disorders for women who feel like they are not living up to others. Domestic violence and eating disorders are looked down upon in society, and still to this day, lead to stress put on women. 

Although both stories have similarities and differences, both deal with the issues that women face in society today. Despite women being capable of anything men are, they are still looked down upon. Issues such as eating disorders and domestic violence only add to the stress women must face on a daily basis. They go through life having to live up to certain expectations set by both society and even men, rather than living a life that makes them happy.  "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been" by Joyce Oates and "There Once Was" by Margaret Atwood both show these hardships women must endure in life. 
