Perhaps more than any other issue or topic, the question
of "what happens to Connie?" is the lynchpin in discussions of this well-known short
story. Perhaps that is one reason that the film version of the story, entitled SMOOTH
TALK, seeks to answer this question.
Given the author's
frequent tendency to portray characters who are violent and depraved, and to depict the
potential for violence in people who find themselves in extraordinary circumstances,
it's not unreasonable to assume that Connie does indeed end up brutalized in some way by
Arnold Friend.
But it's also possible that the encounter is
merely a sexual one, and quite plausibly a consensual one. Connie's promiscuity
(relative to her age and family situation) is a major theme of the story. The kitchen is
the last bastion of her innocence, representing the safety net of home and family. But
Connie's family is unsupportive and she is ready to move past what they can offer her.
The car, so elaborately described, and so menacing, may be seen not only as a vehicle
(literally and figuratively) to carry Connie to a new level of maturity and experience,
but as a phallic symbol representing her sexual
initiation.
As well, The screen door that divides Connie
from Arnold is symbolic of her hymen, the physical barrier of her virginity. This door
is emphasized in the film version as well, and screens are frequently used as symbols of
virginity in cinema.
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