Honey, Listen

Oates' short story wasn't as scary as I expected it to be. The open end left the story lingering with a sense of fear, yet the reader doesn't really know what happened. I thought the writer built tension by starting the story with simple tasks and family matters and then the plot quickly escalates when Arnold Friend enters the picture. The rest of the story is focused on Arnold and Connie in the driveway/door way of Connie's house. The back and forth dialogue between Arnold and Connie builds mega tension and gave me a bit of anxiety while reading. I really didn't like Arnold's use of "honey" every other word. It made him arrogant and he often talked down to Connie. The whole time you're reading the story you're waiting for something to happen, for Connie to call the police or Arnold to break into the house, the tension is building and building, but nothing drastic ever happens. At the end, I was left wondering if Arnold was going to rape Connie or if he was going to kill her, or maybe it was all dream. Was Arnold even real? And what was wrong with Connie? It was such a radical story.