Disgrace In The Outsiders

From looking at the two gangs, both the Greasers and the Socs. The book The Outsiders, S.E. Hinton is able to show that the Greasers were the true disgrace and a menace to society. The Greasers were able to show this from their looks, their behavior, and the choices that they make.

One reason that the Greasers are a disgrace to society was because of their looks. From just looking at them you could tell that they meant mischief. Greasers were not the average group of kids; they were hoodlums. When speaking of how the townspeople viewed Greasers, Ponyboy says, "But most looked at us like we were dirt"(15). Greasers wore their hair long, dressed in blue jeans and T-Shirts and left their shirttails out and wore leather jackets, and tennis shoes or boots. They are below middle class and look like they are always trying to steal something, due to

them not having a steady income from their job. The Socs on the other hand, are very wealthy, wore expensive clothes, and drove Mustangs. The Socs did bad things, but they never get in trouble because they did not look like they would make any poor decisions. If the Greasers and the Socs both did something equally as bad, the only people that would be blamed would be the Greasers because they are a true menace to society even though they might not truly be one. All in all, this all shows that looks can change what people think of you and how it can effect the Greasers and the Socs.
Greasers are considered a menace to society is because of their behavior.

"Greasers are almost like hoods; we steal things and drive old souped-up cars and hold up gas stations and have a gang fight once in a while."(3). This quote from the book shows that people will think even worse of the Greasers because of their actions. Normal people would not do what they are doing because they have principles. The Greasers were fugitives, and this gave people an even bigger reason to be fearful of them and consider them a disgrace to society. The Socs did comparable things, but were not punished for them like the Greasers, and were still able to keep a sterling image of themselves. "Not like the Socs, who jump greasers and wreck houses and throw beer blasts for kicks, and get editorials in the paper for being a public disgrace one day and an asset to society the next."(3). Unlike the Greasers, whatever the Socs do, it will not ruin their reputation at all. Overall, from looking at both the Greasers and the Socs, it is easy to say that the Greasers are a bigger disgrace to society concerning their behavior than the

Socs.
One final reason that the Greasers are a bigger menace to society is because of the choices that they make. The Greasers could have been average people, but they chose to drop out of school, which made them who they are now. Dally is an example; he dropped out of school and has changed his lifestyle. Dally went from a normal kid who goes to school, to someone who steals from stores for a living. Darry is another example, "He had been a real popular guy in school; he was captain of the football team and he had been voted Boy of the Year."(16). He could not afford to go to college and now roofs houses. This may not be his fault, but if he had gone to college, he could have had a good job and would have not ended up the way he did. One final example is Sodapop, who had dropped out of school. If he would not have done that then he too would probably not have become a hoodlum and would be working at a good paying job with his brother Darry and not at the gas station. The Socs, on the other hand, did not have to worry about their choice because their money could repair anything bad that they ever did. Overall from looking at the Greasers and the Socs, putting into consideration their choices the Greasers were a bigger disgrace to society than the Socs.
From looking at the looks, the behavior, and the choices of both the Greasers and the Socs it is able to be concluded that the Greasers were the true disgrace to society. Even though the Greasers and Socs both did many bad things, at the end of the day, the Greasers had the worst image of all.