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Influence of family on personality
Thesis on the outsiders novel by se hinton
Literary analysis on how ponyboy changes the outsiders
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THE OUTSIDERS by S.E HINTON Ponyboy is the weakest Greaser.My thesis statement is that pony boy is supposed to be the weakest Greaser in the beginning but towards the end he is stronger and more of a leder.I chose this character because he is mechend the most so i know a lot about him .ponyboy is smart because he is in high school but he is only 14 years old and he likes to read books.S.E HINTON p.g23.Pony boy is brave beause when pony boy and Jonny boy and dally go in a fire to save little kids from burning in a church.Then johnny gets sick and then he dies from the smoke and then ponyboy pass out then dally goes crasy and killed himself S.E HINTON p.g114.Pony boy is friendly because when johnny is sick in the hospital ponyboy gos and
see him to see if he is ok S.E HINTON p.g151.
Dally helped the two boys escape the law even though they had done something wrong. Pony and Johnny had been minding their own business when they got jumped by the Socs and Johnny ended up killing one of them. They knew that they were in trouble and they needed some thing like money and a gun. They went to Dally and he gave
In chapter one we are introduced to our narrator, Ponyboy. Ponyboy is raised by his two older brothers Darry and Soda. They’re all apart of a gang called the “greasers” which is joined by Dally, Johnny, Two-bit, and Steve. There is another group called “ socs” which stands for socials, and everyone in that group is very wealthy. One day Ponyboy got jumped by a socs group, but luckily Darry was there to help before anything too serious happened. The first element of literature is characterization. Ponyboy is a keen observer, trying to make sense of the complexities of those around him. At the beginning of the story, he stops and spends several pages giving us brief character description on Steve, Two-Bit, Dally, and Johnny. This is also known as direct characterization. He tells us that Steve is "cocky and smart" ( Hinton 9). Two-Bit can 't stop joking around and goes to school for "kicks" (Hinton 10) rather than to learn. Dallas, he says, is "tougher, colder, meaner" ( Hinton 10) than the rest of them.
The main character of this book is Ponyboy. Ponyboy was a Greaser he was different from all the others he liked books and movies. Nobody in the Greasers digged books and movies the way Ponyboy did. Ponyboy was fourteen years old and he had two brothers that he lived with his older brother Darrel who they call Darry and his second older brother Sodapop who was sixteen going on seventeen. Ponyboy only live with his brothers because they mother and father was killed in a car accident. Ponyboy wanted to be like a movie star Paul Newman he wished he looked like him. Ponyboy always thought his brother Darry never cared about him or anything else. Ponyboy had a friend Jonny. Johnny was a Greaser too but he was the softest one but after he got jumped that changed he always carried a switchblade on him.
Showing that Ponyboy was very inexperienced and thought Mickey Mouse Sodas horse was just like Soda and they were brothers.Thirdly, we see how some actions Ponyboy’s gang does help show the need for childhood innocence like when pony says,” Darrel, who we call Darry, works too long and hard to be interested in a story or drawing a picture,” (Hinton 3). Darry is only 20 and he has a job working on roofs he works so hard so he can care for his brothers Soda and Ponyboy he has no time to be a kid himself he is working like a man when he is only a child.While some believe the main theme is brotherly love I argue its preserving childhood innocence. While this is a good point, because Ponyboy’s group definitely sticks up for one another in a brotherly fashion, it lays a strong foundation for preserving childhood innocence. Jonny had never been a coward he was a good man in a rumble, (Hinton 34) this shows how has Johnny loses his innocence, he becomes fearful of the Soc’s and begins to carry a switchblade to keep his gang safe, you might think this shows brotherly love, but it also shows preserving childhood innocence because when Johnny got used to being targeted by the Soc’s he lost his innocence, that’s why he would carry stuff like switch blades to keep him and others safe from the Soc’s. While the Greasers grew up they lost more and more of their innocence to rumbles and hatred of the Soc’s.
When Ponyboy, Dally, ponyboy, went back to the church that had kids inside and was about to catch on fire he followed pony running behind him .When Ponyboy was running into the church that was on fire Ponyboy said “ I didn’t realize that johnny had been right behind all the way” (92). This shows that johnny was courageous enough to run into a burning church. While on the other hand Dally did not run into the church after them. Instead of following ponyboy and Johnny, Dally said “Get back in here before I beat your head in” (90) Which showed that dally is not as brave as Johnny and ponyboy. This I believe was a major difference between Dally and
the beginning of the book chapter 1 Ponyboy went to the movies alone on the way home some greasers jump him and in the right moment his group members save him from getting beat.
They go to a park and get jumped by a gang of Socs they had conflict with earlier that day. Ponyboy is held under the water of a fountain and to save his friend, uncharacteristically, Johnny stabs the leader, Bob, with a knife. Bob ultimately ends up dying right there next to the fountain. To escape the police, they run away to an old abandoned church with the help from Dally, another in their gang. They spend days there with only baloney, cards, and a copy of Gone with the Wind. Ponyboy says, “The next four days were the longest days of my life” (75). They both had to sleep on the hard, stone floor (67) with no blankets. When they ran away, it insists that they believed they had no choice and soon realized what a ghastly experience it would be. Spending their days on repeat, doing the same thing, eating the same thing, can become redundant. For them it was hard to stay inside the church even though fear kept them
Johnny and Dally are both very contrasting characters and each play a vital role in both the novel and Ponyboy’s life. Johnny is a soft character who is regarded as the stereotypical Greaser. Dally is a rugged and rough character that is regarded as a hoodlum. Therefore, I believe that this paper has been able to answer the topic question and also support my thesis.
Ponyboy doesn’t act like any regular greaser who is tough and likes to pick fights. Ponyboy cares about other people and will do things to benefit others. “I didn’t know what he was talking about, so I just went on picking up the glass from the bottle end and put it in the trash can. I didn’t want anyone to get a flat tire.” (pg. 172) Instead of leaving the
Ponyboy Curtis struggles growing up as a poor youth with his two brothers. One night while he is out with Johnny, Ponyboy is attacked by the Socs. Johnny ends up killing one of the Socs. They both flee from the scene before the news gets out. They are caught in a fire and Johnny and Ponyboy become heroes for saving some children. The story has a tragic end for Johnny but Ponyboy realises that he is fortunate, having family and friends that love him
Typically, greasers are depicted as people similar to hoods, as Ponyboy states, "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" (Hinton 4). Yet, even though Ponyboy is a greaser, he avoids getting into trouble for the sake of staying together with his family. He explains that, "I don't mean I do things like that... Since Mom and Dad were killed in an auto wreck, the three of us get to stay together only as long as we behave. So Soda and I stay out of trouble as much as we can, and we're careful not to get caught when we can't" (Hinton 4). Alternatively, Pony also enjoys activities such as reading and watching movies. Even simpler things, such as sunsets and clouds, are something he found beauty and enjoyment in. This sets him apart from the greasers because according to Pony, he states that, "And nobody in our gang digs movies and books the way I do" (Hinton 3). Since nobody other than Ponyboy himself shares the enjoyment of these particular pastimes, which is drastically different from pursuits such as shoplifting and fighting in rumbles, Ponyboy is divergent from the standard attributes of the greasers. Therefore, Ponyboy is a thoughtful and dreamy individual who holds different interests and aspirations than the
If you read The Outsiders or watched the movie, you’ve probably wondered if Ponyboy should be sent to a Foster home or stay with his brothers. Well if you say Ponyboy should be sent to a foster home, this essay isn’t for you. This essay explains how Ponyboy should stay with his brothers and not in a foster home. One reason that he should stay is because they’re brothers and they have each others back. Another reason he should stay with his brothers is because he might have never had all the fun he does with his friends and brothers.
This started to happen when he was in the church trying to hide away from the police because of the murder of one of the Soc’s. “I was trembling, and it wasn’t all from cold” (Hilton p.57). This shows that Ponyboy was scared, starting to break, and noticed that maybe this “hard bad boy” life isn't for him. Ponyboy put more and more thought about what it takes to be a greaser, which made him realize that maybe the gang life wasn’t good for him. “We were good fighters and could play cool, but we were sensitive and that isn’t a good way to be when you’re a greaser” (Hinton, p.88). Ponyboy is expressing that it is hard to be as strong as the other boys and sometimes he just couldn't or he couldn't be ok with what they were doing. “It drives my brother Darry nuts when I do stuff like that, ‘cause I’m supposed to be smart’ I make good grades and have a high IQ and everything, but I don't use my head” (Hinton, p.4). Ponyboy knows he has the potential to be something else and while being in hiding in the church it helps him realize that if he really wanted to he could be whatever he puts his mind
He is smart, a good friend, a good fighter and member. For his symbols I chose a Pepsi bottle, Gone With the Wind, a pencil, the country, a Dairy Queen sign, eggs, chocolate cake, a cigarette, and hair grease. Ponyboy is a Pepsi addict. Ponyboy and Johnny would read Gone With the Wind when they were hiding. He loves to draw in his free time. Ponyboy wishes his family could live in the country. Dally takes Ponyboy and Johnny to Dairy Queen to have a meal. He likes chocolate cake and eggs for breakfast. He smokes a cigarette because everyone smokes cigarettes. He wears hair grease because he is a greaser. Ponyboy has two main conflicts. Darry slapping him and Johnny killing the Soc. When Ponyboy is talking to Johnny and falls asleep. He comes back to the house later than curfew and Darry gets mad. Darry yells at him, he yells back, and darry slaps him. He runs away to Johnny and the run to the park. The Socs pull up and attack them. Then Johnny kills the Soc with a switchblade. The settings are the lot,a poor-looking house, a park, and a church. The lot is where Ponyboy falls asleep talking to Johnny. The poor-looking house is where the Curtis’s live and is where Darry hits Pony. The park is where Johnny and Ponyboy were attacked by the Socs. It also is where Johnny kills the Soc. Finally the church is where Pony and Johnny hide when the run away after killing the
In the end I think all these boys showed a very heroic character and you realize what it feels like to be in the face of danger. Even though that Dally and Johnny didn't get to live out their life of a hero. Ponyboy tells their story for them.I think that ponyboy is a hero for doing it. he shows that he's not scared to face the fact that they did something good. And he can always live with his feeling that their story got told this is why I think that the three boys are all heros in their own way.