Ponyboy's Coming Of Age In The Outsiders

To begin, when influenced by the relationships in their lives one can be guided through the path they want to take in life, thus coming of age. As an illustration, in The Outsiders, Ponyboy is a fourteen year old boy who lives in a lower class neighborhood. The young people in this neighborhood are commonly referred to as Greasers, who are thought of as hoodlums in street gangs. The Socs are the term for those living in the richer neighbors, and they have an ongoing dispute with the Greasers. After Ponyboy’s best friend, Johnny, kills a Socs in an assault attempt on Pony and him, both social groups decide to organize a fight in which the victors claim their territory. While the Greasers, Ponyboy included, are getting ready for a rumble with the Socs to settle their territory once and for all, Ponyboy begins to

His mother informs him that Nicodemus knows who killed her. When Simon informs Baz of this, who does not really know his mother and who was tragically turned into a vampire the day she died, Baz sets out with Simon to track down Nicodemus. When they eventually find him, Nicodemus refuses to tell Baz who his mother’s killer is, thus making Baz persist even more aggressively. Baz demands, “‘I want to know who killed my mother.’[...][Nicodemus] ‘But his name isn’t worth my life. Maybe you’ll kill me if I don’t tell—but I’ll die for certain if I do.’[...] ‘I should kill you right here,’ Baz says, his chest pushing forward. ‘I don’t think anyone would stop me. Or miss you’” (Rowell 334-336). After he learns that his mother’s killer is still alive, Baz makes it his life’s mission to track down and avenge his mother’s death, no matter the cost. By realizing his life’s direction or purpose, Baz is able to come of age based off of the relationship that he has with his mother. Clearly, Relationships that one shares can cause them pursue their own path in life, and evidently Come of