Symbolism In The Outsiders

Green and Gold

At the end of the day, we all see the same sunset. The novel, The Outsiders, by S. E. Hinton, the story is staged in Tulsa Oklahoma, where there are two opposing gangs, the greasers and the Socs. The groups are perceived to the public and to themselves and hoods or juvenile delinquents, and the protagonist of the story is challenged with what “should be done or thought.” The narrator of the story is Ponyboy Curtis, a greaser, who works hard in school, lives with his older brothers, Darry and Soda, and is best friends with Johnny, the gang’s pet. The Socs are their rivalry gang, made of rich, white, privileged hoods, living on the other side of town. Over the course of the story, Ponyboy realizes his world of the greasers and Socs is different than what is stereotypically thought, and he sees they are really the same, just living

“Nothing Gold Can Stay” was about remaining young, keeping your innocence, and keeping your childhood while it's there. This ties into the book because the greasers were forced to grow up faster, learn from their mistakes, survive on their own, and be proud of who why are, even if they are not. In midst of this, they can get hardened and lose themselves in the ups-and for the greasers-downs of life. When after a turn of events, Johnny ends up in the hospital, he knows he lost his spark and his innocence. On his deathbed, Pony awaits him with a forced smile, wanting to reassure him, and is greeted with the words, “ Stay gold Ponyboy. Stay gold…,” before laying down on his pillow and closing his eyes forever(148). After Johnny dies, Pony realizes he meant for him to keep his qualities, for they were rare like gold, and to remain the same person, choosing his own path, away from hoods and