The Outsiders Comparison Essay

The Outsiders is a book that was written by S.E Hinton which was eventually made into a movie, directed by Francis Ford Coppola. There are loads of differences and similarities between the two. I think that after reading the book and watching the movie that the book was by far the most meaningful and interesting one of the two. Another title that would go well with this novel would be, "The 1990's Youth". This is a story of pure incredulity of character, brotherhood, bravery, and loyalty. Most people would relate to this novel indirectly one way or another. As you read through the book, you feel as though you are in it, watching vibrant characters living a life. On the other hand though, while you watch the movie, you feel as though the

characters are reading out of a script and not putting their hearts into it.

Although the movie is based on the book, some of the characters' personalities are somewhat different in the movie than they are in the book.

According to the book, you would think that Johnny is a quiet young boy, who usually stays in the back and never really says much to anybody, or just doesn't really express his feelings, although in the movie, his personality was a bit different than that. "Johnny Cade was last and least. If you could picture a little dark puppy that has been kicked too many times and is lost in a crowd of strangers, you'll have Johnny." This description of Johnny was important because as a reader, you get to visualize the characters in a better view and you also get to know the characters and who they really are as a person. Although this was Ponyboy's point of view. In the movie, Johnny's personality wasn't exactly as described in the novel. He seemed to be more talkative and a lot braver than in the book, someone who could stand up for himself and his buddies. Neither of them is more effective than the other though, because his personality doesn't do any change towards other characters or the movie/book itself. The other boys have very similar personalities in the movie as described in the book, just like how Dally is the bravest and toughest boy in the gang in the book as well as the

book.

The setting was another thing that had some differences between the movie and the book.

In the novel, Ponyboy describes the setting in Jay Mountain quite differently than the movie shows it. "The dawn was coming then. All the lower valley was covered with most, and sometimes little pieces of it broke off and floated away in small clouds. The sky was lighter in the east and the horizon was a thin golden line. The clouds changed from gray to pink, and the most was touched with gold. There was a silent moment when everything held it's breath, and the sun rose. It was beautiful.". The quote Ponyboy used to describe Jay Mountain is important because it allows the reader to visualize the beauty Ponyboy was going for. Unlike the book, the movie just shows a small part of Jay Moubtain with Johnny and Ponyboy standing there while reciting the poem, and an orange sky with a bit of dirt around them. The books description of setting in Jays mountain in the book was definitely more effective than the picture which was shown in the book. Most of the other settings in the book and movie were very similar to one another, just like the rumble between the Socials and the

Greasers.

A big important symbol in the Outsiders book is the sunset, which is mentioned quite a few times, although in the movie, they don't show it's importance of it. Ponyboy sees the sunset as a symbol of humanity. It shows you that everybody is the same, since we all see the same sunset, we're all ordinary humans. "We aren't in the same class. Just don't forget that some of us watch the sunset too." It shows you that just because people are in different classes of standards, at the end of the dat, we're all just human that live in the same world. The movie doesn't mention the sunset much, so you don't really get to see what it symbolizes. In this case, the book was much more effective, because it can really change somebody's mind about racism towards different social groups and standards of classes. This difference from the book and movie was a very big detail left out completely and it should have been a part of the movie too.

As you can see, there are plenty of differences and similarities between the the book and the movie. The bond of true friendship and brotherhood was very much strong in the book, but not in the movie because they weren't all together. I think that books are usually always better than the movies simply because books tell more about the characters thoughts than movies do, this is important because it helps the characters seem more real and helps the reader relate more to the characters. The book is better because you feel as though you are right there with the character and it hits your emotions. Regardless of all the differences and similarities, the book and the movie are both great.