Socioeconomic Status In The Outsiders

I come from two very different cultures Russian and American. Moving to the United States at age fourteen, I could recognize the differences in classes and gender in both of the cultures. But there is one fact, you can’t tell class difference by appearance.

“The Outsiders” identifies the 60’s, illustrating the violence between groups, often involving a group’s social class. For instance, the violent tensions between the Socs and Greasers lead to Bob’s death, Johnny’s death, as well as many injuries throughout both gangs. The book “The Outsiders” is written by S.E. Hinton and is portrayed through the eyes of a high school student in Tulsa, OK where S.E. Hinton grew up. Hinton began writing “The Outsiders” in 1965 at the age of 17 and the book was finally published in 1967 when she was 19. The difference in perspective upon the society and social class creates issues throughout “The Outsiders” and since the Socs and Greasers assume the problems will be solved with violence, they take action.

In the book The Outsiders, Ponyboy talks about how the rich Socs girls acted, and how the poor Greaser girls acted. When Ponyboy first met Cherry, and Marcia he said it was nice to hangout, and talk to the soc girls. He said they were nothing like the greaser girls, and he didn’t like greaser girls. Ponyboy said “I quit worrying about everything, and thought about how nice it was to sit with a girl without having to listen to her swear or to beat her off with a club.” (Hinton 35). Ponyboy was talking about Cherry a rich Soc girl being different then the poor Greaser girls. He feels like they are easier to talk to and easier to have a conversation with. He likes that they don’t swear, and are smart. He talks about how the poor Greaser girls swear, are disrespectful, are always fighting, and are always troublemakers by flirting with other guys. Another example of the rich (Socs) vs poor (Greasers) is there education. In the book The Outsiders, it talks about how the Greasers (the poor) don’t speak right. It also talks about how the Greasers, and Socs went to the same school.

No matter where you go in the world people are divided. They can be divided by their wealth or state of living these are social classes. In the novel “The Outsiders” by S.E. Hinton social classes a very apparent the rich and the poor. In The Outsiders, social classes create a divide in the community. The isolation of these two groups lead to the tension and violence that is seen in the book.

Have you ever read a very hard hitting and the phenomenal story about rival gangs and the effect it has on the lives of the people and the society. In The Outsiders, is a story of 14-year-old Ponyboy Curtis and his two older brothers, Soda and Darry. The boys are orphans and struggle to stick together in their lower-class neighborhood, known as the East Side. They and their friends are part of a gang of tough street boys called the Greasers. Even though other people might think you're unimportant and below them. You will always have your friends and family. In The Outsiders, we see the idea of the difference in the society based on the economic level of the characters, honor among the lawless and violence among the youth.

The author, John Meacham, cites many pieces of evidence to show the current state of classes in American society. Meacham’s purpose for portraying the current state of classes is

Classism was a big part of the 60s and with Ponyboy and the gang, it comes into play in more than one way. The Outsiders, based in the 1960s Oklahoma, is about two gangs, the Greasers and the Socials. The Greasers were lower class, lower income people who were relatively rough around the edges while the Socials were the ‘West side rich kids’ who went around getting drunk and jumping Greasers. The book is about the conflicts that these two groups have, either with each other or inside of their own group. In S.E. Hinton’s novel, The Outsiders, many of the conflicts and hardships in the community are caused by the Socials (Socs).

We have to educate a man with morals so we can see who someone really is instead of who they are inside. In the novel, The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton the Socs are menaces to society because they are elitists, always looking for a fight, and they do not fight equally against Greasers. We shouldn't judge people on how they look on the outside to prove who they really are on the inside.

Use of critical diction and negative view of discrimination reveal both authors’ strong distaste of society’s bigotry and ill treatment towards social class segregation. Individuals that live life while being materialistic and let their emotions take control of what they are worth according to the society they reside in, eventually lose their true identity and sense of

138). Furthermore, social class can form, force, and interfere the improvement and appearance of the skills, values, perspectives (Stewart & Ostrove, 1993, p.138). Many studies have established the connection between socioeconomic status and occupation influents (Alix & Lantz, 1973; Cook et al., 1996; MacLeod, 1995; Rojewski & Kim, 2003; Rojewski & Yang, 1997, p.138). People in the middle social class capabilities and knowledge skills are superior compared to those people from working class (Lawler, 1999, p.138). The contradictory and discourage perceptions influencing the working class identity (Sennett & Cobb, 1972, p.139). However, people in the low social class could have the feelings of self-confidence because they improve by increase their self-defenses in order to protect themselves from the discrimination of others (Crocker & Major, 1989, p. 139). Many studies have revealed that even the disadvantage as the homelessness also learn how to find a way to build their self-confidence and self-esteem (Snow & Anderson, 1987, p. 139). Moreover, people from the working social class are fighting with estrangement from their own lives, relatives, and ethnicities, yet they do not feel of attachments with the people in middle social class environment that they have entered (Lubrano, 2004; Wentworth & Peterson, 2001). The pressure and inconvenience that are linked with the disadvantages will constrain the

Imagine wearing a shirt everyday that said “poor” in bold black font. The number of stares you would get would be greater than if you wore a shirt that had money all over it. Upper and lower classes have significantly influenced the attitudes of Americans with their differences. Both classes have values that contrast in language and thought. Society has developed a prejudice towards those of the lower class placing the blame on the individuals who are less fortunate. Theoretically, breaking the barrier between two mutually exclusive binaries, high class and lower-class, is the challenge we face politically, economically, and socially.

Racial status is not considered the ethnic presence, as it is more so constructed through social status and that of social cultures. Social class is a mixture of income, wealth, professional status, and educational achievement. Gender inequality socially belittles women based on their biological make-up versus that of the biological make-up of man.

Before going into further depth of how the social class effects the offspring of parents there is a need to return back to the notion of intersectionality. Ivy Ken, another writer of this subject explains intersectionality of race, class, and gender as simple three ingredient recipes; she does this to simplify the understanding of

Despite the lack of value for a real relationship, filled with character and honesty; social status was also a major factor in

The main aim of the paper was to examine how social class influences empathic accuracy. This aim is important as it will help to uncover the psychological processes that inspire the various life circumstances of lower-and upper- class individuals. In addition, social class such as socioeconomic status or SES pervades social life, in which it can determine the participation within social institutions, influence preference for cultural and artistic symbols, and increase susceptibility to mood and health-related issues. It would be important to understand how