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The Outsiders Title Analysis

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Outsiders Essay Discuss the significance of the title of the novel. Who is an "outsider’ throughout the story, and what makes that person an "outsider"? What other interpretations of the title are there? Who is an ‘outsider’ in this story? How can this label be differently interpreted? The book ‘The Outsiders”, written by S.E Hinton, is set in a large un-named town in Oklahoma. It is most likely based on the author’s hometown in the 1960’s and is home to Greasers and Soc’s alike. The Soc’s live on the West side, the classy side, the side who get all the breaks and live in comfort, the Greasers on the other hand live on the East side, the shifty downtown area full of underprivileged youths and abusive families, or so it appears. In their own …show more content…

It can be taken to be the stereotypical characterisation of a Greaser gang, a bunch of hoods that don’t fit in. However, this term is not only confined to this group, if you think in a different mindset, you can begin to see that the term outsiders can be used to describe any one of the characters. It doesn’t matter if they are a boy, girl, Soc, greaser, parent, or hood. You could pick anyone and find a way that they are different from their surrounding peers. For example, Randy the rather clichéd Soc, feels that fighting and jumping people isn’t all that life could be, he doesn’t want to be involved in anymore rumbles but knows he will be marked as ‘chicken’ if he wimps out; so instead, he decides to skip town in his Mustang. This shows that not just the social outcasts feel like outsiders; as Cherri says “things are rough all over. This can even relate to Ponyboy; one of the main characters, he only feels comfortable talking to Johnny about his more sensitive side because he knows that the others would not understand. It is important to acknowledge and consider that the title of the book is ‘The Outsiders’ as in plural, not singular. Due to this interpretation of the title, not one specific person is the fundamental outsider, rather they all are or could

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