Themes In The Outsiders

In “The Outsiders”, the speaker of the novel is a fourteen year-old fellow named Ponyboy who is the narrator and the youngest member of the greasers. S.E. Hinton wrote the novel in the 1960s in Tulsa, Oklahoma during the time of class struggle in society. The novel was intended to relate to young teens and adults who have experienced the troubles and unfortunate situations in the story. The author is referring to the poor and their daily struggles. The author explains the harshness of the greaser’s life and shows empathy for them. The author tells the truth as it is and doesn’t blur the reality. The author wants the audience to understand the predicaments and relate to it. “The Outsiders” by S.E. Hinton is a fiction novel that represents social

The theme of The Outsiders is that everyone can rise above what others expect from them. This is relevant throughout the book when Johnny and Ponyboy save the kids from the burning church, when Randy doesn't want to fight or hate the Greasers anymore, and when Johnny stands up for Cherry and Marcia.

The main theme of The Outsiders is violence does not solve social conflict. In the beginning of the book Ponyboy thinks that violence is the solution to the Socs, but later through Johnny stabbing Bob, and finally making amends with Darry, Ponyboy figures out that you can’t solve social conflict with violence. This theme was relevant to the real world in Hinton’s time and still is today.

The main theme of 'The Outsiders' is that friends are your chosen family. In other words, the people in your inner circle along with your family, are the friends you choose to have there. This is present with many characters in the book, in fact, the only three 'Greasers' that did not seem to have their friends closer than their family were Ponyboy, Sodapop, and Darry. However, these three boys had many people in their lives who loved their friends more than their family, such as Johnny, who's dad beat him, and mom neglected him, and Dally who had no relation with his parents, then there is Darry, who loves his friends like family, and he is one of the only ones that knows what true family love feels like.

“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.

The 1967 novel The Outsiders by S.E Hinton is about the social outcasts; the Greasers and their rivalry against the high class Socs. In the beginning of the book the characters values and attitudes are revealed to the reader through the point of view of Ponyboy. As the book progresses and the lives of the characters take a turn for the worse there is a significant impact on the characters resulting in an alteration of their values and attitudes. Ponyboy, Dally and Johnny experience these changes due to the death of Bob the Soc and the chain of events that follow.

The Outsiders, a novel by S.E. Hinton, shares moralities that encourage themes of brotherhood and heroism with literary elements - which includes setting, point of view, characterization, conflict, plot, and theme. Each element influences the big idea of flawed heroes and friendships to readers. With her powerful novel, Hinton is able to express the necessity of unity and brotherhood within a community, despite differences in classes, ages, or ideals.

This poem I wrote represents the thematic statement I chose; "Somethings are not what they seem. Sometimes there are more meaning to it. Sometimes there are hidden stories that create character". This poem uses an old book as a metaphor for humans. As books, especially old books, are one of those things that are commonly misinterpreted, just like people. In the book The Outsiders by S.E. Hilton, there was a great example of misinterpretation. Ponyboy misinterpreted Dally's care and love for him to hatred and disgrace. "'He likes Soda - everyone likes Soda - but he can't stand me. I bet he wishes he could stick me in a home somewhere, and he'd do it, too, if Soda'd let him.' Two-Bit and Johnny were staring at me now. 'No...' Two-Bit said, dumbfounded, 'No, Ponyboy, that ain't right... You got it wrong...'"(Hilton 50) This quote shows how

Survival instincts allow individuals to persevere during times of hardship and struggle. Unfortunately, many families in America are struggling lower-middle class or live in poverty. It’s nice to think a person can easily go from being dirt poor to filthy rich, but it doesn’t usually work that way. The Outsiders by S. E. Hinton depicts the hardships and struggles experienced by two rival gangs, “The Greasers” from the lower middle class and “The Socs” from the upper class. Thesis: In The Outsiders, the Greasers experience disenfranchisement mostly due to socioeconomic class and appearance. However, other types of disenfranchisement such as drug, alcohol use and gang participation are also present in the novel.

Most people strive to belong, to be someone or part of something important. People all around you experience different ways of belonging, such as cliques or social class. Others who are excluded, are simply left as outsiders, forced to make up their own groups, maybe just because of where they live, how much money they have, and the items they have and do not have. This is the case in author S.E. Hinton’s prominent novel The Outsiders. Within this well known book is a 2 week story of 14 year old Ponyboy, as he learns to mature in his rough, poor, East side neighborhood while also dealing with most of the rich, stuck up, West side kids known as the Socs. To rival the Socs are the Greasers, a tight-knit gang that includes many East side teens that have become almost like brothers to each other. Throughout this novel, Ponyboy learns many life lessons, while facing multiple obstacles and overcoming his own inner problems to finally realize a bigger picture in the end. S.E. Hinton focused deeply on symbolism to display these multiple themes.

As a young adult, it is difficult to grow up without parents and still be tough and brave. In addition, teens can be emotional and overreact at times. In the novel The Outsiders, by S.E Hinton, a fourteen-year-old kid named Ponyboy Curtis feels different emotions that make him stand out from other Greasers, or “hoodlums”. Ponyboy, the youngest of all the Greasers, is a great example of a teen who feels isolated, brave, and emotional throughout the novel.

“The functions of intellect are insufficient and useless if you are without courage, love, friendship, compassion, and empathy,” says a quote by Dean Koontz. Throughout S.E. Hinton’s book The Outsiders, there are many themes that she conveys in the book as she narrates the experiences of a greaser named Ponyboy who is a member of the Social group (Socs). Ponyboy meets many people and witnesses many difficult situations throughout the book. This inspirational book teaches the reader crucial lessons that are very important for everyone, even if their lives are not anything like Ponyboy’s. Three important themes in the book include friendship, courage and empathy.

The character that I had chosen to analyze was Ponyboy Curtis in the movie, The Outsiders (Coppola, 1983). I chose this character because the movie revealed how Ponyboy got to where he is mentally and everything that had occurred to get him to that point. I will analyze the adolescent phase of Ponyboy’s life. The theme of The Outsiders is how love can affect the relationships of close friends. The theories and theorists that support my analysis are Erik Erikson’s Psychosocial theory, Albert Bandura’s Observational Learning, Lev Vygotsky’s Sociocultural Perspective and Urie Bronfenbrenner’s Systems theory: Microsystem (Sigelman, 2015). From those theories and theorists the following points will be analyzed: identity, peer pressure, self-worth, and dependence.

The Outsiders message is about “Nothing Gold Can Stay.” It explains that nothing good can go on forever and nothing young can last forever. It tells you about how and why we should enjoy what we have and keep and cherish everything we have to its maximum limit. Why shouldn’t we cherish what we have? Why do we need more? Why can't we be equally treated with same amount of things such as money and houses? That is the real question. We have that to this very day. In The Outsiders, their lives are exactly like this. They have their awesome rich people lives and the poor have unhappy lives. Some of each gang just want to be normal, the same, or similar at least. But their money splits them up. All because of a little extra

In addition, Hinton’s allocation of Ponyboy as the narrator aids the novel in being well-read through several eras. Readers observe his bildungsroman, much like teenagers from any generation will have to do in their own lives. Near the end of the novel he expresses his feelings about the Socs, saying, “Socs were just guys after all. Things were rough all over, but it was better that way. That way you could tell the other guy was human too” (Hinton 118). Because it does not matter whether the adolescent reader comes from the same time period of the novel or from today’s society, this fictional journey is especially significant. Without the point of view of Ponyboy, The Outsiders would be a novel that may not shape an adolescent’s reading experience as significantly as it does; furthermore, another relevant literary device in use is symbolism.