Ponyboy’s attitude to violence changes over the course of S.E Hinton’s novel The Outsiders’; he goes from being naive, innocent and reluctant to use violence to someone prepared to defend himself. At the start of the novel, Ponyboy is portrayed as a timid, sensitive and ignorant character. He is still grieving his parents death and relies on his brothers to keep him optimistic. Ponyboy experiences many challenges and discovers more of what role he plays in his society. Ponyboy’s behaviour toward violence symbolises his innocence and how naive he is. During the start of the book, Pony is faced with danger when a group of Socs threaten him and Two-Bit hands him a broken pop bottle. He says “I couldn’t use this. I couldn’t ever hurt anyone.” …show more content…
During his days at the church with Johnny he begins to understand and appreciate certain things. For instance he begins to care and miss Darry before and also after receiving the letter from Soda, as he worries “Is Darry alright?” This shows that Pony forgives his brother for hitting him. Another sign of Pony maturing is how he handles what Johnny says “We’re goin’ back and turn ourselves in.” (Hinton p.104) This indicates that he has become more responsible by accepting the consequences that may arise later on. A key moment in the novel is when Ponyboy is rescued from the burning church by Dally, who later dies during a police chase, all because of Johnny’s death. This is another tragedy to Ponyboy as he has lost two of his good friends in the same day. This leads to further development of Ponyboy’s character. He realises the significance of friends and family when he sees that in the waiting room Darry was worried sick the whole time, since Ponyboy ran out the door. Ponyboy also learns how to deal with grief and move …show more content…
Oh, no I thought in moral fear, I’ve got to be in it. Right then the most important thing in my life was helping us whip the Socs. Don’t let him make me stay home now. I’ve got to be in it. (Hinton p.160) This shows that Ponyboy wants trouble, it is now clear that Ponyboy wants to get in the action, showing that he has developed a lot. Instead of Ponyboy backing down from a challenge, he now stands up to a challenge, showing his courage and commitment to the gang even though he was the smallest one
And this time my dreaming worked. I convinced myself that he wasn't dead”, (chapter 9) this shows that ponyboy is in denial within the death of johnny, and some other characters like dally slams his body and hits the wall against the wall of the room, and while Ponyboy watches Dally’s reaction, he is just in silence and shock. Johnny's death was so surprising that even Randy ( who is a Soc) decided to visit ponyboy which was a nice detail for ponyboy because he was so concerned about his mental and physical health, and he also admitted that it was their fault that they fought in the park. “His buddy Randy Adderson, who had helped lump us, also said it was their fault and that we'd only fought back in self-defense”, (chapter
Ponyboy differentiates themself from the other members of his gang due to his passion for literature and academic achievements. Ponyboy lives with his brothers Darry and Sodapop since his parents passed away in a vehicle accident. Despite Darry's frequent accusations that Ponyboy lacks common sense, Ponyboy is a trustworthy and intelligent narrator. Ponyboy battles racial prejudice, violence, innocence, and love for the family throughout the book. Throughout the book, he develops, finally realising the value of strength in confronting discrimination based on social
He is constantly concerned with relationships, who did what, and who thinks what about who. A prime example of this is Ponyboy’s thoughts on his two brothers. Like his idea of Darry hating Pony, and never being “sorry for anything he does.” Ponyboy is focused on what things look like, not the true meaning. Although Ponyboy does not stay like this forever.
Throughout the book, Ponyboy learns about the consequences of violence and the importance of brotherhood, which helps him grow and mature. He learns to see beyond the social divisions that exist between the Greasers and the wealthy Socs, and realizes that people are more alike than they are different.
He hits Johnny and verbally abuses him. Ponyboy describes Johnny as one of the frail ones. He is small and has a slight build. He always has a nervous, suspicious look in his eyes, because of his parents and when he gets beat up by the Soc’s. Speaking of Soc’s, Johnny also has trauma from Bob.
This shows that Ponyboy isn’t like the other gang members and truly wouldn’t hurt anyone. This shows that Ponyboy is caring to other people despite their differences, and this doesn’t change. Later in the book, after Ponyboy went through alot with Johnny and Dally’s deaths the Socs’ come up to them and again Ponyboy is handed another pop bottle. Ponyboy breaks it but does not use it and after he starts picking up the broken glass. This represents some of Ponyboy’s most valuable traits in the
"”(chapter 6, pg 84). This quote shows that ponyboy finally realizes that his brother Darry actually does care about him, although Darry covers it with the strict policy he has set for ponyboy so Ponyboy can live the life that Darry couldn't. He also grows as a character when he talks to Cherry(Sherri) Valance and points out that no one really has their life as easy as it may seem. In the quote “Cherry no longer looked sick, only sad. "I'll bet you think the Socs have it made.
This didn't make sense to Ponyboy yet. After running from the police when johnny stabbed Bob a soc they find themselves in an abandoned church. When Ponyboy returns to society after being in the hospital. He finds himself meeting with Randy, Bob's best friend. Pony is suppried when Randy tells him that he's sorry for Pony and how Bob's parents never gave him limits.
Ponyboy is now devastated and his life will change forever. In the end, Ponyboy changes a lot and becomes a completely different person after Johnny and Dallas Winston’s death. After Johnny died Ponyboy completely changes into
Ponyboy was forced to grow up and take responsibility for his actions. This ultimately changed him as a person, and he was no longer the innocent boy he was before. This required Ponyboy to mature and that's when he "lost his innocence." "No!" I screamed at him.
They run away to an abandoned church which burns down and Johnny is hurt when saving the kids inside. When Johnny is taken to the hospital, Pony reunites with his brothers, the greasers and the Socs have a huge rumble, he gets to know Randy, and Johnny and Dally die. Throughout the novel, Ponyboy’s views and
When Ponyboy and Johnny are preparing to jump a freight train, Ponyboy thinks to himself, “Then for the first time, really, I realized what we were in for. Johnny had killed someone. Quiet, soft-spoken little Johnny, who wouldn't hurt a living thing on purpose, had taken a human life. We were really running away, with the police after us for murder and a loaded gun by our side. I wished we'd asked Dally for a pack of cigarettes....”
However, despite it, he also learned that violence has serious consequences and can sadly lead to tragedy. This is underscored by the deaths of several characters in the book, including Johnny, who dies after suffering severe injuries in a church fire, and Dally, who dies after being shot by the police after robbing a grocery store with an unloaded gun. By the end of the novel, Ponyboy had come to understand that violence only ends up leading to more violence and that the best way to solve problems is through communication and
He could take anything. It was Johnny I was worried about.” He knows how frightened and anxious Johnny is after being jumped and how he is not as tough as the rest of the Greasers. Especially without a loving family at home, Johnny only has the gang and is not able to take as much. Throughout the whole novel, Ponyboy expresses how much he cares for others both with Johnny, and
Ponyboy lived with his two brothers Darry and Sodapop after his parents were killed in a car accident. Ponyboy had some friends in the gang: Steve, Two-Bit, Dally but his best friend was a boy named Johnny who was considered the gang`s mascot. Ponyboy was a boy who always wanted to be tough but an accident that happened in the story might make him change of mind on what he wanted to be. He also finds a way of how to finish the gang that was taking place from many tima.