Tyler English 11 Miss Ward 19 May 2023 Fictional characters can be used as tools for self-reflection. Fiction books oftentimes focus on an interesting story due to the author having the ability to add whatever they please to their book. Not only does this apply to plot, but this also applies to the characters themselves. Specifically, The Outsiders paints a great example of what fictional characters can look like by presenting different outlooks and personalities to make different characters feel dynamic in their own individual way. The characters present various traits and perspectives that allow readers to reflect on their own behaviors and determine the positive or negative aspects they may possess. The majority of the characters in The …show more content…
The Outsiders follows a group of boys named the “Greasers” that don’t like another group of boys named the “Socs.” This makes up the biggest conflict throughout the whole story, which is responsible for making almost all of the characters ToG. The constant fighting leads The Outsiders’ characters to exude a ToG mindset. Ponyboy is the main character, so we get the most information on him, and all of the other characters we either hear about through Ponyboy or we get the summary of events from another character which is then interpreted by Ponyboy. Ponyboy is the first ToG character and this is shown best through the start of the story. In the beginning of the book, Ponyboy is jumped by a group of Socs. Johnny and Dally come to his rescue and kill one of the Socs in self-defense. Ponyboy is wracked with guilt and questions if they were right to kill someone. However, he ultimately decides to stay quiet about his dilemma because he knows that his loyalty to Johnny and Dally is more important to him than his own moral standards. Later in the book, Ponyboy and Johnny find themselves in a church hiding from the police after Johnny kills another Soc in self-defense. While they are in hiding, Ponyboy reads a letter from Johnny in which he expresses his regret over killing the Soc and says that …show more content…
This event starts a turning point for Johnny's character. Although he acts in self-defense, he is deeply hurt by the violence and the realization that he has taken another person's life. When he and Ponyboy flee to a church to hide, he reflects on the situation and realizes that the fighting between the Greasers and Socs is pointless and only leads to more violence. Johnny's realization that fighting is useless is evident in his conversation with Ponyboy in the church. He tells Ponyboy that he doesn't want anyone to get hurt anymore, and he wishes the Greasers and Socs could find a way to get along. He expresses his belief that it doesn't matter who wins or loses in a fight because the cycle of violence will only continue. Later in the story, when Johnny dies after saving children from a burning building, his final words to Ponyboy reinforce his belief that fighting is pointless. He tells Ponyboy to "stay gold" and to cherish the good things in life, such as sunsets and other beautiful moments, which cannot be destroyed by the violence and hatred in the world. Johnny's realization that fighting is useless is a key aspect of his character development. Through his experiences, he comes to understand that the cycle of violence only leads to more pain and suffering, and the only way to break it is through compassion and empathy for others. Although
They need to run and after getting supplies from their hardened friend Dally, decide to hide out in a church. After a fire in the church Ponyboy, Johnny, and Dally are sent to the hospital. Pony is fine, but Dally and Johnny are gravely injured. Pony then joins the rest of his friends in a rumble to win back their “territory”. Afterwards Johnny dies and unable to deal with it, Dally commits suicide.
After a violent confrontation between the two groups, Ponyboy and his best friend, Johnny Cade, go on the run and experience a series of harrowing events that force them to confront their own mortality and the harsh realities of their lives. The novel deals with themes of identity, class conflict, loyalty, and the complexities of growing up. Studying the characters of Ponyboy Curtis and Johnny Cade in The
They were drowning you, Pony. They might have killed you. And they had a blade… they were gonna beat me up…’”(59). That proves just how much Ponyboy means to Johnny, he killed someone to make sure Ponyboy could live. “‘So I guess you got into some trouble, huh?
Johnny comes from a troubled background, and his innocence has long been compromised by abuse and neglect. However, it is through the tragic events that Johnny experiences alongside Ponyboy that his loss of innocence becomes evident. After being forced to take a life in self-defense, Johnny confesses, "I killed him... I killed that boy" (Hinton, 56). This moment marks a turning point in Johnny's character arc, as he grapples with guilt and the irreversible consequences of his actions.
Through Johnny's experiences, we see that some of the most important memories in life are sometimes the hardest to hold onto. Paragraph 1 Through the progression of Ponyboy's relationship with Johnny, the novel allows readers to understand that you can "stay gold" through love and loyalty. While the greaser gang is telling Johnny about how they had beaten the socs, Johnny shows no emotion and says, "Useless fighting's no good," meaning that there is no point in fighting, and it doesn't matter how much they fight each other; it isn't going to change anything, and that instead of fighting, they should appreciate the people who we are close in our lives by staying gold. Through Ponyboy's friendship with Johnny, S.E. Hinton has shown
"”(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.
Aidan Ela a block Ms,copeland 30,march 2023 The Outsiders is a young adult action novel written by author S.E Hinton. The story is about a group of teen boys that are in a gang called the “Greasers” and they are rival gangs with the Socs, a gang formed with rich kids. And the main character's name is Ponyboy and the book started with Ponyboy being jumped by a group of Socs while walking down the street, which implies to the fact that they are both violent gangs that won't show mercy. And when the group of Greasers go to a drive-in movie they run into Cherry Valence who is a Soc but when Ponyboy developed love for her he had some issues.
On page 33, they mention it, but the result of it was absolutely crushing for Johnny, as Ponyboy says, "scared of his own shadow" (4) This shows that he's afraid of getting hurt again, which also pushes his friends to the edge as they try to help him. It's the same for the Soc too; the Greasers also hurt the Soc by killing Bob. Who tried to kill Ponyboy, putting him underwater as Johnny watched before killing Bob and saying "I killed him" (56). This back-and-forth fighting is clearly just a bunch of kids trying to assert dominance over each other. They push each other to the limit, and they think that they are proving something to themselves and to the other social groups, but all they are doing is harming each other.
Over the course of the book the two friends get closer. The main thing that Johnny tells Ponyboy is to stay gold and be a good person. In the end of the book Johnny leaves a note for Ponyboy when he dies. This note helps show what Johnny brings out in Ponyboy. It says “I've been thinking about it, and that poem, that guy that wrote it, he meant you're gold when you're a kid, like green.
Ponyboy from “The Outsiders” has many characteristics, but just like any person there are good and bad ones with a few that really stand out to show what type of person Ponyboy is. The book, “The Outsiders” by S. E. Hinton is a coming of age fiction book that goes 2 weeks into the life of a 14-year-old boy, Ponyboy Curtis, in the mid 1960s. It shows Ponyboy and his gang going through society with two different social groups, the socs and greasers, and how he struggles with what's right and what's wrong when he feels like an outsider. Ponyboy can be arrogant and impulsive, however he makes up for it by being brave and thoughtful, showing us that he is a great representation of a loyal person that will do anything for his family and friends,
Hes telling Pony to pretty much appreciate the nice things in life while he can, poor Johnny couldnt because of the life he was being forced to live so now hes trying to help Pony experience the things he couldnt. He wants to help Ponyboy not end up like Dally, Dally is too angry to appreciate anything he has which inevitably led to his death so he doesnt want Pony to not be grateful of all the good things he
Johnny is loyal and would sacrifice his reputation to save Ponyboy’s life. Darry, one of Ponyboy’s brothers goes to work everyday to earn money for the people he loves, he does this so that his brothers could all be one family. Toghether they make it through anything. 2.) Paragraph one Ponyboy is a good person with a caring heart.
He realizes that there is more in life than just the Socs and greasers. Johnny shows that to pony when he says, “ I don’t mind dying now… It’s worth saving those kids. Their lives are worth more mine…” (pg.178)
The Outsiders is a novel written by a 16-year-old girl named S.E. Hinton. This book is about two groups of teenagers who are rivals in the 1960’s. The main character is Ponyboy Curtis. Ponyboy is a 14-year-old boy who is living with his brothers after his parent’s tragic death. Pony is a dishonest but smart kid.
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.