Character Analysis Of Johnny The Hero In 'The Outsiders'

A hero can be anyone such as your friend, your next door neighbor, or even your sibling. A hero is a person who will risk their life or defend others from harm’s way. In “The Outsiders” by S.E Hinton, Ponyboy is a hero. Johnny is a hero because kills someone to save an innocent person. Cherry teaches Ponyboy lessons about her experiences which also makes her a hero. Ponyboy and Johnny are heroes, including Cherry. A hero is wise, brave, kind, and a just person.

Ponyboy is a hero because a hero is wise. While Ponyboy was in the “tuff” mustang with Randy, Ponyboy corrected Randy by saying, ‘No’ … ‘You hate the world.’ (pg. 117) because Randy was being very pitiful about himself and the world. Ponyboy corrected Randy which was heroic because not a lot of people would have corrected his opinion especially if that person was older than you. Ponyboy was brave in the situation as well because he corrected a Soc who was much older and stronger that him. Also, Ponyboy tries to saves innocent people when he knows they are in trouble. Ponyboy saw the burning church he hid in for a few days and said to a man named Jerry who was about to help the children, ‘I’ll get them, don’t worry’ (pg.91) while running to the burning church.

Johnny said, ‘Leave her alone Dally… You heard me, leave her alone.’ (pg. 24) trying to help Cherry. Johnny protected Cherry by defending her from Dally, who was making Cherry agitated and uncomfortable. Johnny also feels virtuous when he saves people. Johnny wrote in his letter, ‘It’s worth it … Some of the parents came by to thank me and I know it was worth it.’ (pg.178) and in his tone, Johnny was very proud about saving the children in his letter. Johnny thought the children’s lives were more important than his so Johnny knew it was worth risking his life to save those kids which was heroic because a lot of people would have watched the building burn to the