A Critical Analysis of the Characters in The Outsiders
People really misunderstand Ponyboy’s true capability in the book The Outsiders’. He’s practically the main character in the book, as he grows and learns. In the book he struck me as the dreamer, inspirational, intelligent, innocent, loyal, thoughtful type of guy. Ponyboy had a goal throughout the book to fit in with the other greasers and be the tuff guy. When in the end he learns the true meaning to his life, “stay gold”… Johnny (Johnnycake) was more of the poor lost puppy, ‘the pet’ of the gang. He was abused and throughout the whole story inspired me and changed my opinion of him in a good way.
His parents didn’t love him, so the gang is practically all he has for a family. Johnny is always nervous because a few years back he was beat by some socs really bad. From then on he was the quiet jittery, but holding back a charming young man Darry, the oldest of the Curtis’s, was described to me as the somewhat more responsible member of the gang.
The Death of his parents left him to be the legal Guardian of his two younger brothers, Sodapop and Ponyboy. He closely looked after Ponyboy, His youngest brother. The reason was, that he wanted Ponyboy to make a meaning to his life and not slack off as he had done all throughout his. Dally, is the bad boy of the gang, the tuff guy who thinks he’s all that. It had all started back when he was 10 and he was arrested and put in juvenile hall. After that he became very violent and dangerous, but only to not get ganged up on. He’s a seventeen year old who helps Ponyboy and Johnny get away from the murder Johnny caused out of self defense.
Dally was sort of an older brother to Johnny because he didn’t really have any family and neither did he. Sodapop (Soda), the middle child of the Curtis’s, was more of everybody’s big brother. He understands everybody no matter who they are. He’s a dropout but very handsome, charming, and very good with the ladies. He doesn’t like to, but is forced to take sides between Darry and Ponyboy because he’s the middle child. Like Ponyboy he very emotional when it comes to deaths. The narrator of the story is Ponyboy. His teacher, Mr.Syme, gives him an assignment of a theme.
The whole point of the story is to tell you to “Stay Gold…’ which is what Johnny tells Ponyboy just before… well you’ll have to read it to find it out. What Johnny meant by ‘stay gold’ is to stay young enjoy it, make your life worth it and not just a waste of time. The main rivalry in the story is the Greasers vs. Socs. What Greasers are in this story are the lower classmen. They’re called greasers because of their greasy hair and lack of hygiene. The Socs are the rich popular kids that have everything. They both equally pick fights for another or they should’ve seen it coming. But that all goes down in the big fight between them that leaves everybody speechless. S.E. Hinton wrote a story of difficulties and real life. Zero to Hero, a nobody to a somebody, Ups and down, and overcoming trials. This book blew me away with the drama and trials, and also showed me that anybody can do anything no matter whom they are or where they come from.
