The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton

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The Outsidersby S.E. Hinton

• A book about growing up and how complicated it
  can be to be on the outside

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The Socs
The Greasers

• Wealthy
• Fancy clothes
• Jocks and Cheerleaders
• Popular kids at school
• Spoiled

• Didnt have much money
• Jeans and worn clothes
• Parents werent around
• Didnt make great grades
• Got into fights

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Main character-Ponyboy
Youre a nice kid, Ponyboy. -Cherry
I never noticed clouds and colors and stuff
until you kept reminding me about them.
-Johnny
I was wishing I looked like Paul Newman-he looks
tough and I dont-but I guess my own looks arent
so bad.
Were poorer than the Socs and the middle class.
I reckon were wilder, too.
I used to make As in English.
I lie to myself all the time. But I never
believe me.
Ive always been kind of absent minded.
And nobody in our gang digs movies and books the
way I do.
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Other Characters
Sodapop
Darrell (Darry)

• Older Brother of Ponyboy
• Jock in HS and smart
• Trying to be a parent to Sodapop and Ponyboy

• Middle brother
• Dropped out of school
• Works on cars
• Best friend is Two-Bit
• Happy-go-lucky

Johnny

• Smallest of the Greasers
• Parents hit him
• Sleeps in the park sometimes
• Ponyboys best friend

Cherry
Dallas Winston (Dally)

• A Soc
• Falls for Dally
• Helps out the Greasers
• Becomes friends with Ponyboy

• Older friend of Ponyboy and Johnny
• Tough guy
• HS dropout
• Helps the boys out

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Setting Tulsa, OK Early 1960s
Drive In
The Park
The Church
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Conflicts
1) Man vs. Man (physical) Ponyboy and the
other boys fight against the Socs with fists and
knives, but they have guns and the most might 2)
Man vs. Circumstances (classical) Ponyboy
struggles with the fact that he wasnt born with
money and priviledge 3) Man vs. Society
(social) Ponyboy and the Greasers struggle
against the wealth and the elevated social
position of the Socs 4) Man vs. Himself/Herself
(psychological) - Ponyboy struggles with the
trouble he feels he has caused and whether to
turn himself in or not
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Theme
It doesnt feel good to be on the outside
Life Isnt Fair
Family relationships change and evolve
Nothing Gold Can Stay
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Symbol-Colors
Nothing Gold Can Stay Natures first green is
gold, Her hardest hue to hold. Her early leafs a
flower, But only so an hour. As leaf subsides
to leaf, So Eden sank to grief. So dawn goes down
today, Nothing gold can stay.
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Connections to
Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
That was Then, This is Now by S.E. Hinton
Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare
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Critique
Written by Hinton as a 16 year old, so sometimes
themes are oversimplistic. The world is black or
white, Greaser or Soc, nothing in between.
Hinton criticized for her overly macho male
characters and her rather flat and stereotypical
female characters.
Very accessible to young readers. It was
essentially the first young adult novel that gave
a realistic look at what it was like to be a
teenager.
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Scenes from The Outsiders