The Outsiders is about a boy, Ponyboy Curtis, who struggles with right and wrong in society. In Ponyboy's eyes he views himself as an outsider, a outcast from society. The novel shows how society and the people in it can effect the choices that people make in
thier lives.
Ponyboy and his two brothers, Darrel, (Darry) and Sodapop have recently lost both of thier parents to a tragic automobile accident. Ponyboy and Sodapop are under Darry's guardianship as long as they follow the rules. The
boys are considered greasers, a term developed on the street which means a poor kid from the grimey part of
town. They face a grudge with the Socs, short from Socials, which is the the rich kids from the west side of town.
The book starts with Ponyboy walking
home alone from a movie. A group of Socs appear and beat Ponyboy to the ground. They rough him up, and threaten to kill him but some of Pony's gang freinds appear and run the Soc's off. This kinda sets the tonefor the rest ofstory because this shows how both gangs will react without even being provoced.
The next night Pony and two of his freinds, Dallas Winston, and
Johnny Cade attend a drive in movie. There they meet two girls, Cherry Valance and her freind, Marcia who had left thier boyfreinds behind because they were drinking. Dally leaves after harassing the girls, but another greaser, Two Bit Mathews, joins Pony and Johnny. The boys offer to walk the girls home, but on the way they run into some Socs, Cherry and Marcia'sBoyfreinds. The boyfreinds threaten to fight the greasers but Cherry stops it from happening. Then The girls leave with the Socs.
Pony and Johnny got to a abandened lot to hang out before they head home. They both fall asleep and when Johnny wakes Pony its 2:00 a.m, past Pony's curfew. Pony runs home and his guardian, Darry, is waiting up for him. Darry was very worried and frustrated with Pony so in the heat of the moment Darry hits Pony. Pony runs away from the house and goes back to the lot to try to find Johnny. Pony wants to run away but instead they just go to the park to cool off before going back home.
When there sitting at the park Cherry and Marcia's boyfreinds appear. Pony and Johnny are outnumbered so the Socs got the upperhand. The Socs grab Pony and force his head in the fountain trying to drown him. Relizing that Pony is drowning, Johnny then panics, grabs his switchblade, and stabs the Socs, Bob.
Pony and Johnny seek out the help of Dally to avoid being arrested for the murder of Bob. He gives them $50.00 and directions to get to a hideout on the otherside of town. The boys hop a train and are to wait at the hideout intell Dally comes to get them. Hiding in a abondened church the boys feel even more like outsiders due to thier appearences. Both boys cut thier hair as a disquiese and Pony dyes his. They pass time in the church by playing cards and reading parts of "Gone With The Wind",
Dally shows up as he said he would in a week, and takes the boys up to Dairy Queen in Windrixville. Dally explains how he got the police to beleave that Pony and Johnny were both headed for Texas. Dally also explains how Cherry is working as a spy for the Greasers, helping out against the Socs. She also testifies that Bob was drunk the night of the murder, and the boys did it out of self defense.
They return to the church only to find that it had been set ablaze. there is a group of school kids there on some kind of picnic. He then notices that there are children trapped inside. Without thinking Johnny and Pony both rush inside the burning church to helf the children. As they are handing the kids out to Dally, the roof colapses. Pony barely escapes, but the burning timber falls on Johnny, scortching his skin and breaking his back. Now the boys, being viewed as hereos, head to town in a ambulence, johnny goes to the hospital, while Pony is reunited with his brothers.
Johnny dies in the hospital his injuries. Dally, Who is overcome with grief, robs a grocery store. Dally out runs the police and goes to a phonebooth to call the gang. He asks them to pick him up at the vacent lot and take him to a hiding place. The police chase Dally to the lot and the whole gang watches as he pulls a black object from his belt and officers shoot himto the ground, assuming that he had a gun.
All of the violence has Pony tramatized, but he deals with the grief and frustration by writing. He comments about writing the book for all the "Dallys" in the world.
The story end up tragic, and moralizes the facts that people have to deal with thier diffrences in the world, and a human should not be judged by his race, finacial status, or what part of town he lives in. And that people are always going to be different, and you have to make the best of peoples diffrences, not discriminate against them.
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