Character Analysis Of Dally In The Outsiders By S. E. Hinton

In the novel, the Outsiders, S. E Hinton portrays all characters except of Dally with very straightforward and realistic personalities throughout the book. However, as the novel gets closer to its terminating point, the readers are able to distinguish the unexpected, and also encounter the impossible turn into a possible. Dally’s tough, cold and fearless personality becomes more hero like and one of the caring kind as he undergoes such significant changes. Besides, we readers always pictured Dally like any other hoodlum, but as we see him face real-life situations and contrasting circumstances, we genuinely start to have a fine perception of his new character. We realize it is through Dally’s extreme time of grief and sadness that all this while it was Dally’s life experience that seemed to have chosen the path for him, which is why the person inside of him never had a chance to be let out.

At the beginning of the novel itself, Dally was profiled as this rough, rugged guy who’d everybody always picture as a criminal or a hoodlum, including the members of his own gang. But, the fact that Dally was a definite criminal and had been in jail quite a few times, becomes
He was a true victim of his circumstances and a product of deprivation, disregard and indifference. He never did any good in his short span of life and had no one to help him escape his life of crime. Johnny, however, realized that there was good in Dally beneath the rough outside. Pony realizes the same thing. He writes, “I remembered Dally pulling Johnny through the window of the burning church; Dally giving us his gun, although it could mean jail for him; Dally risking his life for us, trying to keep Johnny out of trouble...But Johnny was right. He died gallant.” Which finally forces us to change our perception on such a character that was once portrayed to be the most harsh and tough amongst the