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The Outsiders Literature Response Essay Example

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The Outsiders Literature Response Essay Example
The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton original copyright 1967

The protagonists in the book are the Greasers and the antagonists are the Socs. The main characters are Darry, Soda, Dally, Bob, Ponyboy, and Johnny. Darry is tall, muscular, smart and very strict towards Ponyboy. Darry yells at Ponyboy and always seems to expect better from Ponyboy. For example, Darry yells at Ponyboy on page 49, “Where the heck have you been? Do you know what time it is? He was madder than I had seen him in along time. I shook my head wordlessly.” Soda is always optimistic and lighthearted. One of the only things that bring Soda down is the fact that he is a school dropout who works at a gas station. Soda tries to support Pony when Darry is mad at him but tries not to take sides. Soda explains how he doesn’t like when Darry and Pony fight when he says, “It’s just…I can’t stand to hear y’all fight. Sometimes I have to get out or…it’s like I’m the middleman in a tug o’ war and I’m being split in half (page 175).” Dally’s actions, like robbing a store, makes him seem like he is mean and tough but actually he is a very caring person on the inside. An example is when Dally enters the burning church to save Pony and says, “For Pete’s sake, get outa there! That roof is going to cave in any minute.” Bob is rich and undisciplined by his parents who make him feel like he has the power to do anything he pleases. Bob is intimidating to the Greasers like Johnny and Pony because he has the ability to do almost anything he wants. An example of Bob picking on Pony and Johnny is when he orders a Soc to give Ponyboy a bath in the park fountain by drowning him as a sort of cruel joke (page 55). Ponyboy is more emotional than all of the Greasers and takes feelings in to deeper consideration. Pony is not as violent as other Greasers and is very friendly. An example is when Pony went to the drive-in movie; he easily became friends with the popular Soc cheerleader, Cherry. This shows a lot about his personality

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