The Outsiders - S.E. Hinton Flashcards
Greasers
“Greasers are almost like hoods; we steal things and drive old souped up cars and hold up gas and have gang fights once in awhile.”
Socs
“Not like socs, who jump greasers and wreck houses and throw beer blasts for kicks and get editorials in the paper for being a public disgrace and an asset the next.”
Ponyboy
“I’m not like them. And nobody in our gang digs movies and books the way I do.”
“You two are too sweet to scare anyone.” - Cherry
“What’s a nice smart kid like you running around with trash like that for?” - Cherry
Darry
“I hate most guys that have green eyes.”
“He’s got eyes that are like two pieces of pale blue-green ice”
“Darry didn’t deserve to work like an old man.”
“You just don’t cry in front of Darry.” - Ponyboy doesn’t connect with Darry the way he does with soda.
Sodapop
“Recklessly laughing eyes that can be gentle and sympathetic one moment and blazing with anger the next.” - best of both worlds - Ponyboy feels he doesn’t need Darry.
“Soda isn’t afraid of him [Darrry] like everyone else.”
“In our neighbourhood it’s rare to find a kid who doesn’t drink once in a while. But soda never touches a drop.” - “he gets drunk on just plain living.” - different from rest like Ponyboy.
Cherry
“I hate to tell people my real name for the first time.” - “that’s an original and lovely name.” - friendship starts of great
“I can’t stand fights… I can’t stand them…” - Cherry - similarities both don’t like fights.
“If I see you in the hall at school or someplace and don’t say hi, well, it’s not personal or anything but…” - social groups give boundaries to each other and won’t let them break free.
Pony and cherry come to see that maybe they are quite different, however they don’t have to show that they are not fond of each other like male intergroup relationship do.
“Can you see the sunset real good from the west side?’ She blinked, startled and smiled, ‘real good.’ ‘You can see it real good from the east side too.” - putting all their differences aside.
“She turned around. She had green eyes” - links to the start. Has Ponyboy learn’t to stop hatred or will it still last?
Johnny
“If you can picture a little dark puppy that has been kicked too many times, you’ll have Johnny.” - needs someone for him.
“Johnny’s eyes glowed. Dally was proud of him. That was all Johnny had ever wanted.”
“I don’t want to see her.”
“He would rather see those hoods over his own mother” - dally and Johnny’s relationship was more then a friendship it was more of a father son relationship - Johnny just wanted dally to be proud of him just like son to his father.
“Johnny was a good fighter and could play it cool, but he was sensitive and that isn’t a good way to be when your a greaser.” - Johnny could kill the soc but not the guilt it left behind - the guilt made him go into that burning church to save those children - this then led him to his death bed - opposite to dally who was surprisedly his hero.”I wondered about it vaguely. Dally had seen people killed on the streets of New York’s west side. Why did he look sick now?” - thought dally was incapable of loving someone.
“Johnny was the only thing dally had ever loved” - couldn’t live without him.
Socs vs greasers
“I’ll bet you think the socs have it made. The rich kids, the west side socs. I’ll tell you something Ponyboy, and it may, come to surprise. We have troubles you never even heard of” - cherry
“Things are rough all over” - cherry
“Greasers will still be greasers and socs will still be socs” - Randy - pointless conflict.
Blue mustang
Symbol of division of class - presented as symbol of economic inequalities between socs and greasers - when mustang present brings conflict - shows economic divide major source conflict between two groups - greasers walk on foot more vulnerable to attacks - at end randy turns up with mustang - no conflict - shows moving on.
Hair
Greasers hair is symbolic - represents greasers as unified group - since cannot represent selves same as socs - use as identifying symbol.
Peace
“Nothing gold can stay” by Robert frost - becomes important symbol for holding onto innocence and purity.
“Stay gold Ponyboy” - Johnny figures out meaning of poem - forges stronger connection to Ponyboy - tells pony to stay innocent on his death bed.
“Maybe the two worlds we lived in weren’t so different. We saw the same sunset.” - half way through novel Ponyboy starts to figure out these “social classes” put on them and begins to think of socs and greasers some what equal.
