The Outsiders By: S.E. Hinton Published in 1967 Richard Garcia

Setting The book was set in the mid-1960’s, in Tulsa, Oklahoma. It was set from the poor side of town, which helps to show the reader the viewpoint of Ponyboy. If the setting was different then the reader’s opinion about the main characters could have changed.

Characters Ponyboy Physical- Long tuff hair, greenish grey eyes and light brown almost red hair. Personality- Smart, quiet and kind. Smart – skipped grade or two. Quiet – didn’t talk much. Kind – saved children from the burning church. Johnny Physical- 16 year old greaser, long black hair and black eyes. Personality- Quiet, sensitive and caring. Quiet – he is shy. Sensitive – he was beat by his dad. Caring – Saved Ponyboys life and the children from the burning church.

Conflict The Socs vs. The Greasers Man vs. Man The rival between groups of teenagers who were from different parts of town, the Socs from the rich part and the Greasers from the poorer part. This conflict shaped and set up the whole story.

Summary of Plot The Outsiders shows that nothing can come between these teenagers because they are as close as a family. Their love for each other is like a brother’s and is unconditional. It tells you that no matter how a person “lives”, whether rich or poor, they are all the same.

Theme The Greasers conflict between the Socs is violent. Ponyboy is walking home and gets jumped by the Soc. In the park, the Socs try to kill Ponyboy so Johnny stabs one of them badly. One of the Socs beat up Johnny badly causing his face to be covered in blood.

Point of View It is in first person, through Ponyboy. It allows you to understand the emotions, situations, and conflict between the Socs and Greasers from one of the Greasers point’s of view. You would think differently of Ponyboy and all the Greasers if it was in the point of view of a Soc.

Symbolism The yin yang sign symbolizes the relationship between the Socs and the Greasers. The differences between the two groups of teenagers is obvious, but when you take a step back you see the two groups really make up a whole together, and they aren’t as different as they thought they were.

Recommendation The book is worth reading because of all of the suspense and situations the characters are in. You really get the view of a teenager in the situations, and understand the conflict.