The Outsiders

The book I read was The Outsiders by S.E Hinton. This book is mostly about a boy name Ponyboy gets attacked by a group of Socs, The socs are a group that  the greasers are beefing with and after he decides to come and walk home alone from the movies, they attack him. The author communicates Ponyboy’s outsider status through the mood, tone and wording choice. This technique has a lot of effect overall. It makes the reader feel like they’re in the book as the character. It makes the reader feel that they know that the greasers and the socs don’t like each other. This makes the reader think about many different things like why don’t they like each other, did someone get killed because they didn’t like each other, and many more other questions. The reader influence their understanding by careful looking and understanding the mood, tone and word choice.

His rescuers are his brothers, Darry and Sodapop. The next night, they all go out and go watch a movie with Dally. Darry slaps Ponyboy, which he has never done and then Ponyboy flees. He sees Johnny which is a kid they found in the lot who was beaten up by the socs, then the both of them decide to go to the park. The Socs come to the park and start to attack both of them then they drowned Ponyboy . When he wakes up he is laying next to Johnny and Bob, one of the Socs, who is dead. Johnny had to kill him because he was going to drown Ponyboy and then beat him up after that. They look for Dally so they can get help. He gives them a gun and some money then sends them to an abandoned church. Dally, Ponyboy, and Johnny are on their way back home when they see the church they were in was on fire, so they jump into action. They get the kids out but then they wake up in a ambulance. The greasers beat the Socs in a rumble. They found out that Johnny is dying. Ponyboy wakes up in his bed at home.

There are a lot of techniques but there is only one great one. The technique is the quote sandwich is first introduce the idea that the quote will support. Then, your quote and after explain your quote support your idea. This technique is the best to get a quote and explain and its very simple to use.

In chapter 1, ¨WHEN I STEPPED OUT into the bright sunlight from the darkness of the movie house, I had only two things on my mind: Paul Newman and a ride home.¨ He is leaving the movie house alone and he knows he not suppose to. Page 3-4, chapter 1, “Greasers can't walk alone too much or they'll get jumped, or someone will come by and scream "Greaser!" at them, which doesn't make you feel too hot, if you know what I mean.” He knows the dangers of walking home alone rather than go to the movies with one of his brothers. He could get jumped anytime because he is a greaser and because they don’t like each other. Page 5, chapter 1, “I knew it wasn't any use though the fast walking, I mean even before the Corvair pulled up beside me and five Socs got out.” He knows now that he should of brought someone.. He already knows what is about to go down. Page 5, chapter 1 “I was sweating something fierce, although I was cold. I could feel my palms getting clammy and the perspiration running down my back. I get like that when I'm real scared.” The author is trying to makes us feel like we are in the story and or the character. By the tone and the word choice by the author, we can feel it.

Page 5, chapter 1 “I finally thought of something to say. "No." I was backing up, away from that knife. Of course I backed right into one of them. They had me down in a second.” Ponyboy is a smart boys but doesn’t use his head. But he stood up for his self and said something back. Us as the readers could feel this intense moment between Ponyboy and the socs. Page 6, chapter 1 “ I lay there and wondered what in the world was happening people were jumping over me and running by me and I was too dazed to figure it out. Then someone had me under the armpits and was hauling me to my feet. It was Darry.” He doesn’t listen to his brother but he is the only one who comes and sees him laying down. The author is trying to show with his wording to explain what happen and who came basically.

There was any different things said about the book from a reviewer and or a fan. Some people said good things and some people said bad things. A reviewer said, “They grew up on the outside of society. They weren't looking for a fight. They were looking to belong.” The readers will agree with the reviewer because its the truth. For example I have something to back this up from the book, page 4, chapter 1, “We're poorer than the Socs and the middle class. I reckon we're wilder, too. Not like the Socs, who jump greasers and wreck houses and throw beer blasts for kicks, and get editorials in the paper for being a public disgrace one day and an asset to society the next. Greasers are almost like hoods; we steal things and drive old souped-up cars and hold up gas stations and have a gang fight once in a while.” The greaser grew up poor. They had to do things they didn’t want to do to stay alive. The robbed, stolen, do wild things, have gang fights. Another example is on page 3, chapter 1, “. My hair is longer than a lot of boys wear theirs, squared off in back and long at the front and sides, but I am a greaser and most of my neighborhood rarely bothers to get a haircut. Besides, I look better with long hair.” This shows that Ponyboy is an outsider by the way he looks.

This structures of the Outsider is very important. It is important because the books starts off very great and then the book doesn’t take sometime to tell the story, it just goes right into it. I think this was a perfect way to start off the book. It makes the reader want to continue to read the book unstop. The structure of all the fighting scenes, when he leaves the movie house, decides to walk home alone makes the book how it is. The scenes makes you feel like they are really outsiders. For example, on page 5, chapter 1 “I was sweating something fierce, although I was cold. I could feel my palms getting clammy and the perspiration running down my back. I get like that when I'm real scared.” The author is trying to makes us feel like we are in the story and or the character and like we know what is about to happen. The author communicates Ponyboy’s outsider status through the mood, tone and wording choice as the readers could see.