Mistakes In The Outsiders Essay

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Benson Li Mr. Duren ELA 7, Period 5 24 May 2024 Taking Responsibility For Your Own Mistakes

When someone makes a mistake, people may not realize who to blame. In The Outsiders, the story begins with the author describing the life of Ponyboy Curtis, a member of the Greasers who rivals the Socs. One night, Bob, the leader of the Socs, threatens to kill Pony, leaving no choice for a good friend of Pony, Johnny, to kill him with his switchblade. Because of this incident, Johnny and Pony are forced to flee to the countryside, bringing many problems along with them. The individual should be at fault when they act wrongly because they can learn from their mistakes and it helps them grow as a person. When someone acts wrongly, they should be at fault …show more content…
For example, while at Dairy Queen with Pony and Dally, “Johnny had been quietly finishing his fifth barbecue sandwich, but now he announced: We’re going and turning ourselves in.” (Hinton, 87) The significance of this in the story is that Johnny learned how to take initiative, even though it could be argued that he wasn’t at fault for the death of Bob. He understood what he did was wrong and didn’t blame anyone but himself for his wrongdoings, eventually taking accountability for the crime they committed. In addition, while writing about the negative outcomes of blaming someone else, author Becca Sangwin states in her article, "By holding ourselves accountable for our actions, we open the door to make the changes necessary to better ourselves. When we respond defensively by blaming, we slam the door and give up our power to change.” (Why We Need to Stop) This is important because somebody who blames others would not be able to learn from what they did, instead throwing the mistake at someone else and forcing them to take responsibility for it. In The Outsiders, if Johnny didn’t admit his mistake in killing Bob, he may have spent the rest of his life hiding.
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