Social Class In The Outsiders

Words: 656
Pages: 3
Open Document
“The Outsiders” is a suspenseful novel that follows a group of lower-class gang members, the Greasers, and their rival, upperclass gang, the Socs. In result of the murder of one of the Socs, the youngest gang members from the Greasers are forced into hiding, and a gang war is set off between the gangs. S.E. Hinton’s, “The Outsiders”, uses characters, setting, and plot to create the theme, social class limits people to accept and see the similarities between one another, in several ways.
Throughout the story, Hinton uses the social class of characters to produce the theme that this social class does not depict our true selves by including statements about the differences in wealth, but continues in the story to show how similar the two groups …show more content…
Throughout the story, the author repeats that the Greasers are poor and the Socs are richer, knowing that depending on where you lived. The story says that the Greasers lived on the “East-side” while the Socs were on the “West-side” and any time that the Socs were talked about, their amount of money was brought up, along with living western/West-side. This shows that there is a correlation between where people lived and how much money they had, defining their social classes. Although these social classes are repeated, the gangs realize near the end of the novel that they are not very different people when they actually converse with one each other. The setting develops the theme because she connects the wealth and where the gangs live, leading up to the two gangs realizing that they are similar people. Since they were so divided from where they lived, they did not talk to each other face-to-face, but they talked about how bad each of the gangs were and they experienced different environments where each of the groups …show more content…
Near the beginning of the movie, a teen from the Socials’ gang and a young teen from the Greasers meet at a movie theater and begin to have conversations. Before having the conversations, Ponyboy Curtis told the girl, Cherry, that only money separated the two gangs, but Ponyboy had a realization after talking with her, “It seemed funny to me that the sunset [Cherry] saw from her patio and, the one I saw from the back steps was the same one. Maybe the two different worlds we lived in weren't so different. We saw the same sunset.” This shows that Ponyboy was limited to knowing any similarities between them because he thought he couldn’t talk to her because he was “poorer than the Socs”. Once he started talking, he realized that they “saw the same sunset”, which means that they were not completely different people and they were separated only because of how much money they had.
In S.E. Hinton’s, “The Outsiders”, the characters, setting, and plot are used to establish the overarching theme, social class restrains us from realizing the similarities between
Show More

Related Documents: Social Class In The Outsiders

Character Analysis: The Outsiders

Who’s considered an “outsider”? Some people grow up outside of society. They don’t look for fights, they look beyond. The Outsiders takes place in Tulsa, Oklahoma during the 1960’s. This novel is about two social groups of teens, Socs and greasers. Along the way, there are conflicts that cause separation between buddies in a hurtful way. Which characters from the novel were different or set apart from the rest of society? The “outsiders” of the novel are Ponyboy, Johnny, and Cherry based on textual…

Words 664 - Pages 3

The Outsiders Research Paper

Well, no, no. Social class in society has factors like how much money you have, what side of town you’re on, and it plays a big role in how people view you. Ultimately, we shouldn't let it. This is relevant in today's time because at school in general, typically richer people who can afford nicer things get treated better since they appear as “cooler” for having materialistic things. Social class has been around for a long time, but it was prominent in the 1960’s in the book The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton…

Words 756 - Pages 4

The Misfits Comparative Essay

Howe, and The Outsiders by S.E Hinton, both stories are brung together around the topic of social inequality. In both The Outsiders, and The Misfits, the characters get treated differently because of different traits people use to describe them. In comparative analysis, the two novels, have differences and similarities in their social inequalities such as appearance, income, and bullying. To begin with, appearance inequality is main discrimination that characters in both The Outsiders, and The Misfits…

Words 669 - Pages 3

Ms. Hinton's Book 'The Outsiders'

never used the word outsiders in her book I think that she had multiple meanings when she chose The Outsiders as the title of her book. I also think that Ms. Hinton left it up to the audience to decide what she means by outsiders. There is one meaning that stood out to me after I read this great book. One reason I think she titled her book the outsiders because the greasers are considered outsiders from their society. The greasers never really accepted who they are and the socials grow up adored by…

Words 225 - Pages 1

Outsiders Theme Essay

Outsiders theme If you were to read the Outsiders, for face value it just seems like an interesting book about a young boy and a gang of “Greasers”. However, if you dug deep to try to find an central theme, you could find many and be stuck The top 3 are: society and class, loyalty, and how appearances can affect how people are treated. These are all valid themes, but only one is right. The first one I'll talk about is society and class. The main argument for this one is the gangs. The poorer people…

Words 408 - Pages 2

Essay Comparing The Running Dream 'And The Outsiders'

Analyzing the the two books, The Running Dream by Wendelin Van Draanen and The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton, both contain social inequities. These novels consist of similarities and differences of the same idea, social discrimination, which branches off to judgment, social status, and displacement. The Outsiders and The Running Dream have characters and situations that include these inequalities. To start off, Rosa from The Running Dream has cerebral palsy, a condition that causes damage to the brain…

Words 507 - Pages 3

The Outsider Analysis

you ever felt like an outcast? Well in the book “The Outsiders” it seem as if anyone could be an “outsider” depending on perspective. Set in Oklahoma and written in 1967, “The Outsiders” tells a story two different groups; The Socs (Socials) and Greasers. The outsiders could be anyone from the Socs to the Greasers and even the rest of society. While the Greasers may feel like the “outsiders”, the Socs could actually be considered “outsiders” since they aren’t apart of that group. As Cherry mentions…

Words 373 - Pages 2

Summary: The Outsiders

of an “outsider”? Well there’s a novel written by S.E Hinton based on her growing up and the categories teens placed themselves in her hometown located in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The book is called “The Outsiders”, where the teens were divided by “Socs” and “greasers”. While both could be outsiders, the true outsiders are the ones who have a better understanding of life and think beyond the division and differences of Socs and Greasers. It’s a big possibility that greasers can be seen as outsiders. The reason…

Words 387 - Pages 2

Essay On The Outsiders

one of the many quotes from a well-loved book (and movie) known as The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton. This is a story about a group of juvenile delinquents, otherwise known as Greasers, who go through many tragic and serious events and try to cope with the outcome. Many life-changing themes are subtly snuck into the plot during the many moments that the characters experience. One major theme is related to the two different social classes in the book: the Greasers and Socs. It states that humans should…

Words 920 - Pages 4

Dear city of sydney Essay

attention that recent plans have been released to hold a festival highlighting the plight of individuals who might be considered outsiders in our society. This letter is to propose that the plays “Medea” by Euripides, and “A Streetcar Named Desire” by Tennessee Williams be included the festival. Both of these pieces showcase the detrimental and worrisome effects of being an outsider of society while providing an outstanding and engaging performance. The play “Medea” focuses on the discrimination that a…

Words 1050 - Pages 5