Stereotype, someone who is regarded as embodying or conforming to a set image or type. This is the main component of the S.E. Hinton novel The Outsiders. The stereotypes in the novel are the Socs and the Greasers. The Socs are the rich kids who don’t have to work for anything, while the Greasers are the poorer kids who have very little. They both live in the city of Tulsa, one group on the Northside and one on the Southside. Outside of these boundaries no-one knows of them but the hatred for each other still plays on their minds. In our community stereotypes play a part in life, but in The Outsiders it is the core theme of the story combining with teenage struggles. In The Outsiders the main character Ponyboy Curtis conforms to the image …show more content…
It is good to see that Ponyboy can look past people’s differences and begin to like the Socs for who they are. In the city of Tulsa there is a gang war between the Greasers and Socs. When the boys left the city they found that no one knew about Greasers and Socs, so they wouldn’t get jumped or discriminated against by the cops or other gangs. Time away from Tulsa helps the main character Ponyboy, a Greaser, reflect and see there is not much difference between the Socs and the Greasers, just how others see them. Socs like Cherry and Randy help Ponyboy along the way to see through the stereotype after the death of a friend. When the church fire occurs in Windrixville and the boys are hurt, in the ambulance Jerry says he has never heard of Greasers. The stereotype of the city is undeniable with most people on the Southside Socs and the Greasers on the Northside. But outside of the city no one knows about the stereotypes, therefore, do they exist? Greasers are the main stereotype in the book but also there is a small part played by the Socs. Although the book is about the life and times of a Greaser there is also a ‘Socs Story’ in there, as throughout the book you learn more and more about the Socs and how they live. But this all changes. When Bob dies Cherry and Randy, the main Socs characters, begin to see that there is no difference between Socs and Greasers. Randy, when he talks to Ponyboy in private doesn’t call
In the novel The Outsiders by S.E. HINTON the main character Ponyboy’s identity changes multiple times over the text. In the beginning of the story Ponyboy was introduced as a greaser, a greaser is someone who is usually poorer than the middle class and like to screw around and start gang fights and they are considered hoods as stated on pages 2-3, “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 almost like hoods.” this shows that even though the Socs are much more wild the greasers are still considered the bad crazy hood people. Ponyboy didn’t like being a greaser
Have you ever noticed in “The Outsiders” the differences and the similarities between the Greasers and the Socials? Well I will be explaining and showing why the Socials and Greasers are different and why they are the same. I will also be giving evidence supporting Ponyboys thought that Greasers and Socials are the same.
In The Outsiders, a book written by S.E. Hinton, there are two polar opposite gangs, the socs and the greasers. The socs, who are high class, have mustangs and “tuff” cars and wear plaid clothing called madras. The Greasers, who are lower class, are known for their long and greasy hair, wearing leather jackets and being hoods. They only have each other and always have everyone’s back. No matter the situation like leaving a door open in case they need to run away from home because of an abusive dad , they can count on one another. Ponyboy, a 14 year old Greaser, who is also the protagonist, along with other characters lose themselves while trying to be someone else they’re not. Hinton teaches us that it is important to remember that individual
As Ponyboy states when he starts to understand this, “No, it wasn’t Cherry the Soc who was helping us, it was Cherry the dreamer who watched sunsets and couldn’t stand fights.” (Hinton 86). Ponyboy was previously under the impression that all Socs didn’t care about anything, and was surprised when he met Cherry, a Soc who watched the same sunset as he did. The stereotype of Socs being heartless and cruel was all he had seen and heard, so it was hard for him to understand how one could be so different. Ponyboy’s friends felt similarly, and most of them found it even harder to grasp this concept than Ponyboy had. The Greasers were used to judging the Socs as a group, and did not see them as individuals. These group stereotypes are what ultimately caused most of the biggest fights in the novel.
“The Outsiders”, by S.E. Hinton, is centered around Ponyboy’s path to maturity and the life lessons he learns along the way. The novel follows Ponyboy, a greaser, and his gang’s conflict with the Socials, a rival gang. In it, he learns to not judge people hastily and reject gang mentality. Ponyboy also loses his innocence. The following paragraphs will explore his growth throughout “The Outsiders”.
Words have different meanings in neighborhoods. Two compliments in their neighborhoods are tough and tuff. Tough meaning the same as rough and tuff meaning cool or sharp. In kids today they get labeled because of the way they dress or the music they listen to. There are the skaters, the nerds, the ghetto people, the preppys, etc." Our hair labeled us greasers, too-it was our trademark. The only thing we were proud of" (64). Some groups are considered worse than the others, some have other problems then the others." You sure you want to go back? Us greasers get it worse than anyone else" (78). In The Outsiders Greasers had this tough appeal. They were boys, but needed to be more manly. "...I wanted to cry, but greasers don't cry in front of strangers, some of us never cry at all..." (91).
The Socs mostly came from houses with two parents, drive fine cars, wear fashionable clothing, and even given the freedom they wanted. Instead of focusing on all the goods that the Socs had, they decided to focus on their hatred towards the Greasers. They wanted to jump the Greasers and do whatever it took to cause conflict. “You Greasers have a different set of values. You're more emotional. We're sophisticated--- cool to the point of not feeling anything. Nothing is real with us” (Hinton 33). The Greasers feel emotions, but the Socs are too cool to feel anything. Instead of the Socs taking advantage of everything they had, the Socs got editorials in the newspaper for being a public disgrace one day and a benefit to society the next day. Randy and Cherry seem to be the only ones to realize the error of the Socs ways. Cherry feels sympathy for the Greasers even after her boyfriend, Bob, was killed.
One of the main vs man conflict in the Outsiders is the rival between the greasers and the socs. The greasers are the east side boys who " steal things and drive old souped-up cars and hold up gas stations". The greasers, due to their family background and physical appearance, are being stereotyped as individuals who are poor and are provided with fewer opportunities than others. On the other hand, the socs, are " the west-side rich kids" who come from affluent backgrounds and" likes to jump greasers and throw beer blasts for kicks". In the eyes of the public, the Socs are the social elites whereas the greasers are considered the less privileged, second-class citizens.
The difference in social class definitely took its toll on the two of these gangs. The Soc’s and Greaser’s opinion would change from with experiences, but for the most part it was a clash for who owned the town. The Socs were the “good guys” and the Greasers were the “troublemakers” of town, although this was definitely not the case but because of the unchanging prejudice opinions were placed on both of the groups it would not change. For example, Ponyboy explained that maybe the Greasers and Socs aren’t so different after all. On page 40, Ponyboy starts to wonder how different he is from any of the Socs, “It seemed funny to me that the sunset she saw from her patio and the one I saw from the back steps was the
Stereotype; a widely held but fixed and oversimplified image or idea of a particular type of person or thing. In the realistic fiction novel, The Outsiders, by S.E. Hinton, and in the short story, “Geeks Bearing Gifts”, written by Ron Koertge, stereotypes are defied by ordinary people. In The Outsiders, Johnny Cade and Darry Curtis face many struggles throughout their lives. Their town in separated into two: the rich and dangerous Socs, and the quiet, tough Greasers. For them, living dangerously is a reality. As a result of their lifestyle, Johnny has become fearful and Darry is considered the toughest man in the gang. In “Geeks Bearing Gifts” aspiring journalist, Renee, interviews her fellow classmates who are classified as “outcasts.” After meeting several students, she realizes her assumptions were incorrect about them. After reading both of these stories, the reader learns that our thoughts about others often revolve around stereotypes and assumptions, but most of these ideas that we have about other people are proven wrong.
In this case, greasers are from the East and don’t earn a lot of money; Socs are from the West and have plenty of money. Furthermore, the story takes place in the 1960’s during discrimination and racial tensions are high, not to mention in Oklahoma. Ponyboy and Johnny take a train to Windrixville to live in an abandon church for a week. Then Ponyboy and Johnny come back, but this time in the hospital. Lastly, the book ends in the park where Dally is gun down.
Do you really know the truth about greasers? Stereotypes are everywhere even if they are wrong. Socs are seen at sweet and the innocent ones. When you turn your backs, the socs are the ones who are attacking the greasers. When the greasers fight it is usually is for self defense. Greasers are mainly good, but society highlights their ”hoodlum acts”. Greasers are misunderstood, and stereotyped because of misconception.
Have you ever read a very hard hitting and the phenomenal story about rival gangs and the effect it has on the lives of the people and the society. In The Outsiders, is a story of 14-year-old Ponyboy Curtis and his two older brothers, Soda and Darry. The boys are orphans and struggle to stick together in their lower-class neighborhood, known as the East Side. They and their friends are part of a gang of tough street boys called the Greasers. Even though other people might think you're unimportant and below them. You will always have your friends and family. In The Outsiders, we see the idea of the difference in the society based on the economic level of the characters, honor among the lawless and violence among the youth.
Both Socs and greasers all have a bad reputation with stereotypes when are looked at. Ponyboy shouted, "Greasers cant walk alone too much or they'll get jumped, or someone will come by and scream "Greaser!" and that doesn’t make you too hot if you know what I mean." (Hinton Pg #) This paragraph shows us that people who have never met a greaser, are looking at them in a bad way. Before stereotypes have a chance to know them, they don’t realize how hard a greasers' life is. Randy stated, "They give us a little money and the world hates us." (Hinton pg #) This shows that Socs have it rough.
To start, stereotypes are deceptive because people place others into cliques based on their appearances. People assume everyone in a clique are the same, even though their true personality may differ from that clique. The first example from The Outsiders in which somebody doesn’t fit in with the stereotype they are given is Ponyboy. Ponyboy doesn’t quite fit in with his clique, the greasers. After Ponyboy is jumped, Darry has a fight with Pony. Darry yells at Ponyboy to think on the streets and to stay alert. Darry is concerned about Ponyboy’s safety: ‘“You must think at school with all those good grades you bring home, and you’ve always got your nose in a book, but do you ever use your head for common sense?”’ (13). Meaning, Ponyboy isn’t like the greaser stereotype. Compared to all the other greasers, Pony is book smart and not street smart. The greasers are smart where it really matters like on the streets. They carry blades to defend themselves, travel as gangs, and know how to get themselves out of a dangerous situation, if they get stuck in one. Ponyboy, however, is book smart. He succeeds at an outstanding level at school and in his academics. Once he is on the street his intelligence doesn’t follow him. He doesn’t use his common sense and he can’t find his way out of dangerous situations. As a result of this Pony gets jumped by the Socs which