Characters
A funny wise-cracker and expert shoplifter; never finished high school
Two-Bit Matthews
Explain Ponyboy's family situation
1. Parents died in a car crash
2. His brothers stop going to school so they can work
3. If they get into trouble, Pony and Soda can get sent to a boys home
What is the REAL difference between a Soc and a Greaser according to Cherry and Ponyboy?
Feeling
What are two main factors that made Johnny’s shy, nervous personality?
1. His abusive parents
2. Being Jumped by the Socs
Where does the following quote appear in the novel? “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…”
First and last sentence of the novel
The pet of the gang, listens to everyone in the gang
Johnny Cade
Why does cutting and bleaching Ponyboy's hair have such an impact on him?
It takes away his symbol of being a Greaser, It makes him look less like Sodapop, Makes him look younger and weaker
In chapter 2 Cherry tells Ponyboy “things are rough all over.” Finally, in chapter 7, Ponyboy figured out what she meant by that statement. What did she mean?
Everyone has problems, and suffering is part of the human condition. Just because Socs have more money, does not mean that they have less problems.
What are the two rules of being a Greaser
Stick together, and Don't get caught
The Outsiders was written from what point of view?
1st person
Very good in school; more sensitive than his friends, track athlete
Ponyboy Curtis
According to Ponyboy, why are Darry and Sodapop so different?
Why does Cherry choose to become a spy for the greasers?
She is tired of the fighting, she liked Ponyboy and Johnny because they were nice, which is rare
Who was the only person that Dally ever cared about? And how do you know?
Johnny, because he didn't want Johnny to turn himself in and become as cold and unfeeling as he was. Johnny's death was also his 'breaking point'
9. What literary device is present in the following excerpt from the text? "But after the night of the beating, Johnny was jumpier than ever. I didn't think that he'd ever get over it. Johnny never walked by himself after that. And Johnny, who was the most law-abiding of us, now carried in his back pocket a six-inch switchblade. He'd use it, too, if he ever got jumped again. They had scared him that much" (Hinton 34).
Foreshadowing
Wears a bunch of rings; once jumped Johnny
Bob Sheldon
Explain how Darry and Ponyboy's relationship has changed throughout the novel.
They fought constantly in the beginning because Darry was concerned about Pony's grades, health, safety etc. Pony thought that Darry hated him. In the end, he finally realizes that Darry cares when he is crying in the hospital.
Cherry uses the phrase "Things are rough all over". Why were things 'rough' for Bob?
His parents never put restrictions on him which made him go more and more chaotic. When he drank he got mean and angry which he took out on people like Cherry and Johnny
Johnny's last words "Stay gold, Ponyboy. Stay gold..." are meant to tell him
Try to stay good and pure
When Ponyboy told Randy, “Greaser didn’t have anything to do with it…It’s the individual,” he meant…
You can’t tell everything about a person by the group he’s part of
Serious, determined; former football star
Darry Curtis
What moment most showed that Ponyboy had changed after Johnny's death?
He broke the soda bottle and was ready to use it
Randy was similarly involved as a witness to Bob's death and jumping Ponyboy and Johnny. What were the repercussions for this?
He had to pay a fine for underage drinking, His father was disappointed in him, He was sad about the loss of his friends
Two friends of mine had died that night: one a hero, the other a hoodlum... Dally didn't die a hero. He died violent and young and desperate, just like we all knew he'd die someday. But Johnny was right. He died gallant.
Why does Ponyboy consider Dally to be gallant but not a hero?
His death was a result of his chaotic life and losing everything, but he was gallant in that he was brave and looked out for them when he didn't have to/ wasn't expected to.
Explain how sunrises and sunsets are important symbols in the novel.
The Sunrise represents new beginnings. Johnny and Ponyboy watch the sunrise on their first day at the church and talk about how nothing beautiful can last forever. They understand that this is their 'new' life ahead of them.
Sunsets are important to the story because they represent unity between the Greasers and the Socs. Sunsets also represent more of Ponyboy's emotional or 'deep' side to Cherry. Later he realizes that they watch the same sunset despite the sides of town they live on. It acts as somewhat of a closure to Ponyboy's feelings about the differences between a Greaser and a Soc.