Descriptions of Characters (Personality or Appearance)
A little dark puppy that has been kicked too many times....He was the gang’s pet, everyone’s kid brother.
Johnny
A hint the author gives to suggest what might happen in the future
Foreshadowing
Who are the two gangs? What is a main difference between their culture?
Socs and greasers.... Socs are rich, greasers are poor.
Darry - How does his perspective change? When did he notice the change? Be specific.
Ponyboy realizes that Darry loves him when Darry cries at the hospital.
What is Ponyboy's relationship like with his two brothers at the beginning of the book? Be specific.
Ponyboy feels like Darry is always giving him a hard time.
Ponyboy is closer to Sodapop than anybody else.
His eyes are dark brown—lively, dancing, recklessly laughing eyes that can be gentle and sympathetic one moment and blazing with anger the next.
Sodapop
What is a motif? List a key motif that is shown in this quote: “Next time get one of us to go with you, Ponyboy,” Two-Bit said. “Any of us will.”
An idea, symbol, image, or device that repeats throughout a text
Loyalty & Brotherhood
Who does Ponyboy build a strong connection with at the drive-in? Why is it surprising?
Cherry Valance.... She is a Soc.
Johnny - How does his perspective change? When did he notice the change? Be specific.
Dark puppy to hero. When he saves the children from the fire.
What two characters could be described as gallant? Why and when?
Johnny and Dally. They both acted heroically and brave during the fire scene by saving others.
He had been arrested, he got drunk, he rode in rodeos, lied, cheated, stole, rolled drunks, jumped small kids—he did everything.
A reference to history or literature
Allusion
What happens in the park? Be specific.
Dally - How does his perspective change? When did he notice the change? Be specific.
Hoodlum to hero. When Dally rescues Johnny and Ponyboy from the fire.
What is the main idea of "Nothing Gold Can Stay"? How does it relate to The Outsiders?
Nothing good can last forever. When the boys runaway to Windrixville, they are homesick and uncertain of their future.... the message of the poem connects to the loss of innocence that the boys have experienced.
And nobody in our gang digs movies and books the way I do. For a while there, I thought I was the only person in the world that did. So I loned it.
Ponyboy
What is an example of when S.E. Hinton uses foreshadowing?
"If that old church ever caught fire there'd be no stopping it."
"He would kill the next person who jumped him."
Why do the boys go to Windrixville? Be specific.
To runaway from the cops, because Johnny killed Bob.
Cherry - How does his perspective change? When did he notice the change? Be specific.
How are the greasers different than mainstream culture? Give at least TWO examples.
They do not have traditional two parent homes, they commit crimes and fight, they wear jeans and leather clothing.
Two-Bit
Great Expectations
"Nothing Gold Can Stay"
Why does Cherry tell Ponyboy "Things are rough all over?" Does Ponyboy believe her?
Socs have problems too, even if they are rich or don't act like they do.
He does not agree yet.
Socs - How does his perspective change? When did he notice the change? Be specific.
They have problems too.... When Cherry tells him "Things are rough all over."
Why does S.E. Hinton make an allusion to Great Expectations?
Pip is looked down for being poor, and this relates to how Ponyboy and the greasers are treated for being poor.