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The Outsiders is a coming-of-age novel based in 1965 by S. E. Hinton, first published in 1967 by Viking Press. Hinton was 15 when she started writing the novel, and 18 when it was published. The book follows two rival groups, the Greasers and the Socs (pronounced by the author as "so-shez", short for Socials), who are divided by their socioeconomic status.

A film adaptation was produced in 1983, and a short-lived television series appeared in 1990, picking up where the movie left off.

Plot summary

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Ponyboy Curtis and his brothers, Soda and Darry, belong to a gang called the Greasers in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in 1965. They often fight with the Socs, a group of wealthy, privileged boys. Ponyboy is a shy, quiet 14-year-old boy who gets good grades and likes to draw and read. Sodapop, the middle brother, is 16, handsome and popular. Darry, the oldest brother, has been caring for his brothers since their parents died in a car crash. He is very serious, works most of the time at two jobs, and often yells at Ponyboy. Darry is athletic and was a good student, but he had to give up his education to care for his brothers so that they wouldn't have to separate and go to an orphanage. Dallas (Dally) Winston is the roughest of the Greasers. He seems to enjoy being a criminal and thinks that the law is a big joke. Two other Greasers are Two-Bit Mathews, who has a prodigious sense of humor, and Steve Randle, Sodapop's best friend. Finally, Johnny Cade, the pet of the Greasers and 16 years old, is Ponyboy's closest friend and lives with his alcoholic and abusive mother and father. Johnny was jumped and beat up by a Soc wearing heavy rings. Ever since then, Johnny has been paranoid about the Socs and always carries a switchblade.

As the novel opens, Ponyboy is leaving a movie theater when he is jumped by a group of Socs. He is saved from the attack by his friends and brothers, Darry and Sodapop. The night after, Dallas, Johnny, and Ponyboy meet two Soc girls, Sherri (Cherry) Valance and Marcia at a drive in movie theater. Ponyboy realizes that Cherry is nothing like the Socs he has met before. She tells Ponyboy that "things are rough all over", indicating that the rich kids have problems of their own. On the way home, Cherry and Marcia's boyfriends, Bob Sheldon and Randy Adderson, see them with Johnny, Two-Bit, and Ponyboy outside the movie and think the boys are trying to "pick them up". The boys also realize that Bob is the boy with rings who once beat up Johnny. Cherry and Marcia prevent a fight by leaving with Bob and Randy willingly. When Ponyboy comes home very late, Darry gets really angry and hits him. Ponyboy storms out of the house and meets up with Johnny. As they wander around the neighborhood, Bob, Randy, and three other drunk Socs confront them in a vacant lot. They chase and catch both of them. Ponyboy is nearly drowned in a fountain by David, another Soc, so a terrified Johnny stabs Bob, accidentally killing him and scaring away the other Socs. The two boys run to find Dally, who gives them some money and a loaded gun and tells them to hide in an abandoned church on top of Jay Mountain in Windrixville. They stay there for a few days, during which time Ponyboy reads Gone with the Wind to Johnny and recites the poem "Nothing Gold Can Stay" by Robert Frost.

When Dally comes to find them, he reveals that the fights between the two rival groups have exploded in intensity since Bob's death. Johnny decides that he wants to turn himself in, as it isn't fair to Ponyboy to have to hide out while his brothers are worried about him. As they leave for home, they notice the church has caught on fire and that several small children are trapped inside. Johnny and Ponyboy rush to rescue them, but a large piece of burning wood falls on Johnny and breaks his back. Dally rescues Johnny from the burning church, burning his own arm along the way. Ponyboy spends a short time in the hospital. When his brothers arrive to see him, Darry breaks down and cries. Ponyboy then realizes that Darry cares about him, and is only hard on Ponyboy because he wants him to have a good future.

As Ponyboy is recovering at home, Two-Bit shows up and informs him that Johnny and Ponyboy have been declared heroes for rescuing the kids, but that Johnny will be charged with manslaughter for Bob's death. Also, the Greasers and Socs have agreed to settle their turf war with a major rumble. When Ponyboy and Two-Bit visit Johnny and Dally in the hospital, they find Johnny in bad condition with multiple burns and a broken back. Dally is recovering well and insists on going to the rumble. The next evening, the Greasers win the fight with the Socs. Ponyboy however suffers from a concussion. After the rumble, Dally and Ponyboy visit Johnny again, where he dies in front of their eyes. Dally is overwhelmed and runs out of the hospital. Soon after, Darry and the others get a phone call from Dally, who has robbed a grocery store. The boys run out to find him, but the police are chasing him. Dally pulls out an unloaded gun that he only used as a bluff. Not knowing this, the police shoot him down. The boys realize that Dally couldn't bear to live without Johnny. Ponyboy faints and stays sick and delirious for nearly a week. While recovering at home, he tries to convince himself that Johnny is not dead and that he is the one who killed Bob.

When Ponyboy goes back to school, his grades drop dramatically. Although he is failing English, his teacher says he will pass him if he writes a decent theme. Ponyboy reads the copy of Gone with the Wind that Johnny gave to him before dying. In the pages, he finds a note from Johnny describing how he will die proudly after saving the kids from the fire. Johnny also urges Ponyboy to "stay gold," by which he means to stay the way he is and follow his dreams. With this in mind, Ponyboy decides to write his English assignment about everything that has happened recently in his life, and it is hinted that the novel itself is Ponyboy's English assignment. He begins with the same sentence with which the book began: "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..."

References

1. Frequently Asked Questions at sehinton.com
2. Hinton, S. E. (2005) . "speaking with S. E. Hinton... p. 162". The Outsiders. Speak/Penguin Putnam. ISBN 0-14-038572-X.
3. Frequently Asked Questions at sehinton.com

External links

• S.E. Hinton's Website
• "‘The Outsiders’: 40 Years Later" By Dale Peck The New York Times September 23, 2007

• 1967 novels
• American young adult novels
• American novels adapted into films
• Debut novels