The Outsiders To be nobody but yourself in a world that's doing its best to make you somebody else, is to fight the hardest battle you are ever going to fight. --ee cummings
Setting _____________ (city) 1960’s West Side vs. East Side of Town the drive-in theatre the lot the church at ___________ (town location of church) the Curtis house the ___________ (one of the final settings, not yet mentioned, but important)
Characters PONYBOY CURTIS JOHNNY CADE DALLAS “DALLY” WINSTON
Ponyboy Curtis narrator good student ______________ years old likes watching sunsets and reading (Gone with the Wind, Great Expectations, “__________________” (a poem written by Robert Frost mentioned in this novel) Greaser sensitive Darry says Pony lacks common sense--doesn’t always “use his ________”
Johnny Cade the “pet” of the gang ___________ years old physically ________ (what size?) lives in an ______________ household has been jumped by the Socs before and now carries a _____________ with him _____________ is his hero stabs and kills _______
Dally Winston tough lived in _______ ________ ________ has been in ________ helps Pony and Johnny hide out after the murder of _______ robs liquor store at the end and “___________ _____________” at the hands of the police
Minor Characters Sodapop Curtis Darrel “Darry” Curtis Sherry “Cherry” Valance Bob Randy
Sodapop older brother works at ______________ handsome carefree
Darrel “Darry” Curtis oldest brother athletic guardian of Ponyboy when their parents die in a _________________ makes _______________for breakfast stern could have gone to college but had to take care of the kids when his parents died
Cherry Valance Bob’s _______________ cheerleader has red hair says she could fall in love with Dally acts as a ____________ for the Greasers says she will probably not talk to Pony if she sees him at school--he says he understands likes to look at ____________ too
Bob Sheldon a Soc Cherry’s _______________ has beaten up Johnny Cade before the novel starts wears ____________ on his fingers; this is how Johnny knows Bob is the Soc who beat him up is stabbed by ____________
Randy Bob’s ______________ ___________ After _____________’s death, he has a change of heart about fighting visits Pony and tries to make ____________ with him
Themes (Be able to explain and support these by the end of the novel) FAMILY FRIENDSHIP SOCIAL DIFFERENCES VIOLENCE/GANG RIVALRY/SENSELESSNESS OF VIOLENCE BEING AN “OUTSIDER” / TRYING TO FIT IN
Conflicts Man vs. Man (Ponyboy vs. Darry; Greasers vs. Socs; Johnny vs. Bob) Man vs. Society (Socs vs. Greasers) Man vs. Himself (Dally vs. himself; Ponyboy vs. himself) Man vs. Nature (the boys vs. the fire)
Ponyboy’s Literary World Great Expecations: Pony compares himself to ________ from this novel; Pip, like Ponyboy, is an orphan trying to find his way in the world. _____________________is the book the boys read while at the church. Johnny compares Dally to a Southern gentleman which is how Johnny views Dally, as a hero. At the end, the note from Johnny to Pony telling him to “stay gold” falls out of this book.
Ponyboy’s Literary World “_________________” is the poem that Pony and Johnny talk about at the church. The poem means that nothing good can last forever. Just as the golden times in the poem come to an end, so too must their time at the church. To Johnny, it means to appreciate the things one finds amazing when one is young. He wants Pony (and, sadly, Dally) to look for sunsets and the good things in life.
The Ending of the Novel What makes it unique? What does it show us about the way Ponyboy has dealt with all the events that have happened to him?
Allusions (Be able to define allusion and know these following allusions) Paul Newman Dairy Queen Corvette/Corvair Hank Williams madras plaid drive-in theatre Gone with the Wind “Nothing Gold Can Stay”