Brotherly love is strong and unconditional, even if you are oblivious of it, as Ponyboy Curtis learns in The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton. Ponyboy and his brother Darry have an interesting relationship because of the situation they are in with Darry having to play the role of the parent, and three ways that Ponyboy describes his relationship with his brother in The Outsiders is kill, firm, and care. Ponyboy feels that Darry puts a lot of pressure on him to not get into trouble in school or on the streets. In this novel, Ponyboy mentions, “Darry would kill me if I got into trouble with the police.” (1). Of course, Ponyboy is only exaggerating when he thinks this, but Darry is very strict and Pony knows he would punish him if he did mess up and