Character Analysis Of Ponyboy Curtis In 'The Outsiders'

The narrator of the novel The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton, Ponyboy Curtis, is a complicated and emotional character. He goes through numerous changes in the book and you get a good idea of his feelings through actions towards others. He proves to be empathetic, caring, and a dreamer. He shows this during situations with his brothers and even with the other Greasers. During the story, Darry is always telling Ponyboy, although he is a intelligent kid, that he needs to use his head. This is partly because of his daydreams and the scenarios he thinks of in his head. He tends to become lost in these dreams and needs to be pulled back to reality. On page 48, Ponyboy begins talking about the country, “I loved the country. I wanted out of the towns

You mainly see this in his actions for when he is talking to his brothers. You can see this early on in the book when he is talking about Sodapop’s old horse and wanting to get it back, “I kept saving my money for a year, thinking that someday I could buy Mickey Mouse back for Soda,” (pg. 48). This shows how much he cares for his brother and that he wants him to be happy. He also shows how much he cares about Johnny, especially when they are hiding out in the church, “ ‘Johnny,’ I said tiredly, ‘you can’t wash your hair in this freezing weather. You’ll get a cold,’ ” (pg. 72). Even through this small comment, you can see Ponyboy’s concern for Johnny’s safety. He also shows his worriedness and protectiveness over Johnny on page 102, “Dally’ll be okay I thought. Dallas is always okay. He could take anything. It was Johnny I was worried about.” He knows how frightened and anxious Johnny is after being jumped and how he is not as tough as the rest of the Greasers. Especially without a loving family at home, Johnny only has the gang and is not able to take as much. Throughout the whole novel, Ponyboy expresses how much he cares for others both with Johnny, and his