ipl-logo

Character Changes In The Outsiders

848 Words4 Pages

People are often misconceived for what they present on the outside, not what’s on the inside. This is shown in a number of characters in a number of novels. One of these novels, is called the Outsiders, written by S.E. Hinton. In this novel, there is a boy named Johnny, who is in a gang called the greasers. He is like the pet of the gang, and without him, their is no balance between the gang mates. From the beginning of the novel to the end, Johnny’s personality changes a lot. At first, he was tense and scared, but later on, he became more open to Ponyboy (one of the other main characters) and brave. Early in the novel, Johnny is tense and scared. In the book, Johnny and Ponyboy are at the movies. Dally, (another one of the main …show more content…

After Johnny had killed Bob, and they ran away, Johnny says something to Ponyboy in the church that surprises him. After Johnny left to get supplies, he says, “We’re gonna cut our hair, and your gonna bleach yours.” (71) Johnny saying this, shows that he is starting to take action after what had happened at the park. It shows that reality is hitting Johnny, and this actually makes him slightly tougher in a way. Johnny, being a shy person usually doesn’t take action to solve the problem at han, but by doing this, it shows he is less soft and more hardy than we thought. After that, Ponyboy finds himself in a situation that he personally can’t back out of. It’s the fire at the church. Ponyboy, starts running in to help save the children, but when he turns around, he sees Johnny. “Hey Ponyboy,” Johnny says. Johnny was following Ponyboy into the fire to help save the kids. These two words that Johnny speaks, says a lot about him. For one, it shows that Johnny, isn’t really “afraid of his own shadow” anymore, like he was in beginning because of everything he has been through in the past week, it has made him tougher, in a way more like Dally. This really shows how Johnny’s personality has

Show More
Related
212 Words | 1 Pages

Johnny pretty much considers his friends (the greasers) his family since he is ignored by his alcoholic mother. When Johnny became a greaser that meant he was now enemies with the socs which they had rumbles and fights with. Johnny was smaller than the rest with jet black hair, he always had a suspicious look in his eye. Ponyboy described Johnny as “A little puppy that had been kicked too

Read More
853 Words | 4 Pages

In page 56 it states “ I’m drowning, I thought, they’ve gone too far …” and “ I killed him,” he said slowly. “I killed that boy.” This shows where Johnny saved Ponyboy from drowning. Johnny is also a hero when he helped get the little kids get out of the church that was on fire. In the text it states “ He looked over his shoulder and saw that the door was blocked by the flames, then pushed open the window and tossed out the nearest kid.”

Read More
947 Words | 4 Pages

“People influence people, nothing influences people more than a recommendation from a trusted friend”(Zuckerberg), this is true since people always want an opinion or something to help them make their decisions. In the novel The Outsiders by S.E Hinton, it goes over the life of a teenager and the pain of losing your loved ones and only having your friends to rely on. All decisions made in the story were crucial in every way since it went over real life situations. One character who’s decisions were influenced by the gang members called the Greasers and the environment he lived in was Johnny. Some decisions Johnny made that were influenced by the gang members were killing the Soc, wanting to turn himself in, and saving the children in the burning church.

Read More
1130 Words | 5 Pages

This novel by S.E Hinton, The Outsiders shows a crucial point that everybody is special in some way and should be known as who they are individuality not as a group. The Outsiders is a book that describes 2 gangs , the luxurious Socs, and the hoodlum Greasers. While they have conflicts with each other, the protaganist, Ponyboy, finds his identity outside of the gang. The important message of the story is that everyone has a unique personality that are developed by being in a group of people away from home, this identity can shape anyone’s way of life and the path they may take in the future. First of all, Socs and greasers have a trademark that showed who was part of their gang, Socs are know for Mustangs, Madras, and leather jackets;

Read More
923 Words | 4 Pages

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

Read More
821 Words | 4 Pages

Patrick Granfors Mrs. Collins English 9 22 January 2015 Analytical Essay for The Outsiders, by S.E. Hinton In The Outsiders, by S.E. Hilton, we go to a time where gangs remain dominant and run the streets. S.E. Hinton tells us about two enemy gangs. The Socs, one of the many provocative gang groups, kids who live lavish lives and get away with the crimes they commit because they look clean cut and look like good innocent kids on the outside.

Read More
763 Words | 4 Pages

Also, Johnny was only the one who serves as a vent to his parents’ anger. Days pass and years pass, Johnny was horribly scared of violence. According to the saying of parents are the best teach- ers to children, the violence was just like a seed which was kept in Johnny’s heart and grew gradual- ly day by day. That was all

Read More
779 Words | 4 Pages

A book and a movie can be both the same and different. In The Outsiders there are many similarities and differences with the book and movie. They were the same because Johnny kills a man, they cut their, there was the movie scene, and Johnny and Ponyboy went to the church. Some of the differences is when Darry slaps Ponyboy but in the movie he pushes him, Johnny doesn't bring a lot of food in the book but does in the movie he does, when Johnny killed the man it was more described but it wasn't in the movie, and Johnny says he wants to kill himself in the movie. In The Outsiders one of the themes is “friendship”

Read More
669 Words | 3 Pages

But he did have a minor change, he began to expose a little of his warm-heartedness, after Johnny and Dally died, he didn’t appear much anymore in the story line, but the readers can picture him maturing every passing day but still kept his generous humor. The theme of The Outsiders is about adolescence—discovery, pain, loneliness since in this heart-rending novel, all of the characters suffered for 1. Johnny and Ponyboy had to hide away since Johnny killed Bob, 2. The class conflict between greasers and Socs, 3. Johnny’s and Dally’s death, 4.

Read More
569 Words | 3 Pages

Instead of fearing for his life, he went past his comfort zone and protected PonyBoy. Johnny also acted independently with no instruction from Pony in a high pressure situation with a lot on the line, including his life. Even After being brutally beaten by Randy and Bob he still stood his ground, even when he was afraid he still confronted them and fought both of the Socs till the bitter end. As shown from multiple parts in the chapter Johnny was truly brave at the park. “Never contest a man with

Read More
813 Words | 4 Pages

At the beginning of the novel, Johnny lacked confidence and self-esteem. At times he thought about attempting suicide. S.E. Hinton describes Johnny as, “A little dark puppy that has been kicked too many times and lost his crowd of strangers” (11). This is because Johnny 's parents are abusive: his mother verbally and his father

Read More
667 Words | 3 Pages

You first start to see a slight change in Ponyboy’s point of view when he meets Cherry (Sherri) Valance, furthermore when he speaks to Randy in the car, as well as when he reads Johnny's letter. Ponyboy’s point of view changes when he gets jumped by the Socs and when he first meets Cherry. It is through these events

Read More
526 Words | 3 Pages

In the Outsiders, the characters usually make bad decisions. The Greasers are a gang that function like family, and Johnny’s decisions are not so good. But sometimes they can be spot on. The theme is watch out for what decisions you make, Understand that what ever choice you make there will be a consequence. Johnny made the difficult choice to kill Bob.

Read More
686 Words | 3 Pages

The character Johnny grows in major ways throughout The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton. Johnny was a greaser, His best friend was Ponyboy, the main character. Johnny was a dynamic character, he contributed a lot to the main theme. Johnny had bad parents and committed murder. Soon after his bad acts, he became a hero.

Read More
907 Words | 4 Pages

In the novel, “The Outsiders” that was written by S.E Hinton, one of the characters within the book that has changed a lot was Ponyboy Curtis. Ponyboy Curtis’ change was a slow process, but a lot happened to him throughout the novel. He goes through many events at the start, middle and at the end of the novel too. At the start of the novel, Ponyboy was just an innocent and smart kid who lived with the gang known as, “The Greasers”, but by the end of the novel, Ponyboy is a different person compared to how he was in the beginning. The events that took place in the middle of the novel has some key events that make him change his personality and opinion on life, and that the reader learns that his personality and opinion changes because of the dramatic events he goes through like how Johnny Cade and Dallas Winston’s death.

Read More

More about Character Changes In The Outsiders

Open Document