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The Outsiders Essay - Coggle Diagram
The Outsiders Essay
Hook
Social class is like a tornado, everything goes in, but only some can get out.
Synopsis
In The Outsiders, by S.E. Hinton, two gangs called the greasers and the Socs overcome setbacks and epiphanies that shape how they act.
Thesis
The novel The Outsiders suggests how social class forces people such as Darry and Cherry to fit into a strict box of stereotypes and some, like Ponyboy, manage to escape.
Body Paragraph 1
Darry
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Context for Evidence 1: While Ponyboy is talking about his family, he explains how Darry is the parent figure because he has been through a lot.
Lead in and Evidence 1: Ponyboy thinks that" Darry's gone through a lot in his twenty years, grown up too fast"(2).
Analysis 1: The hardships Darry has to go through, such as working a full time job and feeding his family at such a young age, are because of his social class. After the Curtis Boys' parents died, they were left with little money and a bad reputation as greasers. Darry couldn't afford to save his childhood, so he was forced to grow up and work instead.
Context for Evidence 2: When the greasers are at the rumble, the narrator acknowledges that Darry might get somewhere when he grows up.
Lead in and Evidence 2: Ponyboy believes "(Darry) wasn't going to be any hood when he got old" (138).
Analysis 2: However, Ponyboy doesn't realize that Darry can't get anywhere with the difficulty of taking care of his brothers and working. As mentioned in the book, Darry would be a Soc if it wasn't for the gang and his money. Darry is stuck being a greaser, even if it isn't his choice.
Concluding Sentence: Ultimately, Darry has been stuck in a certain life style as a result of the things he has gone through and the burdens placed upon him.
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Body Paragraph 2
Cherry
Topic Sentence: Like Darry, Cherry feels constricted by her social class, but unlike him, she realizes that there are problems at all levels of society, not just the lowest.
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Concluding sentence: Cherry is able to help Ponyboy comprehend that peoples problems are not just related to money, and sometimes certain values can restrict people from being themselves.
Body Paragraph 3
Ponyboy
Topic Sentence: Ponyboy always thought the greasers had it hard, and there was no way out of that life, but he comes to acknowledge that he can change.
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Context for Evidence 1: During the rumble, Ponyboy makes his goal clear; he wants to succeed and thrive in a better lifestyle, like Darry would.
Lead in and Evidence 1: Ponyboy confesses that "He's going somewhere...I was going to be like him" (138).
Analysis 1: Darry wasn't like the other greasers, and thats how Ponyboy wanted to be. He was tired of being treated as a menace to society. Ponyboy desires a life outside of his shabby neighborhood and scrappy clothes.
Context for Evidence 2: At the drive in movie, Ponyboy talks with Cherry about social class and the barriers it forms.
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Analysis 2: The sunset represents how no matter how different peoples lives seem, they still see the same world. Ponyboy understands that Socs and greasers arent all that different after all. Becuase of the stories and sterotypes told within social classes, people feel like there is no one who has the same emotions as them.