Point of Difference

Authors Note:This is my piece on the point of view of The Outsiders.  I showed the point of view of a different character that opposes Ponyboy to show how it could be different. 


The Outsiders, written by S.E. Hinton, was at times a depressing book, about a young boy, Ponyboy, who was trying to survive in the city. The Outsiders clearly makes the reader feel sorry for Ponyboy and makes the Socs look bad. This happens because it is written in Ponyboys view,  but that would all change if written in the point of view of Randy, a soc.

Gangs are clearly present in The Outsiders, the Greasers and the Socs. Greasers are usually dumb, poor, and their families are divided while the Socs are rich, smart and get whatever they want.  But when Johnny kills Bob, a soc, it triggers a spiral of events forcing Ponyboy and Johnny to run for their lives.  When they do escape they are forced to live in a church; as they return one day the church is on fire with innocent kids inside.  Johnny and Ponyboy were able to save the kids with the help of their friend Dally though not without injuries.

The Outsiders is written in Ponyboy’s point of view, and at the beginning of the book when Ponyboy gets beat up by Socs he sees them as bad people.  Then later at the drive-in theater, Ponyboy and Dally meet a girlfriend of a Soc, named Cherry. She tells them that the Socs aren’t bad people but Ponyboy doesn’t believe her. A while after that Johnny killed Bob, one of the leaders of the Socs.  Ponyboy then finally realized that the Socs are just innocent people. From then on Ponboy tries to get the Greasers and the Socs to agree with each other and not to fight.

If the book would’ve been written in Randy’s point of view the reader would’ve reacted much differently.  For instance at the drive-in theater Randy sees Ponyboy and Dally with his girlfriend, and thinks that they are trying to steal her.  After that Randy and Bob go to look for Ponyboy and Dally at the park late at night.  Instead they find Johnny and Ponyboy, but when they fight Johnny kills Bob.  Right then Randy realized that they could’ve killed Ponyboy and Johnny and the situation would’ve been flipped.  After that Ponyboy and Randy tried to work together to get the Greasers and the Socs to agree. 

Just because a book is written in one point of view doesn’t mean it can’t be interpreted in a different way.  This opinion is proved in The Outsiders because of Ponyboy’s and Randy’s reactions.  During the whole book there are two different sides against each other.  This is also  how it is in every book; even the book of life.