Common Themes In The Outsiders By S. E. Hinton

The Outsiders is filled with themes and troubles that many teenagers can relate to. These lessons change the way many of the characters think about the world and other people. At the end of The Outsiders, the lessons that Ponyboy learns makes him realize that there is good in the world, you just have to express it. Though the Socs did not show any emotions toward other characters, they also realize that fighting will not get them anywhere. S.E Hinton expresses many themes such as division of communities, empathy, and honor amongst the lawless in The Outsiders. The first theme that S.E. Hinton bases the book on is was the gap between the rich and the poor. Socs and greasers (rich and poor) are rivals in The Outsiders. They are not natural enemies, but they are expected to gang on each other. In a way it connects to my life because in some communities I’ve seen, people are known as either the rich, poor, or middle class. S.E. Hinton suggests that people stereotype others as what they want them to be or what they’d expect them to be. One of the least consistent themes between the two groups is the presence of empathy. …show more content…
Empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings of another. I can connect to this lesson when I see upsetting news on TV and I try to understand them and have sympathy for those people.Though the Socs hide their feelings until the “rumble”, they all have some sort of sympathy for the greasers and people that they have harmed. After reading the note Johnny left him, Ponyboy understands why Johnny wants teenagers to stay gold and that the children’s lives were worth his own. He decides to write a story about his life to inform other kids to not lash their anger at the world, but to see the beauty in