Family and The Outsiders

 Author’s Note: This is my final essay written about The Outsiders. It will talk about the families of the characters in the book, what makes a good family, and what would happen if the parents were in the story.

     There are many types of families out in the real world. Some are good or bad, while some aren't here anymore. Greasers' and Socs' families might not be very stable because of money problems, depression, or death of someone. Although parents aren't mentioned very much in this story, they are still there and influencing what their child does today. This doesn't happen suddenly, but it can happen over a certain period of time. If things don't get fixed, they will only create more problems.

     In some ways, this is the typical greaser's life; Pony, Darry, and Soda's parents died and some other people (the greasers) sort of took them under their wing. This is the main difference between greasers and socs. Socs are the rich kids with perfect families that get whatever they want. On the other hand, some greasers don't have any real relatives left, but even worse, some don't have the money to support themselves or their brothers/sisters they way they would like to.

     As you may have noticed, the parents of the people in the story were mentioned a few times but for the most part they were absent. We all know that Ponyboy's parents passed a few years ago, but if some of the socs parents found out what they really did outside of home, they would be furious. If their parents really care, then that means that they belong to a good, stable home. If the parents really played a major role in the story, the rumble probably would have never happened, Pony wouldn't have run away, or possibly, Johnny's parents wouldn't be so ignorant.

     Think of how you would feel if all of your friends started ignoring you, and your parents got divorced and moved to different states. Next imagine yourself having to move to a different state and school. Imagine yourself being “the new kid” that no one wants to be friends with. One day someone comes up to you and tries to e nice. Would you ignore them and keep thinking that nobody wants you, or would you try to become friends with them to try to get your mind off some things? They could become the closest to family you have at the time. This does happen here and there, but it is present in the lives of some people trying to grow up to be successful. Things like this aren't going to happen overnight, maybe over the course of a month to a year long.

     All of the greasers have different families and same thing with the socs.