In Grade Eight, my homeroom/English teacher was a pale, severe-looking, middle-aged man we secretly called The Reverend. Rumour had it he was—or had been—a minister, and he read us a daily bible passage. In a secular school today, this would be unheard of, but in 1974 it was just a little unusual.
I can’t remember how it began, but, at some point, The Reverend offered to read to us. I can imagine we were sceptical, but we were surprised by, and quickly drawn into, The Outsiders.
The book was published in 1967 by S.E. Hinton: a teenager when she wrote it. It’s about two weeks in the life of an Oklahoma teen: Ponyboy Curtis. He and his older brother SodaPop live with their oldest brother Darry, who recently became their guardian (at 20) after their parents died in a car crash. The boys are “greasers”: young men who live on the poor (aka wrong) side of town. The Curtis brothers hang around with four other key characters, who range from timid to dangerous, as well as a larger greaser “gang.” The greasers' rivals are a gang of rich kids called the Socs.
In the first two nights of the story, there are conflicts between the two groups. On the second night, Ponyboy and two other gang members go to a drive-in movie. There they meet two girlfriends of Socs, who left their boyfriends because they were drunk. After the movie, the greasers offer to walk the girls home, but the girls' boyfriends reappear and threaten to fight the greasers; the fight is averted.
But later in the evening, and after a physical argument
with his brother Darry, Ponyboy and his timid friend Johnny are in the park cooling off, when the Soc boyfriends appear with reinforcements. The Socs grab Ponyboy and hold his head under a fountain. Fearing Ponyboy is drowning,
Johnny panics, pulls his switchblade, and kills one of the Socs.
Ponyboy and Johnny get help to run away, and pass the time in an
abandoned, rural church, changing their appearance to blend in. One of their gang
visits and lets them know one of the girlfriends will testify that
she's sure the killing was in self-defence. Just as Johnny decides to turn
himself in, they return to the church and find it on fire with school
children trapped inside. Ponyboy and Johnny rescue the kids and
Johnny is severely injured in the process.
The boys are now celebrated as heroes, and Ponyboy is reunited with his brothers. But Johnny dies of his injuries, which sets off more fighting between the two gangs. As well, one of the greasers, overcome by grief, robs a grocery store and is ultimately gunned down by police. The senseless violence traumatizes Ponyboy, but also motivates him to write a book that speaks to other outsiders.
As I summarize the plot--after reading the book again recently--it now seems quite dated and lacks the wow factor it had in 1974. As well, the writing isn’t stellar and the vulnerable emotions expressed by some of the characters seem over-the-top and incongruent with how they were generally portrayed. I remember noting this latter point when first reading the book, but it seemed less of a problem and more of a curiosity at the time.
Yet, despite its flaws, when my class began listening to the story, we would beg our teacher for one more chapter; even the students too cool for books wanted to hear more. No doubt the book's quick jump into action was a draw, as was the male-centric storyline for the reluctant male readers in our class. The author also did a good job of quickly describing the unique characters; their edginess and quasi-dangerous, unfamiliar world offered additional appeal.
The theme of being an outsider (whatever that may look like) typically resonates with teen readers, and we were no different. And the complicated, imperfect dynamics of the Curtis family, as well as Johnny’s family, broadened my conception of families and family life. In several respects, the book was eye-opening to those of us living fairly sheltered lives in 1970s Oak Bay. Even the characters’ emotions, which sometimes seemed unrealistic in the story’s context, suggested that the external image or reputation a person cultivates may not tell the whole story of who they are, or what they are contending with internally or behind closed doors. This message remains relevant today.
Sadly though, The Outsiders overall is sure to be less relevant to 2023 teens. With so many diverse, contemporary reading options available now, a story about a small-town gang set in the 1960s is unlikely to capture youth attention on a broad scale. And, reflecting the Robert Frost poem “Nothing Gold Can Stay,” which Ponyboy recites when they’re on the run, this book, which had its heyday fifty years ago, has arguably lost its lustre.
