Why was the Book Written?
The Outsiders is a classic in young adult fiction that revolutionised the genre by presenting adolescent characters that were the opposite of everything a teenager, by adult standards, should have been. Despite it being published in 1967 and the huge changes in both society and technology since, it continues to resonate with young adult readers today.
Main Character/What is the Book about?
The novel is narrated from the perspective of fourteen-year-old Ponyboy, a “greaser” who could easily be judged a hooligan because of his clothes and hair, but who in fact gets good grades at school and loves books and films. Despite coming from a “broken home”, his parents having died in a car crash when he was young, he does not drink, is not naturally violent and is embarrassed when his friend swears.
His character, as well as that of the other characters, is one of the elements that I love most about the book. It makes the characters, and therefore the novel as a whole more authentic, and makes the reader challenge any preconceived ideas they have about what a “bad” person is. The greasers become almost anti-heroes: coming from the wrong side of the class divide, with several of them having had run-ins with the law, yet are fiercely loyal to one another and hardworking. The novel uses the greasers as well as the rival, wealthy “Socs” to challenge stereotypes about class and what it means to be an outlaw. The young adult readers can relate to aspects of the characters from both sides of the class divide, making them realise that they’re not so different after all.
The novel also reflects both the immediate and long-term fears that adolescents face through the thoughts of Ponyboy, which again makes both him and the story itself easy to relate to. Despite most people reading the book are unlikely to have ever been caught up in a murder, through his detailed narration of the events we can identify with his attempts to follow his moral compass and please Darry, his older brother, whom he looks up to. Through Darry we can sense the pressure of parental expectations - something that the reader can relate to. We also see through Ponyboy the need felt by most adolescents to fit in and be part of a group, and yet also the need to be an individual and the struggle to figure out who you are within the restrictions set by society, friends, peers and family. It is perhaps this more than anything that makes teenagers continue to read it to this day.
Why Do You need to Read this Book?
The Outsiders is gritty, honest and authentic, and a novel that I feel every teenager needs to read. It makes the reader see that at the end of the day, as Ponyboy says, “we see the same sunset, and that while we are the ones who create the divides between ourselves, we can also be the ones to challenge them”. This book is a life lesson to adolescents, and it is something that every teenager would benefit from reading.
Written by Owen Atkins
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