THE OUTSIDERS: A Sense of Belonging

         All the characters in the story want a sense of belonging. Some characters feel they don't belong and some feel like they do belong. Some of the characters feel left out when it comes to a sense of belonging, and some feel like they have to be a completely different person to feel like they belong. Everyone has a sense of belonging in their hearts, because no everything is black and white.

        One of the characters on the novel that i feel think he feels he doesn't belong is our main character Ponyboy Curtis. One is that he thinks his older brother Darry hates him because of he thinks and what he likes to do. Anothers reason is that most Greasers have dropped out of school, while Ponyboy is the only one in school, getting good grades, and the All Star in his highschool track team. Another reason is that he feels he doesn't belong because he is the youngest in the gang. Steve Randle, one of the members in the Greaser gang really makes him feel he doesn't belong, because he thinks he is just a tag-along kid and a runt. My last reason is that because he feels he doesn't belong, he tries to be a completely different person to feel he belongs when in actuality, he is actually caring and sensitive. Like in the book, when Ponyboy and Johnny were hiding out in the church, Johnny wanted to turn himself in, so he wouldn't cause any trouble for Ponyboy. But when Ponyboy got mad, Johnny started blaming himself, that he shouldn't have even brung Ponyboy with him, because Ponyboy is still young and it didn't involve him. Ponyboy, realizing his mistake, he softened up and started crying with Johnny because he was sorry for what he did. 

             Another character who feels he doesn't belong is Johnny Cade. In the book, his parents neglected him and abused him, doing everything they can to hurt him. Since his parents didn't love him, the only people that really loved him were the Greasers. The Greasers made him feel like he belonged somewhere and that he was needed. They took him in and loved him as if they were one big happy family. They gave him a sense of belonging that hos parents couldn't give him. In the book, the church that Johnny and Ponyboy hid out at was on fire, and there were little kids trapped inside. While they were rescuing the kids, the ceiling collapsed and landed on Johnny, trapping him inside. But Ponyboy saw that he was smiling, during the rescue. In this case, the reason why is because he feels that he is needed and that he is the hero instead of him being trapped and neglected.

              My last character that in the book, felt he didn't belong is Darry Curtis. He is more of a Soc than a Greaser, because he is good looking, has short hair, and he is educated. Actually, he is supposed to be in college but he didn't go because both his parents died in a car accident, and even with his scholarships, he can't go into college because he has no support. He had to give up everything for his family to survive. The reason Darry didn't become a Soc is because of his brothers. They gave him a sense of belonging. But he still thinks that he doesn't belong because he used to go to school, everyone liked him, and he even got a scholarship for the football team in cokkege while the Greasers are disliked by society, and they are not really educated because they don't have alot of money.

            In my conclusion, the main part of this essay is that everyone has a sense of belonging, even if it doesn't seem like it. The people who love you give you a sense of belonging and make you feel loved.The inportance in this topic is that people want to feel like they belong. For example, if your best friend told you that you were the worst thing that ever lived, and everyone heard this, wouldn't you think you didn't belong? that no one cares and that no one loves you? You will always have someone who loves you, and that you will feel that you belong.