Literature Role #5

Hi. Today is offically my final role on my book. My role for today is message minder. As message minder I pick two themes from the book and find examples of the theme.

Theme#1: Family/Friendship

- The Greasers stick together like family although they are just friends.
- The gang is lucky to have each other to depend on when times are really tough.
- The members of the gang support each other’s ideas even though they are crazy at the time.

Examples from the book:

- Chapter 2 page 23. A great example of how the Greasers stick up for their friends and treat each other like family is when Cherry, a Soc girl, refers to Ponyboy’s friend, Dally, as “trash”. Ponyboy and sticks up for his friend by saying that they are buddies. Ponyboy and the other Greasers stick up for each other when someone talks bad against their friend because they are tough Greasers. This theme of family and friendship is very important in the book and is shown throughout the story.
- Chapter 8. Johnny is in the hospital because he got severely hurt when part of the burning church fell on him when Ponyboy and Johnny were saving the kids from the burning church. Ponyboy and Two-bit Mathews go to the hospital to visit their friends Dally and Johnny hoping that they will get better soon. I think this is one of the better examples of how the Greasers stick together when times are tough. Another good example of how they depend on each when times are tough is after both Johnny and Dally are dead the Greasers help each other feel better about the loss of their two good friends.
- Chapter 4 pages 60-61. In chapter four Dally helps Ponyboy and Johnny runaway to an old abandon church. The decision Dally makes in letting Ponyboy and Johnny runaway is tough but he trusts their decision. To help Ponyboy and Johnny he gives them fifty dollars, a gun, and Ponyboy a sweat-shirt. He tells them to hop on a train to Windrixville and climb Jay Mountain. He also promises Johnny and Ponyboy that he wouldn’t tell anyone where their headed just in case the police wants to take Johnny to court for killing Bob.

Themes #2: Violence/gangs

- The Greaser s is a tough gang and they live in a sketchy area in NY.
- The members get into rumbles with the other gang known as the Socs.
- Some of the Greasers have a bad reputation and tend to get into trouble a lot with the law.

Examples from the book:

- Chapter 1. In the first chapter of the book Ponyboy explains that he lives in East Side New York and that the Socs live in West Side. He continues to explain how that the Greasers are tough, poorer than the Socs, wild, have long hair with lots of grease, and they carry around switch blades for protection. Throughout the book Ponyboy mentions how life is hard for the Greasers because most people think they are all like his friend Dally, “trash”. The Greasers like their tough reputation but Ponyboy wishes that people would see that they are a lot better than the Socs.
- Chapter 9. All the Greasers are getting prepared for a big rumble with the Socs so that they look their toughest for the fight. Johnny is in the hospital while the rumble is going on but Ponyboy promises him that they’ll win the fight. This rumble between the Greasers and the Socs was planned to settle things between the two different gangs once and for all. In the end the Greasers win the rumble and Ponyboy races to the hospital to tell Johnny of their victory. Also in chapter four Bob, Randy, and six other Socs decide to pick a fight with Johnny and Ponyboy for hanging out with their girlfriends. Out of the several rumbles mentioned in the book this one is the worst because Johnny killed Bob since he was drowning Ponyboy.
- Chapter 2 page 22. Dally is one of the Greasers who has been in and out of jail quite a bit. Dally likes to use his reputation with the law to scare off Socs and other people who try to start a rumble with him. In chapter two Dally is at the drive-in trying to scare a couple of Soc girls named Cherry and Marcia with the fact the he is a tough Greaser with a record with the law. He isn’t the only one though who has a record with the law, Two-Bit Mathews is known for shop lifting and for his prized black-handled switchblade.