Author's Note: This is my final essay for the book, The Outsiders. I am working on organization, idea development, and content. Feedback would be great.
How much does your family affect your life? Have you ever thought about how your life would be without them? Is there a difference between parents that died, parents that are abusive, and parents that abandoned you? There is definitely a difference, and readers can see this difference through the characters of The Outsiders.
Darry is a son of parents that died. He was 18 when his parents died. Darry was athletic, smart, and had scholarships to colleges, but he had two brothers to take care of. He gave up the idea of going to college for his family. His parents didn't abuse, hurt, or abandon him and you can't control death, so there was nothing to be mad at. Since he had good parents he will end up a good person.
Johnny had abusive parents. He had his parents his entire life and they always abusive so bad that he doesn't want to go home. He sleeps in the park if he has to. Johnny was always the nice that held the gang together. I think that Johnny is so nice because he doesn't want to become like his parents. Unlike Darry, he never had a family to love him.
Dally barely knew his parents because they left him when he was so little. At the age of 10 he was already in jail. He lived by himself for most of his life. Jail made him tougher than the rest of the gang. Ponyboy said about Dally, "He was tougher than the rest of us- tougher, colder, meaner."His Parents left him with something to be mad at for the rest of his life.
Family can make a huge difference on your life. In the outsiders everyone's parents were different and every single person turned out differently. The one with the worst parents had the worst life. Just something to remember if you ever read The Outsiders.
