Study Quesitons

1. Who are the Socs? Who are the Greasers?
2. How is Ponyboy different from the other members of his gang?
3. How does Ponyboy’s relationship with Darry and Sodapop differ? Explain.
4. What does the reader learn about what happened to Johnny before the story began?
5. What happens to Ponyboy when he walks home from the movies?
6. What is the difference between “tuff” and “tough”?
7. How does Ponyboy relate to Pip from Great Expectations?
8. Explain the altercation at the drive-in?
9. WHy doesn’t Ponyboy like referring to Sodapop as a “dropout”?
10. What does Ponyboy mean when he says, “I lie to myself all the time?” Do you ever lie to yourself? Why?
11. Discuss the theme of gender in these chapters. How do the characters treat members of the same sex, and of the opposite sex?
12. What is Ponyboy comparing Two-bit to when he calls him a “chessy cat” on page 27? What two literary devices are used here?
13. What literary device does the author use to describe Johnny’s mugging (pages 31 - 34)?

Chapters 3 & 4

1. What does Cherry explain as the difference between the Socs and the Greasers?

2. What happens when Pony comes home after his curfew?

3. Why does Johnny like it better when his father is hitting him?

4. To whom do Ponyboy and Johnny go for help? What does he give them? What does he tell them to do?

5. Why does Johnny react so violently to the Socs?

6. What does Ponyboy mean when he says "Johnny and I understood each other without saying anything?" Have you ever had a relationship with someone who you understood, or who understood you, without having to say anything? Why is that important?

7. What would your advice have been if Ponyboy and Johnny came to you for help instead of Dally?

Chapters 5 & 6

1. What is Ponyboy's issue with Johnny's suggestion that they disguise themselves?

2. Why does Johnny think Dally is a hero? Do you think he is a hero based on this?

3. What poem is referenced to in these chapters? Who wrote the poem?

4. Why are the Socs and Greasers going to have a rumble?

5. WHy doesn't Dally want Johnny to turn himself in? Why does Johnny insist on confessing?

6. WHat happens at the church?

7. What does Ponyboy realize about Darry at the end of chapter 6?

8. How does Hinton use humor during the church fire? Why do you think she does this?

9. Find a quote from chapter three that foreshadows Ponyboy and Johnny's experience in the burning church.

Chapters 7 & 8

1. What condition were Dally and Johnny in?

2. The doctor says that Johnny will be crippled if he survives. Why is this worse for Johnny than it would be for someone else?

3. Why did Darry never lock the front door to the house, and what does this say about the greasers?

4. How are Ponyboy, Johnny, and Dally portrayed in the newspaper article?

5. Why did everyone go silent when Pony asked Soda if he would take Sandy to the party?

6. What was Bob's real problem, according to Randy?

7. Why doesn't Johnny want to see his mother?

8. What was it about Darry that made him different from the rest of the gang?

9. How does Ponyboy's perspective on Socs start to change after his conversation with Randy? Why does he start to see things differently.

10. What was the reason for Cherry not going to the hospital to see Johnny? Do you believe she was justified in her reasoning? Why or why not?

11. The following lines from these chapters us figurative language. Label which literary device is being used (See Literary Terms Reference Sheet that is online under The Outsiders AND was given to you on paper).