The Outsiders 567The girls themselves show their consciousness
of Dally’s cruelty: “The girls got mad. ‘You’d better
leave us alone,’ the redhead said in a biting voice, ‘or
I’ll call the cops.’ ” Dally is not impressed with this
threat and continues his cruelty by mocking this very
legitimate claim for social authority to protect them
from unwanted and inappropriate behavior: “ ‘Oh,
my, my’—Dally looked bored—‘you’ve got me scared
to death. You ought to see my record sometime, baby.’
He grinned slyly. ‘Guess what I’ve been in for?’ ”
When Cherry realizes that threatening legal ramifi-
cations is unlikely to work, she switches from a threat
to a plea: “ ‘Please leave us alone,’ she said. ‘Why don’t
you just be nice and leave us alone?’ ” This tactic actu-
ally works as Dally saunters away to get drinks for
everyone, but this is only because his cruelty was the
mask he was using to begin a conversation with the
girls. His actual objective was about getting atten-
tion from girls who are in a higher socioeconomic
class, so the unwritten rules of their teenage society
told him they were out of his league. If Dally had
approached them directly in a friendly manner and
was shot down, he risked being laughed at, both by
the girls and by his own friends. For many boys, but
especially those concerned about having a tough-guy
reputation, being laughed at is the cruelest response
of all. Therefore, his outward cruelty to these girls
hides his own fear of being the object of cruelty
and derision. This is confirmed by the fact that he
brings back Cokes for everyone, including both girls,
and sits down beside Cherry when he returns. This
psychological understanding in no way makes Dally’s
behavior acceptable, as Cherry shows in the story by
throwing the Coke in his face. But knowing a char-
acter’s motives permits a deeper insight into both the
character and the story.
In a later scene, Johnny notes how the absence
of violence can be the cruelest treatment of all: “‘I
think I like it better when the old man’s hittin’ me!’
Johnny sighed. ‘At least then I know he knows who I
am. I walk in that house, and nobody says anything.
I walk out, and nobody says anything. I stay away
all night, and nobody notices.’ ” For Johnny, the only
notice his parents ever pay to him is to be abusive.
As bad as that physical abuse is, he realizes that the
pain of their pretending he doesn’t exist is just as
bad, if not worse.
In The Outsiders, cruelty is a main theme that
runs throughout the entire novel. Sometimes it is
linked directly to violence; other times it is not.
But with or without physical violence attached, the
cruelty these characters all have to contend with
throughout the novel is frightening in its scope.
Great literature makes us think and feel. When we
consider how pervasive is the cruelty in this novel,
we should do both.
Kathleen McDonaldheroiSm in The Outsiders
There is one clear-cut example of heroism in this
story: The abandoned church where Ponyboy and
Johnny are hiding out from the police catches fire
and they rush into the burning building to save
several little kids caught inside. While Ponyboy and
Johnny are still inside, the building falls apart and
a burning beam falls on Johnny, breaking his back.
This dangerous choice to save children that they
don’t even know is an act that results in everyone
labeling them heroes. There are newspaper articles
written about them, and even when strangers find
out that they were only in the church because they
were running from murder charges, that is not
enough to make people think them less heroic.
However, while this is publicly labeled heroism,
there are several other acts in the story that are,
perhaps, even more heroic, due to their premeditated
and less public nature.
When Dally comes to find Ponyboy and Johnny
in the church, he tells them that Cherry has agreed
to come forward and testify that Ponyboy acted
in self defense. Cherry risks her physical safety in
order to try to make things right. Although they
don’t jump her, with tensions running so high
after a greaser killed a Soc, she couldn’t have been
sure that this would be the case, regardless of her
motives. Beyond the courage that this physical
encounter required, Cherry shows her heroism in a
much stronger way. She knows that the rules of this
society require her to ignore greasers, as she tells
Ponyboy the night they meet: “if I see you in the hall
at school or someplace and don’t say hi, well, it’s not
personal or anything.” However, that rule is trumped
by her feelings of responsibility. She believes that the
entire situation is, at least partially, her fault. As the