Week 5 Popular Media Review

Jocks and Burnouts in The Outsiders

By this point in our college careers, most of us have probably read or seen The Outsiders at one point or another. While this book (I'll be focusing on the book rather than the movie) takes place during the 1950's-60's era, it still highlights much of the societal divisions mentioned in Jocks and Burnouts. While Jocks and Burnouts was approached from a more observational, or educational perspective, The Outsiders is a very realistic fictional work about what class divisions were like for adolescence in the 50's/60's. I think this time period was much more violent than what was exemplified in Jocks and Burnouts, but the divisions are still there. The Socs in The Outsiders are still Jocks, and the Greasers are still Burnouts. Society as a whole evolves, and while gang violence still exists today, The Outsiders paints a picture for how and why it particularly impacts adolescence. In fact, The Outsiders is considered to be adolescent literature, which means that in particular adolescence have something to be gained from reading it. The main theme in The Outsiders comes form Ponyboy's realization that despite their differences, the socs and the greasers have much in common. He realizes that although the socs aren't poor like and his gang, they still have problems, and no matter what problems make life hard for everyone. Empathy is something that comes from experience and maturity (this is why teenagers and kids bully much more than adults), and empathy and the ability to place yourself in someone else's shoes is why books like Jocks and Burnouts or The Outsiders are so important. If you don't have the perspective yourself, then I believe that it is important for one to read/watch/listen to as much material about said class and or race to better your overall understanding of culture and society. So, if you haven't already, read The Outsiders.  

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