Discuss How Social Class Division and Rivalry Is Depicted in the Outsiders

In her classic novel, The Outsiders, S.E. Hinton represents the social class and rivalry of her time. Through the endless struggles between the rich city dwellers, the Socs and the Eastern residents, the Greasers, Hinton depicts the social hierarchy and conflict. She explains in her novel that the class differences causes rivalry between the rich and poor. However, as Ponyboy matures his black and white view towards the world begins to blur. Ultimately, Hinton shows that there is no fine line between classes and rivalry is pointless.
The Outsiders set in 1967, Oklahoma, Hinton describes the class division and rivalry that she experienced first-hand. She identifies the conflict between the separate classes of her time through the Greasers and Socs many misunderstandings. When Bob says “You know what a Greaser is?... White trash with long hair” it becomes obvious that the groups completely hate one another due to their differences and their complete ignorance of similarities. The dissimilarities between the two groups mask the similarities. Hinton is quick to see what makes a person in a different class. Money plays a large role in the social pyramid. Bob has “three heavy rings” that he uses to hurt others. These symbolise the power attained through wealth. The “blue mustangs”- a symbol of protection that accompanies wealth- also separate the on-foot Greasers and represent the vulnerability one has without money. Not only affluence divide the groups but through apparel- the madras compared to the “low cut blue jeans”-, viewpoint and of course, the ladies. Hinton uses slang also to describe the characteristics of a Greaser. This literary technique gives readers a better understanding of how the Greasers spoke which is another thing that differs between the two groups. Often dropping out of school early, the Greasers are often use slang as a sign of their improper use of language. Hinton describes rivalry through the conflict that lies amongst the groups, through themselves. Simply the constant “rumbles” and jumping is a sign of rivalry. The forever-lasting conflict of the Socs and Greasers is a great example of the rivalry in The Outsiders. Hinton shows that the Socs who believe that they are superior take every opportunity to hurt the opposing rivals. This is shown when Pony says “Greasers can’t walk alone to long or they’ll get jumped”. Hinton distinguishes the both the social class division and rivalry through the differences of the groups in her book.
The social class division causes rivalry. The Outsiders constantly explores the theme of conflict. The Socs and Greasers both from different classes are rivals because they are different: in wealth, social standing and perspective. These wide differences form their misunderstandings which ultimately create rivalry. To understand this, their class must first be identified. The stereotypical Greasers are those that run amok in hoods and being nuisances to society. And in most cases this becomes true. Two-bit for example will live his Greaser life as a thief. Looking past the label, Greasers are left to live a tough life. Often born in a poor family, they grow up to become violent. They grow up in a rough environment, they become rough. The Greasers hold a strong set of values: they value being “tuff” and their trademark- the Greasy hair. But most importantly they value loyalty. Not always having money by their sides, The Greasers need one another to stand up for each other and always being on one another’s backs to pick them up when they fall. Looking deeper, Greasers are not always the gang-type. Being a Greaser means that they are family, a tight-knit group of brothers who like to do whatever everyone else wants to do- going to the movies, reading a book, trying out for the track team. Ponyboy for example is “not like the rest of us” and Two-Bit says “… and don’t try to be”. The Socs are the rich kids who live on the side of town. They are privileged with wealth and protection in times of trouble. Taking into account this is from a Greaser point of view, most opinions are in fact negative. Believing that they are superior to the unprivileged Greasers, they “jump” at every opportunity. The Socs lived it well off. They could get away with things that Greasers might not. However, hiding underneath their madras and mustangs it is found that “things are rough all over” and the Socs aren’t so different from the Greasers. What causes this misunderstandings? Their completely different viewpoints. The groups live in a world ruled by violence, however they fail to sympathise with the other and have conflicted thoughts. The groups are born and raised in different places, learning and experiencing different things. This is the major motive that causes their “rumbles”. S.E. Hinton shows that being different is all it takes to disagree. The rivalry through their social standing is clearly depicted throughout The Outsiders.
Finally, the book progresses the audience discovers that Socs and Greasers aren’t that different and that there is no reason to be rivals. Ponyboy finds out that there is so much more to the world he lives in. One of the main themes thoroughly looked at in the book is that everyone is human and in the end of the day “we saw the same sunset”. This message is a universal moral that should be known to everyone. Pony realises that although the Socs and Greasers might be different there are also things that bind one another together. The author specifically chose to write in first speaker through the eyes of a person who’s living it tough. Readers see the world through Ponyboy’s eyes and understand his shift of views. There is a thin line holding the Greasers and Socs apart and it may never be broken but the thin line represents how close the groups really are. This leads onto Hinton’s statement that the black and white world the character think their living in may just be plain grey. No matter how hard anyone pushes, pulls or tugs, the closeness still remains. Next, Cherry is the main symbol of both the differences and similarities holding together the two groups. She is the cause of the big rumble however she is also the one who stops it. Cherry understands that the Socs and Greasers are similar however she respects their differences. Hinton does convey that there are similarities but the similarities only go so far. In The Outsiders, Cherry says “if I see you in the hall or at school or someplace and don’t say hi, well, it’s not personal or anything”. She sees that Greasers aren’t bad people, however, she stays away to prevent trouble. Ponyboy discovers that rivalry is pointless and that the violence that comes with rivalry will keep on causing violence without positive effects. One of the main plot events that occur is Randy’s withdrawal from the rumble. He says “Greasers will still be Greasers and Socs will still be Socs”. And as his brothers explain to him, Pony with is intelligence could live a better life rather than living in the poor eastern areas. He has a chance to succeed in life a grab the opportunities his friends and family couldn’t. This is the most important realisation in the novel, allowing him to believe he has control over what he becomes which is another important message in the novel. This also drives Pony to finally write his theme- The Outsiders.