The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton
Background Information
First Impressions
We often judge people based on our first impressions of
their physical appearance. Verbalize your first
impressions of the people in the images below.
Compare these two
images when you
make your
impressions.
The Author
Susan Eloise Hinton
S.E. Hinton
Hinton was born in Tulsa in 1948.
As a young child, she was an avid reader and
would spend her time writing her own stories.
She wanted to
create stories
about the truth
of teenagers (no
sugar coating).
S.E. Hinton
Hinton wrote The Outsiders while she was in high school.
During her high school graduation ceremony, she was
offered a publication contract for the novel. She published
the novel under the name S.E. Hinton (instead of Susan
Eloise) because the publishers didn’t think boys would want
to read a ‘tough’ novel by a female.
S.E. Hinton
After the success of The Outsiders, she attended the University
Of Tulsa where she earned a Bachelor of Science in Education.
In college, she met David Inhofe (her future husband). He was
a major influence in her writing her second novel, That Was
Then, This Is Now.
S.E. Hinton
Susan married David and they had one son, Nicholas
David.
She wrote a few more books (Tex, Rumble Fish, Taming
The Star Runner). In the 1990’s, she focused mainly on
children’s picture books.
The Story
They walked out slowly, silently, smiling.
"Need a haircut, greaser?" The medium-sized blond pulled a
knife out of his back pocket and flipped the blade open.
I finally thought of something to say. "No.“ I was backing up,
away from that knife. Of course I backed right into one of
them. They had me down in a second. I fought to get loose,
and almost did for a second; then they tightened up on me and
slugged me a couple of times. So I lay still, swearing at them
between gasps. A blade was held against my throat.
"How'd you like that haircut to begin just below the chin?"
The Characters
-- According to the main character, Ponyboy, there
are two kinds of people in the world: greasers and
socs.
-- A soc (short for "social") has money, is very
popular, and has things handed to them.
-- A greaser, on the other hand, works hard, is an
outsider and needs to fight for a living.
-- The greasers and socs stick to their own groups.
They get into fights when one group crosses into the
other group’s turf.
The Setting -- Tulsa, Oklahoma
Population of New York City:
19 million
Population of Los Angeles:
15 million
Population of Tulsa:
300,000
The Outsiders
The Outsiders was inspired by real-life events at Hinton’s
high school in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
This novel is widely considered the first realistic youngadult novel.
Hinton’s High School
(Will Rogers High)
Historical Context
The book reflects the social division Americans
experienced during the 1960s. Young people were
attempting to find their voices and express their
political opinions. Race relations were changing
dramatically as the Civil Rights Movement drew
attention to discrimination against African Americans.
Though Hinton does not refer directly to any historical
or political events in her work, the novel seeks to
elevate public awareness of marginalized groups
and to validate the voices and
experiences of
young people.
1960’s Terminology
Below are some words you may encounter in the novel The
Outsiders that were popular in the 1960’s
Fuzz = Police
Broad = Woman
Heater = Gun
Hacked Off = Angry
1960’s Terminology
Below are some words you may encounter in the novel The
Outsiders that we rarely use today:
JD = Juvenile Delinquent
Rumble = Fight
The Cooler = Jail
Pickled = Drunk
The Setting -- The Sixties’ Politics:
Martin Luther King, Jr., JFK, Vietnam War
Tension existed between races and between social classes.
The Sixties Music and Television
The Beatles
Elvis
Rock music grew in popularity -- Elvis was more popular among the
greasers and The Beatles were more popular among the soc’s.
The Setting – The Sixties
Clothes and Hair Styles
Jackie Kennedy, Paul Newman and James Dean
portray styles popular with soc’s and greasers.
The Setting -- The Sixties Cars
Muscle Cars: Corvair, Corvette, Mustang
Popular among soc’s and greasers
Credits:
Fanpop. Fanpop, Inc., n.d. Web. 31 Oct. 2012. <http://www.fanpop.com/>.
Hinton, S.E. The Outsiders. New York: Penguin Group Inc., 1995.
Hoffman, Carl. The 60's Official Site. N.p., 26 Oct. 2012. Web. 31 Oct. 2012.
<http://the60sofficialsite.com>.
"S. E. Hinton - About S. E. Hinton." Penguin.com. Penguin Putnam Books for Young
Readers, 2000. Web. 31 Oct. 1964.
<http://www.us.penguingroup.com/nf/Author/AuthorPage/0,,1000015109,00.html>.
"S. E. Hinton" Tumblr. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Oct. 2012.
<http://www.tumblr.com/tagged/s.-e.-hinton>.
"Tulsa Maps and Orientation: Tulsa, Oklahoma - OK, USA." Tulsa Maps and
Orientation: Tulsa, Oklahoma - OK, USA. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Oct. 2012.
<http://www.tulsa.world-guides.com/tulsa_maps.html>.