Sarah Mosley
The Outsiders
Odyssey School
Humanities Grade 7
For my sociogram on the novel The Outsiders, I have Ponyboy in the center for he is the main
character. Surrounding Ponyboy's symbol I have nine people that I fe el made a difference in
Ponyboy's life. Ponyboy's symbol is a sunset. I chose a sunset because Ponyboy can spend
hours peacefully gazing at a sunrise or a sunset. It gives him time to think and get away from
everything.
Ponyboy has very close relationships with Johnny and Soda Pop. I have a short, bold line
to represent Johnny's relationship with Pony Boy because they are extremely close. For Johnny's
symbol I have a dog's face. I chose this symbol because the author repeatedly describes how
Johnny's eyes are like those of a sad puppy because of the abuse he suffers from his parents. To
show Soda Pop's relationship with his brother Ponyboy, I also have a thick, short, broad line
because these two are very close and mean very much to each other. For Soda Pop's symbol I
have a picture of a horse to represent Soda Pop's love of horses. Soda Pop once had a horse that
he loved with all his heart, but he had to give it up; it was a difficult time for him. These are the
characters that are closest to Ponyboy.
Several other characters influence Ponyboy in both positive and negative ways. TwoBit's relationship with Ponyboy isn't as close as Soda Pop's or Johnny's, but he still messes
around with Ponyboy and they share some good times, so for their relationship I chose a thick,
bold, medium-sized line. For Two-Bit's symbol I chose a cartoon that says Mr. Funny because
Two-Bit is always the one that brings a smile to the gang and he keeps them feeling a little
brighter when they are in the deepest hole. He takes everything as a joke. For Dally I have a
jagged line that gets bolder as it gets longer because Dally and Ponyboy are not that close in the
beginning of the story. Eventually, they become much closer when Ponyboy and Johnny get in
trouble with the cops. But they never have a solid relationship; it is good some days, but terrible
on others. Dally's symbol is handcuffs because he is always in trouble with the cops. Dally is
actually killed by a cop after the death of Johnny. Ponyboy is sort of close to Steve, another
member of their group. To represent their relationship, I drew a medium-sized line lightly
shaded. As Steve's symbol I have two people fighting because Steve is always ready for a fight.
He feels that there is nothing else to live for, so why not fight? He finds it fun and a way to pass
the time. For Darry, Ponyboy's oldest brother, I chose a line that started off thin and gradually
became thicker. I drew this line to represent their relations hip because Darry and Ponyboy are
not close after the ir parents die. For Darry's symbol I chose a man working on a roof because
Darry works all the time. He gave up a great chance to go to college and works instead so
Ponyboy can stay in school and so he can support his two younger brothers. However, when
Ponyboy almost dies, the brothers become closer.
In addition to Ponyboy's family and gang, other characters influence his life. One group
of people is the Socs. They are a group of people that has tons of money, and many of them treat
Ponyboy and his group like dirt. To represent this relationship, I drew a long, skinny, light line.
Dollar bills represent the Socs because of all the money they have. Even though Cherry is a Soc,
I chose a bold, short, thick line because she and Ponyboy become very close. He tells her so
much and he trusts her like he does Soda Pop and Johnny. For her symbol I chose two cherries
because that is her nickname because of her beautiful, long, red hair. Bob, another Soc, is not
very close to Ponyboy; in fact, Johnny kills Bob because Johnny feared the Socs would kill
Ponyboy. To represent this relationship, I drew a long, skinny, medium- shaded line. Bob and
Ponyboy are obviously not very close and they don't agree on anything. Bob's symbol is a ring
because Bob once beat up Johnny and the only thing Johnny remembers is the ring that he wore
that stung so much and left the bruises to remember.
Designing this sociogram really helped me notice the way that some relationships change
during the story and how some stay exactly the same. It is a great way to help you understand
the novel and the characters a little more.