Author’s Note: This is an essay of the definition of family. Do you have to be blood related to be family? I don’t think so. It shows how the story The Outsiders is involved with family.
Did you grow up in a happy family life, with people who love you more than anything in the world? I know I did, I am thirteen years old and have a loving family. With all families, we have our fight however we get over them. Family is such a huge part of my life. If I ever have a problem, I need to talk to my mom or if I have a question I ask my dad. If anything ever happened to my family I would be devastated forever and would not know what to do. Even though I love my blood related family, I would never give up my family of friends. However not everybody has a great family life. One of the main themes in the story The Outsider by S.E. Hinton is definition of family. In the story The Outsider the characters learn that even though they are not related by blood, they can still be a family that helps each other through thick and thin.
The Curtis brothers are a united family but they are missing the loving parents that they had before the car accident. Ponyboy, Sodapop and Dally’s parents died in a car crash when they were young. Being the oldest Darry stepped in as the father figure. Darry quit school and got two jobs to support the family. It would be like your older brother taking care of you. You would feel weird with him telling you what to do; it would be very different. It shows in the story that Ponyboy doesn’t always like it, because Ponyboy and Darry don’t always get along the best. Just like every other family they fight through their problems. Even though the boys love each other very much they will do anything for the greaser’s gang as well. The boys learned over this period of time that not only do they need to appreciate what they have, but love every minute with your family.
Ponyboy, Sodapop and Dally aren’t the only ones with a family that is not completely perfect; Johnny has a hard family life too. Some people may believe Johnny’s life is normal but they are anything but normal. He lives with his parents but his dad beats and yells at him and his mother. It would be hard living in a house without a loving family or someone to ask “How was your day?” In the story Johnny says, “I actually kind of like it when my dad beats me because at least he knows I’m here”. That is one of the saddest things I have ever heard! Can you imagine that, actually being happy getting beaten. Just so Johnny knows that his dad sees him standing there. Because he has never had supportive parents he is a different person. Johnny is more reserved and keeps more to himself now because he never had anyone to talk to about his problems.
Johnny, Sodapop, Ponyboy and all of the other boys in the greaser gang are each other’s family. If they need to get away they just walk in to each other’s house. They tell each other everything. If they need anything, they just go to each other. They truly are “non-blood related family”. During the story Johnny was having a tough time at his house so he leaves and sleeps at Sodapop, Ponyboy, and Darry’s house. Another example of the boys being family is when Dally was in trouble right before he died; he called Darry to tell him everything. Hearing all of this makes you grateful for what you have. I am so grateful for having a loving family.
In conclusion family doesn’t have to be blood related. I love my friends and I consider them my family. Some of my friends I am closer to than my cousins. I love my blood related family but my friends are my family too. In The Outsiders, The Greasers have broken families. The greasers are each other’s family even if they are not blood related. Johnny, SOdapop, Two Bit, and the rest of the guys are ever so close. They will never fail each other. This proves that you do not need to be related by genes to be family.
No comments:
Post a Comment