The Outsiders
by S.E. Hinton
S.E. Hinton Biography
Susan Eloise Hinton was born on July 22, 1950 in Tulsa, Oklahoma. As she was growing up, there wasn't much to do in Tulsa, so she turned to reading and writing. Doing a lot of reading and writing as her pastimes, the hobby soon became a strong passion, and she started to write short stories when she was a child. As a young girl, she also wanted to become a cattle rancher, which caused her first stories to be about horses, cowboys, and "the West," but later focused more on writing than anything. Hinton found the typical romance stories dull as she began to write, so she desired for a realistic and relatable story. When she was 15 and attended Will Rogers High School, she began the drafting of the novel she is most known for today, "The Outsiders." By the time she was 17, she finished drafting the story and published it, asking to appear as "S.E. Hinton" because she was advised that she would get more credibility if she were thought to be a man.
Her first novel, "The Outsiders," was based on inspiration from life experiences and events Hinton herself had. The story revolved around the rivalry between two gangs, the "greasers," who were part of the lower middle class, and the "socials," who were part of the higher class, narrated by a greaser's point of view. The book was published in 1967, selling over 4 million copies in the US. Initially, the book was critiqued for presenting rebellious youth, but later becomes into one of the most famous stories at the time. Using the profits she earned from her novel, she attended the University of Tulsa. In freshman biology class, she met David Inhofe, her future life partner, who was also the reason Hinton's second novel, "That was Then, This was now," was published. While Hinton was under writer's block, Inhofe would tell her to write two pages, otherwise they wouldn't go out during the night if she failed the two pages. Eventually, using that as inspiration, she finished and published her second novel in 1971. She married Inhofe in 1970, and later on had a boy in 1983. She continued to write other novels, like 'Rumble Fish', 'Tex', and 'Taming the Star Runner.' Many of her books, including 'The Outsiders,' were also adapted into films.
Today, Hinton remains to be a well-known and popular realistic young adult writer. By writing the novels that she did, she introduced and promoted a different type of story, opposing the typical "boy meets girl," stories she found dull growing up. She introduced realistic and relatable stories that could make the reader think, "That happened to me," or, "I feel the same way." The relatable stories she wrote, however, was for the goal to describe realistically what being a teenager meant at the time. She had her perception of being a teenager, and transformed it into a work of literature. By writing those stories, she was able to be given many awards like the "New York Herald Tribune Best Teenage Books List" in 1967 for 'The Outsiders.' Hinton now lives her husband, her son, and their puppy in California.
Sources:
http://www.famousauthors.org/s-e-hinton
http://www.cliffsnotes.com/literature/o/the-outsiders/se-hinton-biography
http://www.notablebiographies.com/He-Ho/Hinton-S-E.html
Susan Eloise Hinton was born on July 22, 1950 in Tulsa, Oklahoma. As she was growing up, there wasn't much to do in Tulsa, so she turned to reading and writing. Doing a lot of reading and writing as her pastimes, the hobby soon became a strong passion, and she started to write short stories when she was a child. As a young girl, she also wanted to become a cattle rancher, which caused her first stories to be about horses, cowboys, and "the West," but later focused more on writing than anything. Hinton found the typical romance stories dull as she began to write, so she desired for a realistic and relatable story. When she was 15 and attended Will Rogers High School, she began the drafting of the novel she is most known for today, "The Outsiders." By the time she was 17, she finished drafting the story and published it, asking to appear as "S.E. Hinton" because she was advised that she would get more credibility if she were thought to be a man.
Her first novel, "The Outsiders," was based on inspiration from life experiences and events Hinton herself had. The story revolved around the rivalry between two gangs, the "greasers," who were part of the lower middle class, and the "socials," who were part of the higher class, narrated by a greaser's point of view. The book was published in 1967, selling over 4 million copies in the US. Initially, the book was critiqued for presenting rebellious youth, but later becomes into one of the most famous stories at the time. Using the profits she earned from her novel, she attended the University of Tulsa. In freshman biology class, she met David Inhofe, her future life partner, who was also the reason Hinton's second novel, "That was Then, This was now," was published. While Hinton was under writer's block, Inhofe would tell her to write two pages, otherwise they wouldn't go out during the night if she failed the two pages. Eventually, using that as inspiration, she finished and published her second novel in 1971. She married Inhofe in 1970, and later on had a boy in 1983. She continued to write other novels, like 'Rumble Fish', 'Tex', and 'Taming the Star Runner.' Many of her books, including 'The Outsiders,' were also adapted into films.
Today, Hinton remains to be a well-known and popular realistic young adult writer. By writing the novels that she did, she introduced and promoted a different type of story, opposing the typical "boy meets girl," stories she found dull growing up. She introduced realistic and relatable stories that could make the reader think, "That happened to me," or, "I feel the same way." The relatable stories she wrote, however, was for the goal to describe realistically what being a teenager meant at the time. She had her perception of being a teenager, and transformed it into a work of literature. By writing those stories, she was able to be given many awards like the "New York Herald Tribune Best Teenage Books List" in 1967 for 'The Outsiders.' Hinton now lives her husband, her son, and their puppy in California.
Sources:
http://www.famousauthors.org/s-e-hinton
http://www.cliffsnotes.com/literature/o/the-outsiders/se-hinton-biography
http://www.notablebiographies.com/He-Ho/Hinton-S-E.html
Pre-reading Activity - due WEDNESDAY, MAY 7
The Outsiders Pre-Reading: Ponyboy’s World
Ponyboy, the narrator of The Outsiders, explains what life is like for teenagers in his world. You may be able to draw parallels between Ponyboy’s world and your own. Think about each item listed below. Then describe a related situation or event from your own world in the space provided.
Ponyboy’s World
1.) Greasers can’t walk alone too much or they’ll get jumped.
2.) When you grow up in a tight-knit neighborhood like ours you get to know each other really well.
3.) Organize gangs are rarities- there are just small bunches of friends who stick together.
4.) They were the only kind of girls that would look at us, I thought. Tough, loud girls who wore too much eye makeup and giggled and swore too much.
5.) Two-Bit- he doesn’t really want or need half the things he swipes from stores. He thinks it’s fun to swipe everything that isn’t nailed down.
6.) Sodapop and Steve get into drag races and fights so much- both of them have too much energy, tomuch feeling, with no way to blow it off.
My World
1.) You can't walk alone too much either in reality or else you'll get jumped, mugged, or kidnapped because there are a lot of malicious people in the world.
2.) The same thing happens when you have a small group, or class. When you have a smaller group/class, you get to know each other better and stick to each other better.
3.) Most gangs in reality are usually people who are friends that stick together. However, a gang isn't what you usually call a group that stick together.
4.) I haven't met anyone who was a tough, loud girl who wore too much eye makeup and swore too much.
5.) It's the same thing when it comes to extra-credit with me. When I get the chance to do extra-credit, even though I might not need it, I still do it because it makes my grades go up higher and I find it more beneficial.
6.) It's the same way in reality too. When someone has too much energy, they find a way to use all that energy, like by playing sports
The Outsiders Pre-Reading: Ponyboy’s World
Ponyboy, the narrator of The Outsiders, explains what life is like for teenagers in his world. You may be able to draw parallels between Ponyboy’s world and your own. Think about each item listed below. Then describe a related situation or event from your own world in the space provided.
Ponyboy’s World
1.) Greasers can’t walk alone too much or they’ll get jumped.
2.) When you grow up in a tight-knit neighborhood like ours you get to know each other really well.
3.) Organize gangs are rarities- there are just small bunches of friends who stick together.
4.) They were the only kind of girls that would look at us, I thought. Tough, loud girls who wore too much eye makeup and giggled and swore too much.
5.) Two-Bit- he doesn’t really want or need half the things he swipes from stores. He thinks it’s fun to swipe everything that isn’t nailed down.
6.) Sodapop and Steve get into drag races and fights so much- both of them have too much energy, tomuch feeling, with no way to blow it off.
My World
1.) You can't walk alone too much either in reality or else you'll get jumped, mugged, or kidnapped because there are a lot of malicious people in the world.
2.) The same thing happens when you have a small group, or class. When you have a smaller group/class, you get to know each other better and stick to each other better.
3.) Most gangs in reality are usually people who are friends that stick together. However, a gang isn't what you usually call a group that stick together.
4.) I haven't met anyone who was a tough, loud girl who wore too much eye makeup and swore too much.
5.) It's the same thing when it comes to extra-credit with me. When I get the chance to do extra-credit, even though I might not need it, I still do it because it makes my grades go up higher and I find it more beneficial.
6.) It's the same way in reality too. When someone has too much energy, they find a way to use all that energy, like by playing sports