In the beginning of the novel, Ponyboy believes that the greasers are the only ones with problems and that Socs have it made with their nice clothes and new cars.
Conversing with Cherry Valance on the way home from the movies, causes his thinking to begin to change.
Pony is surprised to find a bond growing between himself and Cherry, especially because she is a Soc and he is a greaser. The connection is further revealed in when Cherry remarks, “I’ll bet you watch sunsets, too" (Hinton Chapter 3).
Ponyboy did not consider that other people might stop and take in a sunset. Knowing that Cherry has those same qualities and that she will stop for a moment and notice beauty helps Ponyboy see her as a person not as a Soc.
This begins a shift in Ponyboy by shattering the stereotypes he uses to understand people outside his friend group, “I shook my head. It seemed funny to me that the sunset she saw from her patio and the one I saw from the back steps was the same one. Maybe the two different worlds we lived in weren’t so different. We saw the same sunset” (Hinton Chapter 3).
Hinton uses this moment to unite Ponyboy, the troubled, quiet greaser, with Cherry, the popular, outspoken cheerleader Soc.
The sunset is a symbol of the commonalities in people. No matter if people are rich or poor, they all see the same sunset. And, they all have struggles and hopes.
At the end of chapter 8, as Cherry explains why she is unable to see Johnny in the hospital, Ponyboy's anger at her flares, as he calls her "a traitor to her own kind." She begins to cry, and he feels shame at causing her pain. To renew the connection between them he asks if she can "see the sunset real good from the West Side?" The sunset reminds them both how much they have in common.
Thus, Ponyboy learns that all people have similar struggles and hopes.
Hinton, S. E. The Outsiders. New York: Viking, 1967. Print.
Ponyboy learns a great deal about greasers and about people in general as the novel progresses, but a few big moments of realization take place in Chapter 7 of The Outsiders, after Ponyboy and Dally and Johnny risked their lives to save the kids from the fire they accidentally set.
In Chapter 7, Ponyboy realizes that Darry's cold manner isn't a reflection of a cold heart when he sees his brothers at the hospitals. He finally understands that Darry's greatest fear is losing another person he loves, like the three brothers lost their parents. This understanding helps Ponyboy feel close to Darry. As well, Ponyboy realizes that he, along with the rest of the greasers, rely on Johnny for something intangible, but very valuable. The loss of Johnny would devastate everyone, Ponyboy realizes, when he sees how bad off Johnny actually is. Finally, Ponyboy speaks with Randy and learns that Bob's death has had a serious impact on Bob's friends and family. Bob's mother has had a breakdown, and Randy himself wants to leave town. He learns from Randy that Bob was a real person who had a complicated personality, and even though Bob was the enemy, he wasn't only an enemy: Bob was also a son and a good friend. This realization takes Ponyboy by surprise, and after that exchange with Randy, he is reluctant to categorize Randy as simply a "Soc"—he thinks of Randy now as "just a guy...who wanted to talk," much like any greaser Ponyboy knows. Ponyboy learns here that greasers and Socs have a lot more in common than he thought.
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