Comparison of Themes in The Outsiders and The Kite Runner

For as long as people have had disagreements, there have been social classes divided by both ethnicity and wealth. The rigid social structure formed by these disparate groups often hurts the lower rungs of society, who many times end up disparaged by the rest of society. In S.E. Hintons book, The Outsiders, the main character, Ponyboy Curtis, tries to combat the social separation between the Greasers, presented as poor gang members, and the Socs, depicted as rich and out of trouble. In the book Ponyboy, a Greaser, tries to escape murdering a Soc in self-defence. In Khaled Hosseinis novel, The Kite Runner, Hosseini illustrates the effect of the social and political strife on the country and its people through Amir, a rich Pashtun Sunni†¦show more content†¦His blue eyes flicked to Hassan. Afghanistan is the land of Pashtuns. It always has been, always will be. We are the true Afghans, the pure Afghans, not this Flat-Nose here. His people pollute our homeland, our watan. They dirty our blood. He made a sweeping, grandiose gesture with his hands. Afghanistan for Pashtuns, I say. Thats my vision (Hosseini 40). Within Hintons novel, the Greasers are continually clashing with the Socs due to the Socs being rich. They consider the Greasers â€Å"low-brow† and then jump and generally look down on them. â€Å"Most of my friends at school come from good homes, not filthy-rich like the Socs, but middle-class, anyway (Hinton 163).† Although the setting and the forms of the social partitions are depicted very differently in each novel, the eventual realization is made by the main character in both books end up being very similar. Ponyboy realizes that all the constant fighting made between the Socs and the Greasers ended being futile, only causing detriment to both the upper class Socs and the poor Greasers. â€Å"Johnny didnt even try to grin at him. ‘Useless... fightings no good....’ He was awful white (Hinton 148).† Even though this is not Ponyboy but his close friend, Ponyboy later makes the same realization. I would. Id help her and Randy both, if I could. Hey, I said suddenly, can you see the sunset real good from the West Side? She blinked, startled, then smiled. Real good. â€Å"You canShow MoreRelatedLiterary Criticism : The Free Encyclopedia 7351 Words   |  30 PagesRalph Ellison (1952) In the Castle of My Skin, by George Lamming (1953)[31] Goodbye, Columbus, by Philip Roth (1959)[32] A Separate Peace, by John Knowles (1959) To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee (1960)[30] Dune, by Frank Herbert (1965)[33] The Outsiders, by S. E. Hinton (1967)[34] A Wizard of Earthsea, by Ursula K. Le Guin (1968)[35] I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, by Maya Angelou (1969) Bless Me, Ultima, by Rudolfo Anaya (1972) The World According to Garp, by John Irving (1978) The Discovery ofRead MoreDeveloping Management Skills404131 Words   |  1617 PagesSUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL 24 Diagnostic Survey and Exercises 24 Personal Assessment of Management Skills (PAMS) 24 What Does It Take to Be an Effective Manager? 28 SSS Software In-Basket Exercise 30 SCORING KEY AND COMPARISON DATA 42 Personal Assessment of Management Skills 42 Scoring Key 42 Comparison Data 42 What Does It Take to Be an Effective Manager? 43 SSS Software In-Basket Exercise 43 PART I 1 PERSONAL SKILLS 44 45 DEVELOPING SELF-AWARENESS SKILL ASSESSMENT 46 Diagnostic Surveys for