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Please note that “Socs” is pronounced “so-sh,/”, which is short for /“socials./”

The Outsiders, by SE Hinton, is a coming-of-age story about the class rivalry between two teenage gangs. The novel chronicles the violence that ensues between the "Greasers", who make up the lower-class gang, and the "Socs", their middle- and upper-class rivals. Boys suffer tragic consequences when they resort to violence; Yet their loyalty and kinship grow stronger. The novel is set in the early 1960s, in a fictional town loosely based on the author's hometown of Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Financially and socially disadvantaged, members of the Greaser gang are referred to as "hoods" or juvenile "delinquents." They include the following characters:

– Ponyboy Curtis is the novel's fourteen-year-old narrator who loves reading and watching movies. He lives with his older brothers Sodapop and Darry Curtis, their parents having died in a car accident.

– Sodapop is a carefree sixteen year old, always smiling and high on life while abstaining from alcohol.

– Darry is Curtis' older brother, a roofer who takes care of both Ponyboy and Sodapop. Darry won an athletic scholarship that he had to forfeit because his family still couldn't afford to send him to college.

– Johnny Cade is a nervous sixteen-year-old from a violent home; his friends treat him like a little brother.

– Dally is the toughest of the gang. He's a jockey who rides horses, which the narrator tells us is the only thing he honestly does. He is hardened by his struggle for self-preservation. The others know that they can count on Dally's help if they are in difficulty.

– Two-Bit Mathews is a savvy shoplifter who wears a switchblade and enjoys both fighting and school.

– Steve Randle is Soda's best friend, whom Ponyboy doesn't like.

The rival gang, the Socs, are made up of richer kids from the West Side. They include the following members:

– Bob Sheldon, a bitter enemy of the Greasers who harasses them every chance he gets.

– Randy Adderson is Bob's best friend.

– Cherry is Bob's girlfriend, whom Ponyboy likes to know despite their class differences.

One night at the drive-in, Ponyboy, Johnny, Two-Bit and Dally meet Cherry and her friend Marcia. Ponyboy and Cherry like to watch the sunset together; it is a bond that crosses their social boundaries and connects their worlds. On the way back, Bob and Randy, the girls' Soc boyfriends, accost the group then take the girls home.

Later that night, Ponyboy and Johnny accidentally fall asleep in their favorite wasteland. Ponyboy runs home, but when Darry scolds and hits him for the first time, he goes back to get Johnny. Later, Ponyboy and Johnny are attacked by Bob, Randy and other members of the Soc gang. During the fight, Johnny stabs and kills Bob to prevent him from drowning Ponyboy in a fountain. Panicked, Ponyboy and Johnny find Dally, who they know will help them. Dally gives them money, his jacket and a gun and tells them to get on a train to Windrixville and hide in a deserted church.

Ponyboy and Johnny stay at the church for almost a week, cutting off their long Greaser hair to disguise themselves and eating crap. Dally meets them and takes them out for burgers. Johnny decides to turn himself in, but when the three return to the church, they discover it is on fire. A school group was having a picnic there and children were trapped inside. Johnny and Ponyboy heroically save them, although one of the panicked children bites Ponyboy on the hand. A burning piece of wood hits Johnny in the back after Ponyboy jumps out of a church window to safety.

Ponyboy and Dally go to the hospital, but since Ponyboy was wearing Darry's jacket, he only suffered a few burns and bruises. Soda and Darry arrive to collect it. There, they learn that Dally has a burned arm from his attempt to pull Johnny through the church window. Worse still, Johnny is in critical condition with a back injury and third-degree burns. The boys leave Dally and Johnny at the hospital to recover.

The Greasers have a rumble planned against the Socs. Ponyboy feels sick but decides to go anyway. Dally escapes the hospital to fight in the Rumble, and the Greasers win.

Dally takes Ponyboy back to the hospital to visit Johnny, who is dying. Before he dies, Johnny tells Ponyboy, "Stay golden"; he doesn't want him to lose his childhood innocence and become hardened like Dally. Dally, who particularly loved Johnny, runs away, overcome with grief. Ponyboy feels even sicker. , but returns home to tell the rest of the gang that Johnny is dead. Dally calls the Curtis house from a pay phone to tell him that he robbed a grocery store and that the cops are after him.

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