The Outsiders

Sample Lesson - Introduction

Lesson 1.05: May We Have a Word with You?

OVKQRLT: Not a hip slang word in either the 1960s or today.
(Source)

Words, words, words. We all use them in our everyday lives, but do we ever really stop to think about the words we use? Why we say certain things and not others? Do you ever think about how your sentences are constructed, their grammar, or how your very word choices might affect other people?

If your answer to these questions is no (especially to that last one), don't stress out. You're probably among pretty good company.

We're certain you've noticed by now that the word choices in this book are different than what you are probably used to seeing and hearing. Why does Hinton do that? We've established that The Outsiders takes place in a different time period in history, and back in the day, people talked kinda funny, dig? For Hinton, writing a book set in the 1960s without the word "Greaser" would be like a book written today without the word "cellphone."

So let's investigate this word business in more depth, hepcat.

Sample Lesson - Reading

Reading 1.1.05a: Killer Moves

First, read Chapter 4. We're sure we don't have to remind you about adding new characters to your graphic organizer anymore, right?

• Chapter 4 (53–68)

And then Shmoop it on up:

• Chapter 4

Sample Lesson - Reading

Reading 1.1.05b: Take Our Word

We're just full of fancy words today: Vernacular language is the informal speech used by the people in a particular group or area, rather than a "standard" language used for more formal speaking and writing. Ponyboy writes his story with all of the slang that he and his friends use. This makes the novel more interesting, and also gives us a window into the way people talked in another place and time. Here's a meaty example:

He meant rumbler. Those Brumly boys have weird vocabularies. I doubt if half of them can read a newspaper or spell much more than their names, and it comes out in their speech. I mean, you take a guy that calls a rumble "bop action" and you can tell he isn't real educated (Hinton 140).

This is a nifty moment because it shows (remember our indirect characterization acronym, STEAL) Pony judging another gang of Greasers the way people often judge him and his gang.

Vocabulary and speech patterns are a result of complex factors, and you can't necessarily judge a person's education level by the way they talk. So, nope—Pony isn't being fair here. Although some of those boys probably don't have as much education as Pony, some of them might have more. He doesn't know them, and he doesn't get to know them in the book.

And we're getting all of that info just from a few choice words and phrases:

• "rumbler"
• "weird"
• "bop action"
• "isn't real educated"

If the topic of regional and social speech patterns interests you, check out "Do You Speak American?" at PBS. It's what Ponyboy would have watched, even though he isn't real educated.

Sample Lesson - Activity

Activity 1.05a: Wordplay

It's your turn to find some examples of Outsiders-specific vernacular. Your task:

1. Pull out ten instances of vernacular in Chapters 1–4 from the text.
2. Write/type them down in our beautiful text boxes below, with the page numbers attached to them. 
3. Then, rewrite each sentence using modern language.

Here's how Shmoop would do it:

Page 53: "You ain't a'woofin'."
Rewrite: "You sure aren't kidding."

Got it?

When you've pulled out and rewritten ten examples, pick your favorite five. Hop back on the Internet and under Google.com, search for the definition or meaning of each of your top five. Then, go back to your entries and add the definition after the example sentence. Like this:

Page 53: "You ain't a'woofin'." Used to express acknowledgment of the obvious.
Rewrite: "You sure aren't kidding."

Ready? Go, jazz cats, go!

Sample Lesson - Activity