The Outsiders — Chapter 3

About This Passage

Notice how many small scared actions Ponyboy does in just a few sentences. He trembles, he tries to sneak, he peeks, he gulps. The author S.E. Hinton is showing us that Ponyboy is not just a little bit nervous — he is carrying a lot of fear all at once. Ponyboy is not afraid because Darry hits him (not yet — Darry has never hit anyone in the family). He is afraid because he knows he is late and he knows Darry is worried, and in this family worry comes out as yelling. This passage is Ponyboy reading his own home like a boy sneaking into a stranger's house.

Narration Prompt

Tell someone in your family what happens in Chapter 3 of The Outsiders. Begin when Two-Bit drives Cherry and Marcia home, then tell about Cherry saying Socs are 'cool to the point of not feeling anything,' then Ponyboy telling Cherry about Mickey Mouse (Soda's horse), then the blue Mustang showing up with Bob and Randy, then Cherry leaving with them, then Ponyboy and Johnny looking at the stars and talking about running away. End with Ponyboy getting home late, Darry slapping him, and Ponyboy running out the door to go find Johnny at the lot.

Discussion Questions

1. When Ponyboy tells Cherry about Mickey Mouse, he says he has never told anyone about Soda's horse before. What in the story makes you think Ponyboy trusts Cherry this much so quickly? How do you know Ponyboy is not just being friendly — what makes you think this is a real secret for him?
2. Darry slaps Ponyboy, and Ponyboy says, 'Nobody in my family had ever hit me. Nobody.' Right after, Darry says, 'Pony, I didn't mean to!' What in the story makes you think Darry is sorry the second it happens? How can you tell this is not the kind of hitting Johnny gets from his father — how can you tell the two homes are different?

+ 2 more questions in the complete study guide