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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Where do the greasers sit when they are at the drive-in?

2. Besides Cherry, who is the only person Ponyboy is comfortable talking with?

3. What does Cherry tell the cops about Bob's murder?

4. Who does Cherry say Ponyboy looks like?

5. What does Johnny ask Dally when he comes to the church?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why is Ponyboy nervous about walking home alone from the movies?

2. How do the greasers sneak into the drive-in, and why do they do it?

3. Describe what the Socs do to Ponyboy during the fight at the park.

4. What is Ponyboy's living arrangement?

5. What does Jerry say when Ponyboy tells him that he and Johnny are wanted for murder?

6. How does Dally approach the Soc girls at the drive-in?

7. What things are Ponyboy thinking about as he sits at the drive-in?

8. What does Ponyboy do when he wakes up in the church?

9. Describe the differences in how Ponyboy's two brothers treat him.

10. What happens when Ponyboy comes home late in Chapter 3?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Analyze the plot elements of The Outsiders. Identify the impetus for the story, major events, climax, and denouement.

Essay Topic 2

Explain the similarities between the greasers and the Socs. How are they not really all that different from each other? Why does each group think the other is better off? What specific events or conversations in the novel indicate that the two groups have some things in common?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the theme of abandonment in the novel. What actions by the characters, or events, in the story exhibit this theme? What symbols (the vacant lot, the church, etc.) point to a theme of abandonment? What is the significance of the novel's title to this theme?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 664 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample