Similarities between Ponyboy and Greg

          Ponyboy and Greg are two very different people. Ponyboy comes from a place where poverty and crime are common. He lives with his two older brothers since his parents are dead. The oldest one is Darry Curtis, second-oldest is Sodapop Curtis, and Ponyboy is the youngest. Ponyboy and Sodapop are both in a gang called “The Greasers.” Greg comes from an ideal family with parents who love him dearly. Greg has two brothers, one older and one younger. The older one is Rodrick and the younger one is Mandy. Even though, they are two different people, they do share similarities.

            Both Ponyboy and Greg have the important similarity of needing to fit in. Ponyboy tries to fit in his gang even if he likes books and has a high I.Q. He tries to fit in by wearing clothes like the greasers, making his hair like the greasers and acting like the greasers. Steve Randle, Sodapop’s best buddy since grade school thinks that Ponyboy is a tag along. On the other hand, Greg does anything to fit in his middle school. He wrestles, becomes a safety patrol officer. He even sings to try to fit in. Not to mention being mean to his best friend. Greg tells his best friend that he dresses funny, he doesn’t know anything about being cool. Greg even breaks his best friend’s arm and doesn’t even apologize. He is not loyal to his friend. So both, Greg and Ponyboy are insecure and don’t think that just being themselves would be good.

            Another important similarity is that Ponyboy and Greg are both bullied. Ponyboy is bullied by his brother and the Socs. The Socs is another gang from the west side of the city. Darry doesn’t want Ponyboy to get in trouble that’s why Ponyboy is under strict orders. Greg is picked on by Rodrick, his older brother and Patty, a girl he knew from younger grade. Rodrick is a jerk and he didn’t do well in middle school that’s why he doesn’t want Greg to do well. Patty on the other hand bullied Greg because he made fun of her name in younger grades. So she is getting back at Greg for making fun of her name.

            The last important similarity that I noticed is that they both don’t use their heads. What I mean by “not using their heads” is that they don’t think. They both are dreamers. They jump to conclusions. For example, Greg thought that he can be popular if he wrestled. Why can’t he just be himself? For Ponyboy a perfect example is when he walked home by himself. He could have got one of the gang members to come but he didnt , so he got jumped by the Soc.  Ponyboy also tries to fit in by acting and dressing like the greasers. Why can’t he just be himself?

            So there are some similarities that Ponyboy and Greg both share. Even though they come from a very different place and time. There are many other similarities that they share, but I think these three are the most important ones. They both are bullied, both try to fit in and both don’t use their heads. What if Ponyboy did have his parents, do you think that they would have the same similarities then?