Comparison Between two Novels: Greasy Lake and The Outsiders

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Naturalism is the most interesting type of literature, because it describes the actual circumstances of human life through its characters by giving the author the opportunity to make his/ her stories factual or realistic. The short story “Greasy Lake” by T C. Boyle is naturalistic because nature is literally referred to as the key to the progression of life. As for the novel “The Outsiders” by S. E. Hinton the author expresses naturalism through a 14- year old boy named Pony Boy Curtis. Pony struggles with right and wrong in a society in which he believes he is an outsider. The main element in “Greasy Lake” is the setting, giving us readers a clear and simple interpretation of what is being told by the author. Greasy Lake is the main location of the story. It is well described as isolated “Through the center of town, up the strip, past the housing development” a dark place “trees crowding the asphalt in black unbroken walls” (Boyle 529). The narrator describes their surroundings by using imagery, so that the reader is able to get a sense of how unpleasant the area is. The boys want to be considered as undesirable people so they hang out in an unwelcoming place where they can act out and be mischievous. This is because of the inexistence of an authority; the darkness is surrounding their shocking behavior, along with the fact that the lake was attended by genuinely bad characters such as drug dealers. It was more like a social setting. For some awkward reason this lake seemed to be so attractive to the narrator; it was “bad” in his eyes, and bad is what he wanted. Michael Walker agrees that the guys were caught up in the woes of self-image because naturally people want to be like those around to fit in (247). This is naturalism... ... middle of paper ... ...er it has put their life in. As for “The Outsiders” we have the two social groups the Socs and the Greasers who separate themselves based on wealth. The Greasers always thought the Socs had it better than them, but in the end they find out that the Socs are cool to the point where they do not hold a grudge towards them. By reading these two stories I realized we are young individuals who make mistakes. We are not perfect, sometimes we go through a path in life that may rip our life away, but yet we learn from our mistakes and turn our life around. Works Cited Gioia, Dana., Kennedy, X.J. Greasy Lake. Literature. 2013. 529-536. Print. Hinton, S.E. The Outsiders. 1982.Print. Inderbitzin, Michelle. Outsiders and Justice Consciousness.2003.358-362. Print. Walker, Michael. Boyle’s “Greasy Lake” and the Moral Failure of Postmodernism. 1994. 247. Print.

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