Similarities And Differences Of Dally And Johnny

The story changed in many ways when Dally died. First off, the gang is really torn apart. Second off, Ponyboy couldn’t tell Dally what Johnny wanted him to tell Dally. Third off, It caused a lot of stress on the rest of the gang. And finally, Pony now has a story to tell about how Johnny and Dally died on the same night.

But once he sees Johnny it gives him something to love and care about. He made sure that Johnny didn’t become violent. He says in the book multiple times he cares about Johnny he said “Johnny…I just don’t want you to get hurt.” A quote also says that “Johnny was the only thing that Dally loved. And now Johnny was gone.” Later in the book Johnny dies and it is too much for Dally and he gets himself killed. Dally was so distraught, he wanted to be dead.

Another similarity that makes Johnny and Dally similar is through their value of life. Dally has never really cared about what happens to him. He goes around trying to break laws and getting caught, going to jail, getting out, and then repeating. He never really cares about how he turns out and what will happen to him. He has never respected his life. He gets in fights all the time and is mean. When he kills himself just because Johnny died, he gave up on the world. Everyone knew he would die like this, “I knew he would be dead, because Dallas Winston wanted to be dead and he always got what he wanted” (154). His value of his life is very little and when Johnny dies he brakes. Similarly, Johnny’s value in life is limited. In the letter he wrote to Ponyboy, he talks about how

Dally’s weakness stems from the fact he doesn’t like who he is as a person. He’s seen so many bad things, and it makes him upset. This explains why he is so attached to Johnny, who while has seen bad things, he remains kind and strong. His entire relationship with Johnny is desperate. He depends on Johnny so much that when Johnny died, he doesn’t even feel like living without him. While Dally won’t ever admit it, he cares a lot about people more than he lets on. When Johnny tells Dally that he wants to turn himself in, Ponyboy says, “the whole idea was a jolt to Dallas.” (87) Dally is so dependent on Johnny and the idea of Johnny going to jail and becoming like him shakes him up. He even starts chewing on his fake ID. The dependency on Johnny really shows how weak he is when it comes to managing

Doe Zantamata once says, “Differences and similarities are equally as easy to see, it mostly depends on which ones you are seeking to find.” In The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton two of the main characters, Johnny Cade and Dallas Winston or Dally, have many similarities and many differences. Johnny and Dally both have bad and abusive parents, and they think of the gang like their family. The differences are, Johnny is not a fighter and does not enjoy fighting like Dally does. Johnny dies a hero and Dally dies a violent hoodlum. If Johnny and Dally are exactly the same or very different, the story would be very different and a lot of key parts in the story would not be the same and as meaningful.

Dally is a criminal who did many bad things, and had gone to jail many times. Dally has been involved in many gang related crimes. He lied, he cheated, and he stole. He also went to rodeos and rumbles. He even jumped people. Dally lived a life of crime and didn’t take any actions to turn his life around, he just kept doing the wrong thing. And after Johnny dies, Dally has the police kill him. He does this by pulling a gun so that the police will shoot at him; and they do. He died before he hit the floor.

Although Dally and Johnny have a lot of similarities, they also have many differences. One of their many differences is that Johnny is law abiding and Dally is the complete opposite. Dally got in trouble with the police when he is ten years old. He likes to break laws and do things the illegal way. As Ponyboy says of Dally, “Dally hated to do things the legal way. He liked to show that he didn’t care whether there was a law or not” (20). Dally never follows the law. Conversely, Johnny is extremely law abiding and has absolutely no record with the police. When Johnny, Ponyboy, and Dally are all in Windrixville, Johnny decides he wants to turn himself in. He says to Dally, “‘I ain’t got no record with the fuzz and it was self-defense’”(87). He never gets in trouble with the police, and he feels that if he turns himself in, then he will receive a light sentence. This shows that Johnny has never had a complication with the police, on the other hand, Dally first got arrested at the age of ten and keeps getting arrested.

Although Dally and Johnny share some alike traits, they also have many differences. For example, Dally is a tenacious, villainous, and a greaser while Johnny is a polite, perceptive, and craven greaser.

The author writes, “Johnny’s eyes glowed. Dally was proud of him. That was all Johnny had ever wanted” (148). Johnny’s reaction is priceless. Out of the entire greaser gang, Johnny and Dally’s relationship is the strongest and most significant. When Johnny needs Dally the most, he is his staunchest supporter. In return, Johnny gives back the same, if not more, amount of affection to Dally. When Dally and Johnny die, Ponyboy makes a list of realizations. Ponyboy thinks, “But I remembered Dally pulling Johnny through the window of the burning church; Dally giving us his gun, although it could mean jail for him; Dally risking his life for us, trying to keep Johnny out of trouble.” (154). It is clearly proven that ‘tough’ Dallas Winston makes a substantial effort to make Johnny’s life better. If Dally would not make the effort for Johnny, then Johnny would have to experience life worse than it already is. Since Dally thinks of Johnny almost like a little brother, it would hurt Dally to see Johnny experience that kind of pain. Dally and Johnny are bonded by these similarities, but they are also bonded through their differences.

Dally breaking up in the hospital and crumbling in the streets is almost meaning how Dally reacted to Johnny died and then leaded up to him dying. The parts where Ponyboy says “don’t think of” this is to take it off his mind and try to feel better about the two deaths. The greasers also respect Ponyboy, for example, during an argument towards the end of the book Darry said to Ponyboy “Sure, little buddy” (84). Another example of the greasers respecting Ponyboy is how Johnny helps Ponyboy feel better a lot of in a lot of conflicts. For instance, getting hit or getting almost drowned. Ponyboy positively accepted being a greaser and he is committed to being a greaser.

Johnny Cade comes from a broken home, his dad hits him, his mom does not care about Johnny, the only thing he has are his friends, the greasers. Ponyboy, one of his closest friends, is talking about everyone in the gang and when he came to Johnny he said, “Johnny had it awful rough at home”(4). Johnny unlike everyone else in the gang, except Dally, does not have someone in his family that truly cares for him. This affects him because it makes him upset that his parents do not care for him. If Johnny did not have it so hard at home, he would be more content and joyful, and even less scared. Johnny is a little bothered that his parents did not ask about Johnny so Dally goes on and says, “‘my old man don’t give a hang whether i’m in jail or dead in a car wreck or drunk in the gutter’” (88). When Dally is 10, he gets arrested and is on the streets of New York, which shows how little Dally’s father cares about him. Maybe if his father did care, Dally would be more kind and caring, and like Johnny, more joyful. If Dally’s dad cared, he may still be living with his parents and would not be a greaser. Dally and Johnny are

Ponyboy said he would be dead if he didn't have the gang members. Johnny is the youngest in the gang. He was jumped by Socs and was seriously injured that he almost died. He had psychology impact on the Socs, he would shiver and be frighten whenever he sees a Soc. On the day he left with Ponyboy, they met a group of Socs. Since the Soc called Bob almost drowned Ponyboy to death, he killed Bob. Johnny admired Dally a lot. He wishes Dally could be proud of him for even just once. He wanted to be as tough and cool as Dally but he never succeeds. Johnny was kicked out of school and that was how Ponyboy thought he wasn't clever. Sometimes Johnny understood things better than Ponyboy in the book which was called Gone with the Wind. Johnny had the interest and talent in reading books but no one in the gang except Ponyboy was good enough to talk about these. He wasn't really close with Ponyboy before they ran away together so they didn't have a talk. Johnny also loved to watch sunsets and sunrises but no one in the gang could have spared time to watch or even talk about this. All Johnny couldn't express mad him alienated from the gang members. The only one he was close to was Dally. Dally cared for his all time and would risk his life for whatever happens on Johnny. Such as lending a gun or killing a Soc. Dally wouldn't hesitate as long as it was for

A distinct difference between the two Greasers are their personalities. Johnny is a very innocent kid. He tries to never break the rules throughout everything he does. “‘Shut up about last night! I killed a kid last night. He couldn’t have been over seventeen or eighteen, and I killed him. How’d you like to live with that?”’(74). Johnny kills Bob Sheldon as an act of self-defense because Bob is drowning Ponyboy. This is Johnny’s first ever crime, he does not have a record with the police and is usually very law abiding. Johnny also wants to turn himself in, as he feels guilty. Dally on the other hand, loves to break the rules. He is always getting into some sort of trouble and does not care when he does. “‘Dallas has a record with the fuzz a mile long”’(95). Ponyboy, Johnny and Dally are in the hospital because of the fire in the church. Ponyboy is talking to a guy about the heroic event, and Ponyboy tells him how they are greasers and punks. He tells him about how Dally was in a gang in New York and is always in and out of jail. Dally and Johnny have complete opposite personalities, yet a very close friendship.

Even the younger boys like Soda and Pony are much more sensitive in nature but still eager to prove themselves in the “rumble” towards the end of the novel. Physical combat seems to carry weight similar to ancient rites of passage, you were only considered a man if you could best another in a trial by arms or “lick” someone as the boys of the 1960’s would say. This is an important distinction to notice and deserves further inspection. Even with the loss of their biological parents to death, alcoholism, marital strife or pure apathy, these boys take care of one another with each older generation raising the younger, Dally even comments to Johnny about the nature of their relationship when he inquires about whether his parents cared about his well-being, “’My parents… did they ask about me?’ ‘No,’ snapped Dally, they didn’t. Blast it, Johnny, what do they matter? Shoot, my old man don’t give a hang whether I’m in jail or dead in a car wreck or drunk in the gutter. That don’t bother me none.’” (Outsiders 88). Whether Dally is completely aware of the role he plays in Johnny’s life is unclear but it adds all the more weight to the revelation of Johnny’s death; for Dally, this is losing a son. There is a solid argument to make that, in spite of their personal hardships, these boys are far more adjusted to masculinity than their counterparts the “Socs” who seem to be aimless in their pursuit of

Johnny hates fighting most of them all. He will always do the right thing never getting into fights except for when he was jumped. Johnny said to Dally and Pony that fighting is “‘Useless... fighting's no good....”’(148). Johnny was disappointed in them for fighting the soc’s he disagrees with all fighting. Unlike Johnny, Dally loves to fight.Dally is a tough greaser who does not waste anytime creating a problem if he has the opportunity. Dally is always looking to start a problem with the police and other people. The matter of facts, even his friends try their hardest to stay on his friendly side. Ponyboy says of Dallas, “One time, in a dime store, a guy told him to move over at the candy counter. Dally had turned around and belted him so hard it knocked a tooth loose. A complete stranger, too” (24). Dally has a bad temper, and he is not afraid to fight with anyone. Most of the time he will find ways to break laws randomly. Looking up to what I have stated you can tell they are two completely different people at