55 'The Outsiders' Quotes From The Classic Coming-Of-Age Movie

The main theme of the book and the adapted movie of 'The Outsiders' by S.E. Hinton is the class difference between two gangs from a city.

The most famous quote from the book by S. E. Hinton, as well from the movie is, "Stay gold, Ponyboy. Stay gold.". Ponyboy was told this by Johnny when he was dying.

The story by S.E. Hinton revolves around Ponyboy Curtis, his two brothers, Darry and Sodapop, the gang they're with and their enemy gang within the city. S. E. Hinton portrayed the class division between the people quite beautifully and in a simple way. Read up on these 'The Outsiders' quotes and find out for yourself.

If you liked our 'The Outsiders' quotes go check out 'Grease quotes' and 'Footloose' quotes!

Quotes From 'The Outsiders' Novel

Here's some of the best quotes from the renowned novel by S.E. Hinton including some of the best 'The Outsiders' Dally quotes and from other characters.

1. "Stay gold, Ponyboy. Stay gold."

- Johnny Cade, 'The Outsiders'.

2. "Did you ever hear of having more than you wanted? So that you couldn't want anything else and then started looking for something else to want? It seems like we're always searching for something to satisfy us, and never finding it."

- 'The Outsiders'.

3. "Nature's first green is gold,

Her hardest hue to hold.

Her early leaf's a flower;

But only so an hour.

Then leaf subsides to leaf.

So Eden sank to grief,

So dawn goes down to day.

Nothing gold can stay."

- 'The Outsiders'.

4. "Maybe people are younger when they sleep."

- 'The Outsiders'.

5. "Why do I fight? I thought, and couldn't think of any real good reason. There isn't any real good reason for fighting except self-defense."

- 'The Outsiders'.

6. "It's not just money. Part of it is, but not all. You greasers have a different set of values. You're more emotional. We're sophisticated - cool to the point of not feeling anything. Nothing is real with us."

- 'The Outsiders'.

7. "I'll bet you think the Socs have it made. The rich kids, the West-side Socs. I'll tell you something, Ponyboy, and it may come as a surprise. We have troubles you've never even heard of. You want to know something? … Things are rough all over."

- 'The Outsiders'.

8. "In our neighborhood it’s rare to find a kid who doesn’t drink once in a while. But Soda never touches a drop. He doesn’t need to. He gets drunk on just plain living."

- 'The Outsiders'.

9. "You'd better wise up, Pony... you get tough like me and you don't get hurt. You look out for yourself and nothin' can touch you… "

- 'The Outsiders'.

10. "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 like that?"

- 'The Outsiders'.

11. "'Hey,' I said suddenly, 'can you see the sunset real good from the West Side?' She blinked, startled, then smiled. 'Real good.' 'You can see it good from the East Side, too,' I said quietly."

- 'The Outsiders'.

12. "I’d rather have anybody’s hate than their pity."

- 'The Outsiders'.

13. "Johnny, I ain't mad at you. I just don't want you to get hurt. You don't know what a few months in jail can do to you. Oh, blast it, Johnny … you get hardened in jail. I don't want that to happen to you. Like it happened to me…"

- 'The Outsiders'.

14. "You know a guy a long time, and I mean really know him, you don't get used to the idea that he's dead just overnight."

- 'The Outsiders'.

15. "Get smart and nothing can touch you."

- 'The Outsiders'.

16. "I liked my books and clouds and sunsets."

- 'The Outsiders'.

17. "But I was still lying and I knew it. I lie to myself all the time. But I never believe me."

- 'The Outsiders'.

18. "That's why people don't ever think to blame the Socs and are always ready to jump on us. We look hoody and they look decent … people usually go by looks."

- 'The Outsiders'.

19. "I knew he would be dead, because Dally Winston wanted to be dead and he always got what he wanted."

- 'The Outsiders'.

20. "It doesn't do any good, the fighting and the killing. It doesn't prove a thing."

- 'The Outsiders'.

21. "It seemed funny to me that the sunset she saw from her patio and the one I saw from the back steps was the same one. Maybe the two different worlds we lived in weren't so different. We saw the same sunset."

- 'The Outsiders'.

22. "You take up for your buddies, no matter what they do. When you're a gang, you stick up for the members."

- 'The Outsiders'.

23. "Dally didn't die a hero. He died violent and young and desperate, just like we all knew he'd die someday."

- Johnny Cade,'The Outsiders'.

24. "Greasers will still be greasers and Socs will still be Socs. Sometimes I think it’s the ones in the middle that are really the lucky stiffs."

- Randy Anderson, Chapter Seven.

25. "Would you rather have me living in hide-outs for the rest of my life, always on the run?"

- Johnny Cade,'The Outsiders'.

26. "Things were rough all over, but it was better that way. That way you could tell the other guy was human too."

- 'The Outsiders'.

27. "When you're a kid everything's new, dawn. It's just when you get used to everything that it's day. Like the way you dig sunsets, Pony. That's gold. Keep that way, it's a good way to be."

- Johnny Cade, 'The Outsiders'.

28. "There's still lots of good in the world."

- Johnny Cade, 'The Outsiders'.

29. "Even as the policemen's guns spit fire into the night I knew that was what Dally wanted. He was jerked half around by the impact of the bullets, then slowly crumpled with a look of grim triumph on his face. He was dead before he hit the ground."

- 'The Outsiders'.

30. "It's okay. We aren't in the same class. Just don't forget that some of us watch the sunset too."

- 'The Outsiders'.

31. "He should never yell at Soda. Nobody should ever holler at my brother. I exploded. 'You don't yell at him!' I shouted."

- 'The Outsiders'.

32. "A guy that'll really listen to you, listen and care about what you're saying, is something rare."

- 'The Outsiders'.

33. "Well I won’t. But I gotta do something. It seems like there’s gotta be someplace without greasers or Socs, with just people. Plain, ordinary people."

- 'The Outsiders'.

34. "Sixteen years on the streets and you can learn a lot. But all the wrong things, not the things you want to learn. Sixteen years on the streets and you see a lot. But all the wrong sights, not the things you want to see."

- 'The Outsiders'.

'The Outsiders' Movie Quotes

The was movie released in 1983 and was also a hit, just like the book. These are a few movie quotes from characters like Ponyboy Curtis that you'll love.

35. "When I stepped out,into the bright sunlight from the darkness of the movie house,I had only two things on my mind: Paul Newman,and a ride home."

- Ponyboy Curtis, 'The Outsiders'.

36. "Why do you bother helping people, huh? It doesn't do any good."

- Dallas Winston, 'The Outsiders'.

37. "Robert Frost wrote it. I always remembered it because I never quite knew what he meant."

- Ponyboy Curtis, 'The Outsiders'.

38. "Jerry Wood: You're young. You shouldn't be smoking. It's a hard habit to break.

Ponyboy: Well, you're smoking.

Jerry Wood: I'm smoking but, I'm older than you are."

- 'The Outsiders'.

39. "You know the only thing that keeps Darry from being a Soc is us."

- Two Bit, 'The Outsiders'.

40. "Ponyboy: Soda, Soda, are you in love with Sandy? … What's it like?

Sodapop Curtis: Most of the time... it's real nice."

- 'The Outsiders'.

41. "Ponyboy: You know what a Soc is?

Bob Shelton: What?

Ponyboy: White trash with Mustangs."

- 'The Outsiders'.

42. "You can't win. You know that, don't you? It doesn't matter if you whip us, you'll still be where you were before, at the bottom."

- Randy Anderson, 'The Outsiders'.

43. "Ponyboy: I don't think I could ever tell Steve or Two-Bit or even Darry about the clouds and sunset. Just you and Sodapop. Maybe Cherry Valance.

Johnny: Guess we're different, huh?"

- 'The Outsiders'.

44. "Don't you know a rumble ain't a rumble without me?"

- Dallas Winston, 'The Outsiders'.

45. "Jerry Wood: You guys are three of the bravest kids I've seen in a long time. What are you guys? Professional heroes or somethin'?

Ponyboy: We're Greasers."

- 'The Outsiders'.

46. "I was crazy, you know that, Pony? I was crazy for wanting Johnny to stay out of trouble. If he was smart, like me, he wouldn't be in this mess."

- Dallas Winston, 'The Outsiders'.

47. "I hope I never see Dallas Winston again. If I do I'd... probably fall in love with him."

- Cherry Valance, 'The Outsiders'.

48. "You just don't stop living because you lose somebody."

- Darrel Curtis, 'The Outsiders'.

49. "We're all we got left now. If we don't have each other, then we ain't got nothing."

- Sodapop Curtis, 'The Outsiders'.

50. "It's just like sometimes I have to get out. It's like I'm the middle man in a tug-of-war or something between you guys. I don't know, I can't take sides."

- Sodapop Curtis, 'The Outsiders'.

51. "We gotta win that fight tonight. We gotta get even with those Socs! Let's do it for Johnny, man. We'll do it for Johnny!"

- Dallas Winston, 'The Outsiders'.

52. "Johnny: It's like the mist is what's pretty, ya know? All gold and silver … Too bad it can't stay like that all the time.

Ponyboy: Nothing gold can stay."

- 'The Outsiders'.

53. "I used to talk about killing myself all the time, man. But I don't wanna die now. It ain't long enough. Sixteen years ain't gonna be long enough."

- Johnny Cade, 'The Outsiders'.

54. "It was worth saving those little kids. Their lives are worth more than mine. They have more to live for. Tell Dally it was worth it."

- Johnny, 'The Outsiders'.

55. "Hate to tell you this, buddy, but you have to wear clothes to work. There's a law or something."

- Steve Randle, 'The Outsiders'.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly quotes for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for 'The Outsiders' quotes then why not take a look at ['Dirty Dancing' quotes], or '80s movie quotes!