Comparison Essay

Similarities can be found almost anywhere. Jonathan and Ponyboy have a few. Even though they come from two completely different backgrounds, they're actually quite similar in comparison. Despite a few differences they have a lot in common.

Jonathan and Ponyboy are a lot alike. They both proved a stereotype to be wrong. Jonathan discovered that the Hessians aren't heartless killing machines and Ponyboy discovered that the Socs' aren't perfect and get everything they want/etc. Another similarity is that they both lived in fear. Jonathan was scared out of his mind when he was first captured by the Hessians And Ponyboy was so afraid, he couldn't go outside because he was afraid of getting jumped by Socs. Jonathan and Ponyboy are alike but have differences, too.

Ponyboy and Jonathan only have one difference from what I found. Jonathan wanted to fight. Jonathan was so eager to go to war. He disobeyed his own father and joined by lying to the corporal about his age. Once he actually did fight, he realized that it was way worse than he thought. He ended up getting captured by the enemy and wanting to go home.

Whereas for Ponyboy, he didn't want to fight at all, he was afraid of fighting I guess. Johnny was jumped when they were younger and they both have been frightened ever since. When they were at the park and they got into the fight with the Socs is an example of what they were trying to avoid.

Stereotypically, characters from two different books are extremely different, but Johnathan and Ponyboy prove this wrong.

The Story of May I. Takorder

Author's Note: we chose a character and a setting from a hat then wrote a story using both.

Introduction:

My name is May, May I. Takorder. I have always dreamed about being a starting quarter back for the Green Bay Packers. I got as close to the field as I could, but with my range of skill, the closest place I could get a job was as a waitress at the diner not too far from Lambeau field.

"Good morning Green Bay, This is Todd" CLICK...

May turned off her alarm. Lazily she got out of bed,  and got ready for work. Every day, May drives past Lambeau field, and grins, because she knows that anything can happen. And every day, she cheats death, as she realizes she's driving on the wrong side of the street. Once at work, she checks in and starts taking orders.

"Hello, my name is May I. Takorder and I will be serving you today. What'll you be havin'?"

" May I have a turkey sub." asked the strangely familiar man

"Sure thing" May responded as she walked back to the kitchen to get one for him.

"HEY, HEADS UP!" she yelled as she threw the sandwich across the room

"Huh?!?!?!?" said the strangely familiar man

THUD…

Sir… Sir... Are you alright. I'm really sorry, I didn't mean to hit you in the face with the sandwich.

"That’s quite an arm you got there. Hey, I want to hire you as a quarter back!" the strangely familiar man said

"REALLY!?!?!?" May Asked

"Sure"

May went with the man. May Got in the back of the limo with him and they watched "Justin Beaver: I Sometimes Say Never" on the way to the destination.

"Were here." said the driver in an Australian accent

"But… This is the bank?"May noticed

"Yes, and quarter back is what we call the person at the withdrawal desk" the strangely familiar man said

Suddenly May realized where she remembers him from, he is the owner of the bank she goes to.

"Oh, you're the owner of the bank I go to!" May said

"You're quite right." replied the driver with an Italian accent

"didn't you just have an Australian accent?" May asks

"Um… no?" The driver responds in a Russian accent

"Ok?" May said

"If you don't mind I'm going to get some lunch." said the driver with an Irish accent

May took the job as a "quarter back" and lived happily ever after… well she didn't live too happily, so let's just say she lived.

From Hostility To Compassion

At the beginning of the novel, Ponyboy, like all of the greasers, hates and fears the Socs. As his understanding of them changes, Ponyboy sees the Socs more sympathetically. Over the course of the novel, Ponyboy’s opinion of the Socs shifts.

 Ponyboy thinks of the Socs as dangerous enemies. After he meets Cherry at the movie theater, Ponyboy begins to realize that Socs are human just like greasers. He sees that he and Cherry appreciate many of the same things, like sunsets. His outlook of the Socs suffers a setback, however, after a group of them attacks him and Johnny in the park.

When Ponyboy rescues the children from the burning church, it opens him up to the idea of a human compassion that over powers gang loyalties. Later, Ponyboy talks with the Soc Randy about the rescue, and the two come to a peaceable understanding. Still, Ponyboy does not suddenly remove his hostility towards the Socs, not even after Johnny pleads with him to stop fighting.

 His painful experiences have scarred him. As the story ends, gang tensions still exists, and Ponyboy still feels angry. Yet he is about to begin an intelligent exploration of his tragedies by writing about them.