OutsidersCharacterAnalysisEssayLJ115

Characters can be very different in all kinds of ways. Some characters are happy and friendly, others are gloomy and cold. Some characters have qualities you wouldn't expect them to have. It possible for someone to be compassionate, yet careless, but still happy-go-lucky? Well Sodapop Patrick Curtis, in my opinion, is. His personality if very diverse. He may be handsome, but there's a lot more to know about him than just what meets the eye.

Careless is one of the first things that comes to mind when I think of Soda. He isn't careless about everything, just some things. He's careless about a lot of his actions. At one point in the book, Pony says," Soda dropped out of school or got tickets for speeding" (Hinton, 13). These are two reckless and careless acts that Pony says Soda has done. If he had been more vigilant, he may have been able to avoid those. But since he was careless, he wasn't able to. In some situations, Soda isn't careless at all, like when he's talking to Pony. In those situations, he's more compassionate.

Soda is very compassionate. He demonstrates this in various ways throughout the novel. The first time he demonstrates it is when he tells Pony that Darry cares about him and calms him down a bit. Another time is when he talks about loving Sandy. Someone who isn't compassionate wouldn't do or feel those things. He cares so much about Sandy that he writes her a letter when she moves and is truly heartbroken when the letter comes back unread and unopened. When Darry and Pony fight at home he becomes very concerned and bothered by this. He doesn't like that they fight, and wants them to stop. He's very understanding of other people's problems. Pony says, "And he just understands everybody" (Hinton, 8). This shows that he truly does care about other people and try to understand them, making him even more compassionate.

If there's one thing that describes Soda best of all, it's happy-go-lucky. Soda is a very overall happy person, he doesn't let things get to him easily. He puts the people around him in a better mood too. Pony says, "I had to grin at him- Soda can make you grin no matter what" (Hinton, 8). This shows that Soda's happiness really spreads to everyone around him. Soda enjoys life, he loves living. Pony gives an example of this at one point in the story, saying that Soda doesn't even need to drink beer to get drunk, he just gets drunk off plain living. This further demonstrates his happy attitude.

All in all, Soda is a very interesting character. He's my favorite character from the novel. He can be careless, but not always. He's compassionate, he cares about others. He's the happiest guy you'll ever meet, and that's what makes him my favorite. He was essential to the story, and some of the side conflicts that included him made the book much more enjoyable. He made me much more curious about what was going to happen next, and that's what I love about him.