Preview

West Side Story

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
738 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
West Side Story
West Side Story
Day 4: 2-page essay

The West Side Story portrays the lives of two different gangs living in America, as well as their beliefs and examples of living a good life. The expectations of what people consider the good life to be may vary on a person's morals and their dreams of what life is truly about. In this movie, whether or not these characters were good people, lived a good life, or lived in a good society is a very controversial topic. The characters of the West Side Story were not good people. The two gangs focused their lives on fighting with each other rather than attempting to get along and accept the differences between them. The gangs did not have any hopes or aspirations for their futures and cared about nothing more than being in a gang. Each gang made one mistake after another and never learned from any of them nor did they try to. Doc, an old and wise man, informed the boys with his knowledge and tried to open the eyes of both gangs to the hatred that engulfed them. Everything Doc had to say went through one ear and out the other, because the boys refused to see past their differences. The Jets, one of the gangs, accept what society believes of them and never make any effort to erase their bad history. They listen to what others tell them, agreeing to the excuses for their bad behavior. This is just one example of how the boys do not attempt to make a better life for themselves, or try to prove others wrong. The two gangs believe that there is nothing better out there for them, and they do not understand that the hatred they have for each will bring them to an end sooner than expected. Although the characters believed they lived a good life, in my own perspective I saw the exact opposite. The good life is demonstrated through success, success through a career, education, goals, and love. The gangs only had one another and without the support of that gang, these boys would not exist as individual human beings. The

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    When most of us think of gang war, we think of the bloods vs crips, or the other big city gangs. However, most of us do not know what gang life was like in the mid 1900’s. Inside this book, the author outshines herself in the production of a story so true, it makes us think to our core and ask ourselves, would I have done the same thing? In this book, set in Tulsa, Oklahoma in 1965, the story follows greaser gang member, Ponyboy curtis. In this essay, the witch of the gang’s fault of Bob and Johnny’s deaths will be analysed and presented through 4 paragraphs.…

    • 610 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The film showed the reality of life in urban New York City during the crack epidemic. Most of what was seen in the movie was based on real life actions of various drug dealers throughout the city. Crack destroyed people’s lives and is one of the most destructive drugs ever created. This movie really showed that side of urban life.…

    • 267 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    When choice is involved (good vs. bad), a member chooses to do what the others would probably choose. Blackie, the previous leader of the gang, is a prime example of this inability to choose and his lack of self-discipline to do what's right. Once Blackie was replaced, he had walked away from the gang, had a thought about wanting to be apart of the new "hard" reputation of the gang, and walked back. The tone here is obviously that of one set on destruction – through material and immaterial. Innocence, their very beings (as they are only kids), is lost or corrupted…

    • 473 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    There can be many struggles with your group of friends and someone else’s group of friends. This is that case in the book,”The Outsiders”. This is constantly shown between two groups of people with different sets of struggles. For the Socs or the, “West side Rich Kids.” And the Greasers or the,”Low Life Hoods”. But they both deal with similar struggles. Some of which are they both have questionable choices in entertainment, they make bad health choices, and they are both aggressive towards each other.…

    • 564 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    American Pastoral

    • 1604 Words
    • 5 Pages

    American Pastoral is a Philip Roth novel published in 1997 concerning Seymour "Swede" Levov, a successful Jewish American businessman and former high school star athlete from Newark, New Jersey. Levov's happy and conventional upper middle class life is ruined by the domestic social and political turmoil of the 1960s during the presidency of Lyndon B. Johnson, which in the novel is described as a manifestation of the "indigenous American berserk." The novel won the Pulitzer Prize in 1998 and was included in Time's"All-TIME 100 Greatest Novels."[1] The film rights to it were later optioned by Paramount Pictures. In 2006, it was one of the runners-up in the "What is the Greatest Work of American Fiction in the Last 25 Years?" contest held by the New York Times Book Review.[2]…

    • 1604 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The Outsiders

    • 538 Words
    • 3 Pages

    The Outsiders book by S.E Hinton was eventually made into a movie. They were so much alike because they both were very good from the start. Some things that happened in the book, although they didn’t happen in the movie. You could really tell in both the book and movie the friendship and love with some people.…

    • 538 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Paragraph 2 - Describe the main characters, the gangs, and the point of view (who is telling the story). What is the mood or tone?…

    • 264 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Lastly, Dally died. I think he died so his friends could see what could happen to them if they didn’t change their lives. Johnny died while he was in the hospital and Dally couldn’t handle his death so he robbed a grocery store. He called the gang and told them to meet him at the lot but when they got there the police were already there. Dally pulled out an unloaded gun and pointed it at the police. Ponyboy said when the police fired at Dally he knew that Dally would be dead, because Dally Winston wanted to be dead and he always got what he wanted.…

    • 506 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Outsiders

    • 604 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Background does not matter when you are a hero. In the book The Outsiders by S.E Hinton, the author argues that heroism defines a person by their actions not by their background, history, or looks. The events at the church, the incidents that happened before the church and the aftermath all show the changes that happened over time that would eventually negate Ponyboy’s history and background and regard him as a hero. There are different points of heroism in the story and different forms of heroism in the story but for now we are going to look at the most important three, Cherry acting as a spy, Ponyboy rescuing the kids and what he was defined by before he was a hero.…

    • 604 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    The Outsiders

    • 1423 Words
    • 6 Pages

    S.E. Hinton is one of the best known American authors. She has written many stories and novels, none of which are as famous as her young-adult novel, The Outsiders. S.E. Hinton has won some awards for her contributions to English literature. Her books have been used in schools as she has inspired many teens and adolescents to write about topics used in her books. S.E. Hinton has captivated readers of all ages, all over America and the world with her story The Outsiders.…

    • 1423 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Outsiders

    • 802 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Has anyone ever felt like you were judged by the way you look and dress? The outsiders by S.E Hinton should be taught in school. This book should be taught in school because it is very much like real life today so it could teach kids what not to do. The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton is a story about a boy named Ponyboy and his friends who are constantly getting in trouble and being judged for being “greasers”. Ponyboy is an interesting character because he is different from his friends, but gets caught up in gang conflicts. There are many examples in The Outsiders showing Ponyboy to be loyal, brave and sensitive. The Outsiders, by S.E. Hinton was written in 1967. This novel tells the story of the conflict between two different social groups, the greasers and the socs. The socs were the socials who lived in the rich part of town, and the greasers were the lower class youths. They call them Greasers because they wear their hair long and a lot of grease in it. They are always getting picked up by the police for shoplifting, hijacking cars, pity theft, armed robbery and even MURDER!! They are always getting in trouble for something the Socs did like when Pony boy was at school. The Socs were doing something in the cafeteria and Pony boy got in trouble for doing it and he wasn’t even in the cafeteria. The Socs are a bunch of rich kids that have mustangs and corvettes with nice interior. This novel tackles issues such as violence, class conflict, and prejudice. The novel takes place in the early sixties. The Outsiders examines how two different groups compete, and unite for survival, which is often justified with violence. This one isn’t getting lost in the woods and having to make fire and kill fish and get water out of some spring. This is more like real life because things like this happen every day.…

    • 802 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In the film West Side Story, the Puerto Ricans and Americans fight over the streets of New York, including housing…

    • 141 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Outsiders

    • 584 Words
    • 3 Pages

    When families break down friends are important. In the novel “The Outsiders” by S.E Hinton this message is shown in many ways. Certain characters have been abandoned or disowned by their families, some characters have family members that have passed away and some don’t have any at all. Pony Boy Curtis, Johnny Cade and Dallas Winston all have experienced family breakdowns and each and every one of them has a loyal group of friends to fall back on. This shows why Friends are so important. Family isn’t who you’re related to, but who cares and is there for you when you need them.…

    • 584 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Outsiders

    • 504 Words
    • 3 Pages

    The Outsiders, by S.E. Hinton was written in 1967. This novel tells the story of the conflict between two different social groups, the greasers and the socs. The socs were the socials who lived in the rich part of town, and the greasers were the lower class youths. This novel tackles issues such as violence, class conflict, and prejudice. The novel takes place in the early sixties. The Outsiders examines how two different groups compete, and unite for survival, which is often justified with violence. Hinton's publishers decided that she should publish the novel under the name S.E. Hinton. They were worried that readers would not respect a females perspective on violence, and that is why they chose the non-gender author name of S.E. Hinton.…

    • 504 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    NEWS REPORT SCRIPT

    • 429 Words
    • 2 Pages

    “Mickey Cord, a tough street-smart foster 14 year old student of Grandview High School who came from a poverty stricken neighbourhood, and became a target of bully. Unexpectedly, was invited to join a special secret society and form a “Hit Squad” whose aim is to have revenge and punish the bullies, bring order to the school, and ensure that good triumphs over evil. Mickey goes along with their plans. However, after the success of the first hit, Mickey begins to struggle with the morality of the group's actions. When the next hit goes terribly wrong, Mickey faced the consequences of the squad's actions and eventually learns a very important lesson through the tragic death of a gentle giant friend who admired him enough to do whatever he wanted.…

    • 429 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays