#m.novel

this is mainly aimed at musical fans and books fans. like jfc can yall not get along??

It seems to me that when he slapped ponyboy everyone's family trauma sniffers pounced because the majority of the people who read the outsiders were the same age if not younger than ponyboy and would therefore have the exact same problem with understanding darry. HE IS NOT ABUSIVE AND HE IS NOT THE BAD GUY. not only was it specifically stated that he never hit pony before which, if you have any siblings, you KNOW how rare and saintly that is. he also CHOSE to throw away his future and way out of the neighborhood (something both him and his parents have always dreamed about so he could have a better life) for the time being to take care of his little brothers when he could have JUST AS EASILY ABANDONED THEM.

but what they dont understand is that darry would NEVER abandon his brothers and that is integral to his character. The reasons he is so "cruel" (which he isnt) or tough on pony is because 1) the state could take his brothers away at the drop of a hat so to keep all three of them together and avoid subjecting them both to the horrors AND I MEAN HORRORS of the 60s tulsa foster system he needs to keep pony out of trouble 2) he REALLY loves his brothers and wants the best for them and would want to keep pony out of trouble even if the threat of foster care wasnt looming over them and 3) THIS IS BASICALLY A TEEN WHO HAS HAD THE WEIGHT OF THE WORLD THRUST UPON HIS SHOULDERS. his parents died when he was probably 19 and just about to go into the world and find himself and who he wants to be. instead he not only had to deal with unimaginable and oppressive grief of losing his parents but he also had no time to grieve because he immediately had to fight to keep pony and soda alongside picking up one of the MOST PHYSICALLY DEMANDING AND TAXING jobs ever and trying to keep his brothers fed clothed and safe.

i know that a lot people who read the outsiders are like 12 but understand that 19 and even 20 are NOT OLD AT ALL. you still feel like you have no idea what you are doing and you still feel like a teenager/kid. Talk to any adult in your life and they'll tell you they knew nothing at that age and didnt become properly mature and knowledgable about the world until their mid to late twenties if even then. still, darry takes on all this responsibility because HE LOVES HIS BROTHERS FULLY AND COMPLETELY in a way rarely found in the world. so excuuuuuse him if he is crabby after the absolute nightmare his life crumbled into NOT EVER A YEAR AGO. i mean, remember how crabby you are when you're tired or haven't eaten? well, darry's day to day feels much worse than that and he has no time to recuperate and center himself because of his endless list of responsibilities. so please for the LOVE OF ALL THAT IS HOLY STOP DOGPILING ON HIM AND TREATING HIM LIKE HE IS SOME SATAN SPAWN HELLBENT ON TORTURING PONY. HE IS DOING MUCH BETTER THAN MOST ANYONE ELSE WOULD DO IN THAT SCENARIO AND ONE MOMENT OF FEAR AND LOSS OF CONTROL SHOULD NOT DEFINE HIM.

Thank you for coming to my tedtalk.

Cross over ships aren’t really my thing but if that’s the case then oh well 🫠