Angelina

and all i have ever loved, i loved alone.

[jackballantyne]

the haircut + angela

a few thoughts:

it's not uncommon for people of a certain age in fandom to view this as a veiled and/or metaphorical depiction of sexual assault of angela by bryon and mark. even if bryon technically just "watched", he still participated by lack of action. even if this was not sexual, it's still a really intimate, awful violation.

this book is not well loved for a reason. i think between the horrible handling of racism earlier and this scene, i can see why a lot of people are repelled by this book. bryon already is a really boring, aggravating and often annoying narrator. having this event happen i think really pushes readers past the brink of no return. and i don't blame them.

the way fandom has recently blorbofied mark and bryon i think speaks to how many people in fandom just want everyone to have conflict free existences and relationships. i find that really strips the seriousness of the novel, this moment, and what se was clumsily attempting to do.

the way fandom has treated angela's characterization in years also makes this stand out. she's been deeply sexualized in fandom in a way that doesn't seem thoughtful, she's been written as unstable mess without pity, and she's often written in a way that makes it clear a lot of the misogyny aimed towards sandy in the outsiders has now been transferred to her. and it's sad. this more than anything reminds me she's a teenage girl already in a bad situation being preyed upon by boys her age in a way that's utterly violating and i think people forget she's just that — a teenage girl in a bad situation.

[cherryvalances]

everyone shut up we’re having an outsiders summer

[cherryvalances]

I have grown to accept and even understand a lot of S.E Hinton’s character and narrative choices but I will NEVER FORGIVE OR ACCEPT OR UNDERSTAND WHY SHE SPELLED DARRY’S MIDDLE NAME LIKE THAT… like please don’t upset me right now

[alittlebitofloveliness]

A rant about Dally

In my head I know WHY they cast Matt Dillon as Dally but I wish more than anything else they had cast an actor more accurate to his book description. Like, give me an ugly ass dude with white blonde hair, not only because I feel like it would make the fandom take his character more seriously but because him being canonically described as ugly repeatedly is not just because Ponyboy is kind of a hater, it's actually narratively important. In the book the attractive characters are SEEN to get away with more, pretty privilege is a thing, even in the book (ie. Soda trying to lift a cop's gun and not getting in trouble, all the Curtis brother's being in the paper because it's 'good public appeal'). The whole point of Dally's character is that he had it rough and he has NOTHING, nothing has ever been easy for him or handed to him and because of that he's become cold and hardened and cutthroat. Ugly Dally in canon would never have a judge or jury go easy on him because of his looks (yes, this is actually something that happens- attractive people get more lenient sentences and often less jail time than unattractive people), he could never charm his way into ANYTHING, he would never be given the benefit of the doubt. Let's be real, if Dally actually looked like Matt Dillon he probably would have been able to do/get away with all those things. If canon Dally was handsome like Sodapop he could have got away with stuff easier (to a certain degree). Even within fandom space, there probably wouldn't be half as many Dally apologists if the actor wasn't as attractive as he is. Just, ugh, LET DALLY BE UGLY. It was narratively important and important to me and hollywood needs to let characters be ugly because not everyone looks like a movie star.

[sundaynightfilms]

The Rendez-Vous of Déjà-Vu, 2013

[toramona]

James Baldwin, Giovanni’s Room

[cherryvalances]

Every year or so I remember Soda is canonically somewhat blonde and it’s like I’m bonking my head into a windshield again like what are you even saying right now…

[cherryvalances]

A lot of y’all were never taught how to behave + interact with others… and you’re making it everyone else’s problem

[pressureofentertaining]

Watching Grease and realizing that out of all the characters that Kenickie was actually the most responsible person in the movie.

He worked all summer to be able to afford a car,he finds out that Rizzo may be pregnant and he tries to help her out,she doesn’t want it and it hurts his feelings but he did try to be there for her and at the end when he thinks that Rizzo is still pregnant he tells her to get off the Ferris wheel out of fear for her and her possible baby’s safety.

He wasn’t meant to be in high school he was above all the stupid crap,he belonged in the real world and I feel like that’s why he had to repeat school so much,he just didn’t care and he wasn’t cut out for it.

He also could see past Danny’s crap.

Kenickie was always my favorite thunder bird and those are pretty much the reasons why.

[litcrarum]

Richard Brautigan, Trout Fishing in America

[teleclub]

Weegee (American, 1899-1968) Untitled [Young man smoking cigarette in crashed car while waiting for ambulance, New York] 1941

[stewdoesthings]

"Greasers" is actually a metaphor for the n word in The Outsiders musical, in this essay I will-

[jackballantyne]

hey as someone who is actually black: you can type out the word greaser. you cannot type out the n-word. so maybe don't post shit like this? the word greaser does have a history as a pejorative sure but again

you can actually type out the word greaser.

you cannot type out the actual, still a real world, still used today, still horrifically violent n-word. and what the fuck is wrong with you for even getting the gal to post this shit.

[stewdoesthings]

I'm sorry if my post came across that way, but I was saying that it was a euphemism/metaphor for the n word, not saying it that they were the same or just as bad.

I'd never want to make fun of black people's struggles and history.

[jackballantyne]

you don't see the point. greaser is not and cannot be a euphemism for a real actual slur. you are being racist by saying so. and you know how you know greaser is not the same?

we are typing that word. we are not saying the other.

again: this is racist and gross.

[stewdoesthings]

I need you to understand what a euphemism is. I'm not saying they are the same but that in the musical they are meant to represent similar things. The greasers and socs are a metaphor for racism and even in the book, people could compare greasers struggles to what black people faced. Even though greasers could cut their hair or listen to different music or dress differently while a black person can never change their skin color.

After some reflection, I do believe saying greaser is a euphemism for the n word might be overreaching a little but I'd have to rewatch the musical to confirm.

I can also see the irony in comparing two words and not even writing one out but yet again, I'm not saying greaser is as bad as the n word. It's like saying "mutie" in the X-Men universe is a metaphor for the n word or that in Zootopia predators represent poc and preys represent white people.

[cherryvalances]

This isn't the intellectual proclamation you think it is. Even when trying to line your argument with literary devices, this comes off as very uninformed and ignorant. Listen to Black people when they say you're being offensive.

[finntasticwonderboy]

Dally is the NASTIEST instigator ever if there's a little spat he'll just make up shit to escalate it, this also goes with my belief that him and Two-Bit argue like two girls on their periods

[cherryvalances]

everyone shut up we’re having an outsiders spring (everyone says I should be over it but it still really hurts in that quiet place between the streets and my mother’s bedroom so I keep burning my fingertips with my cigarettes just to see how much more I can stand.)

[this-hopeless-war]

"we need more flawed female characters"

Yall couldn't handle Cherry Valance

[generic-enthusiast]

evie who wears the weirdest earrings she can find vs steve who hasn’t changed the earrings he got his ears pierced with

[greasegifs]

GREASE IS THE WORD #6 Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies - S01E08 // Grease