The Outsiders And The Socs: An Analysis

Every decision comes with a cost. Nothing in life comes for free, therefore prices have to be made, however sometimes the rewards outweigh the costs. In the story The Outsiders, the Greasers and the Socs exemplify that there are numerous costs and rewards to be examined when determining whether or not to confront each other. Yet time and time again, each group determines that fighting is the key to survival. Not only the survival of their existence, but the survival of their name, sanity, and purpose. The Greasers and the Socs fight for their lives and for what they believed in, but with every encounter they assess the worth of their costs and rewards for the actions made. Moreover, the purpose of this paper is to apply the theory of Social Exchange to the novel The Outsiders, while emphasizing that fighting is a cost that leads to survival.
This paper first looks at the theory of Social Exchange, explains the major components of the Social Exchange Theory, examines the novel The Outsiders, and then combines Social Exchange with the novel The