comes home from the hospital, Steve drops by the Curtis house and discusses a newspaper article with Ponyboy. Ponyboy realizes with a shock that there is talk of the three Curtis brothers beings separated and that he and Sodapop might be forced to go into a boys' home. Ponyboy's dismay demonstrates the importance of his relationships with both of his brothers; he cannot bear the thought of living away from them.

In chapter 8, Johnny experiences a conflict with the nurse who tells him that his mother has arrived for a visit. His horrified response to the prospect of seeing his mother demonstrates the problematic nature of their relationship; seeing her would do Johnny more harm than good, which emphasizes Johnny's vulnerability.

To me, the most important conflicts of these three chapters involve Johnny.  One is between Johnny and another person (his mother) and one is between Johnny and nature (the fire and its effects).

I think that the conflict between Johnny and the fire and its effects is the most important.  It is so important because Johnny is going to end up dying after his struggle and his struggle and death will have such a huge impact on Ponyboy.

The conflict between Johnny and his mother is important for similar reasons.  It emphasizes what a tough life Johnny has had and makes us (and Ponyboy) sadder when he dies.  It will also help lead to Dallas's death.

Some conflicts in The Outsiders are man vs. man, man vs. society and man vs. self.

An example of a man vs. man conflict in the story is the greasers vs. the Socs.  This is the larger conflict, which can be broken down into specific conflicts between characters.  One such conflict occurs in the fight between Johnny and Bob in the park during the rumble that resulted in Bob’s death.  Ponyboy explains that the fighting between the greasers and the Socs often occurs just because it has been perpetuated from one jumping or rumble to the next, or because of the general class differences between the two, and not for any specific reason.  This is evident in the way that Bob attacks Ponyboy and Johnny in the park.

Bob shook his head, smiling slowly. "You could use a bath, greaser. And a good working over. And we've got all night to do it. Give the kid a bath, David." (Ch. 4)

The conflict between the greasers and the Socs led directly to the conflict between Bob and Johnny, which led to Bob’s death.  Johnny was just defending himself.  He did not mean to kill Bob, and his killing Bob is what caused him to flee.  All because greasers simply cannot get along with Socs.

This brings us to the second conflict, man vs. society.  This occurs on a more global level.  It involves a conflict with the world around a character.  It is the problem that created the greasers and the Socs: class differences.  There is a huge socioeconomic difference between the two classes.  Pony explains the difference between the two groups in terms of social class. 

We're poorer than the Socs and the middle class. I reckon we're wilder, too. Not like the Socs, who jump greasers and wreck houses and throw beer blasts for kicks… (Ch. 1)

It is this difference in social class that leads to the man vs. society conflict that the greasers have.  Some of the greasers have a chip on their shoulder that causes them to attack the world, but many of them are just fighting to survive.  While the Socs can leave once they are done getting their kicks, the greasers are trapped.  They are in an endless cycle of poverty and violence, targeted by Socs and having fewer opportunities.

Finally, there is the man vs. self conflict.  This kind of conflict involves a fear, a choice, or a decision.  This is faced by Ponyboy, who is more thoughtful and insightful than most of the young people in the book.  He wants to end the cycle of poverty by getting an education.  However, he gets caught up in the incident at the park and has to go on the run.  He wants to support Johnny, and his brothers, and the other greasers.  He is proud of who he is, but he also does not want this life.  He does not really want to be a greaser.  It is a decision and a conflict that weighs on him.

The central conflict also happens to be the one most easily identified, which is the class conflict that is manifested in the rivalry between the group called the "Greasers" and the group called the "Socs".  The "Greasers" are so named because of their hair, and might be equated to teenagers today who identify themselves as "Goth", while the "Socs", or "Socials" are the rough equivalent of what might be called in eighties high school parlance "the preppies" and today are usually referred to as simply "the popular crowd".  The main character, Ponyboy Curtis, as well as his brothers, and their friends Johnny, Two-Bit and Dally are not to be confused with "hoods"; they are simply from the poor part of town, and as a general rule, they don't get into trouble, despite their reputation; however, they are frequently the target of malicious Soc aggression, and they will defend themselves when necessary.

The novel opens with Ponyboy narrowly escaping what would surely be an unpleasant attack by the Socs, thwarted only because his friends and brothers show up; the Socs at one time beat up Johnny so badly that the young man, who was the antithesis of an aggressive youth, swore he would kill the next person who came after him, and true to his word, began carrying a knife to protect himself.  Ponyboy describes Johnny as a "lost puppy", one that "has been kicked too many times".  So, although this central conflict is a class conflict, it is also a deadly situation, and by the time the novel ends, three teenagers will have died.

S.E. Hinton wrote and published this book when she was still in high school as a protest against what she considered to be syrupy, sentimental, unrealistic literature aimed at teenagers.  The novel still resonates deeply with teenagers today; even though the characters' names are unusual, and the descriptions of cars and clothing are unfamiliar, it has retained its appeal, particularly to young men who haven't had much experience with novels that they actually enjoy reading (probably the same type of novels Hinton was taking issue with when she wrote The Outsiders).  The universal themes that affect young people--their feelings, their issues, their fears and insecurities--haven't changed, and Hinton apparently captured those themes in a way that has stood the test of time.