The Life and Works of S E Hinton - Essay Example

EXPOSITORY ESSAY: The Life and Works of S.E. Hinton Fiction, clearly and concisely defined as “literary narratives, collectively, with imaginary characters or events, specifically novels and short stories. Imaginary. False. S. E. Hinton became famous for young adult fiction depicting realistic events which exemplify the social situations or conditions of her time. Does her contradiction and bold defiance of the bounds of literary fiction accepted as an effective medium for contemporary writing? Hinton’s insatiable quest for appropriate young adult literature provided the impetus for writing at a young age of 15. The unexpected remarkable reviews of The Outsiders drastically catapulted her writing career. It is precisely these reasons that this essay envisions to explore her life and works, as well as make her past revisited and her journey relived. S.E. Hinton (as she is frequently referred to and is considered her public name) was born on July 22, 1948 in Tulsa, Oklahoma. (Hipple par. 4). She enjoyed reading and horseback riding, two unconventional hobbies for a growing child. She attended Will Rogers High School, “where, in her junior year, she began writing The Outsiders, the riveting story of gang rivalry that would launch her career as a writer”. (Hipple par. 6). According to Hinton, the social situation at her school inspired a great deal of The Outsiders, to wit: “I wrote The Outsiders because I (1) like to write (2) was mad about the social situation in my high school where everyone got in their little group and wouldn't make friends outside it and (3) I wanted to read it. There was no realistic fiction being written about teenagers when I was in high school--everything was "Mary-Jane Goes to The Prom".” (S.E. Hinton.com FAQ par. 19) S.E. Hinton boasts of seven bestselling novels (The Outsiders (1967), That Was Then, This Is Now (1971), Rumble Fish (1975), Tex (1979), Taming the Star Runner (1988), Puppy Sister (1995) and Hawkes Harbor (2004)), three classified as omnibus of novels (Outsiders / Rumble Fish / That Was Then, This Is Now (1995), An S.E. Hinton Collection (2001), and Some of Tim's Stories (2007)), one picture book (Big David, Little David (1995)), and one upcoming omnibus of a novel Some of Tim’s Stories in paperback which consists of “fourteen original stories depicting adults trapped in lives of missed connections and opportunities”. (Fantastic Fiction 2009) From among her seven novels, four were made into movies depicting the appeal of their themes to the masses. Most of her themes center on loyalty, transformation accorded through age, identity search and abandonment. (Hipple par. 11) She was able to depict real life situations written in the point of view of the audience in context. Peck averred in his book review written in New York Times, “The Outsiders” shocked readers with its frank depictions of adolescents smoking, drinking and “rumbling”. Although other pop culture offerings had dealt with themes – most notably “Rebel Without a Cause” and “West Side Story” – their intended audience was adult. By contrast, “The Outsiders” was a story “for teenagers, about teenagers, written by a teenager”. (Peck par. 1). However, the success of The Outsiders was measured by Hinton in terms of its ability to bring back the joys of reading to children. (S.E. Hinton.com Books par. 3) For a contemporary writer who started at a young age, it is not surprising to note the numerous honors and awards that she received from her famous novels. To date, Hinton received a total of 19 awards for her four novels. The most distinguished award was the Margaret Alexander Edwards Award in 1988. This award “is given to an author whose books are popular with teenagers.  It is for lifetime achievement.  The one or more titles that are honored must be at least five years old.  The award is administered by the Young Adult Library Services Association and sponsored by School Library Journal”. (Kerby 2007) The roster of awards exemplified Hinton as a genius in the field of young adult fiction: an epitome of success in literary writing. The strength in S.E. Hinton’s writing emerges from the deep interest she has for literary works that depict real life situations of the times. When one reads her books, the reader feels and empathizes with the characters. The audience conforms to the convictions of the characters and learns through the seriousness and realities of pain, death, and violence. Her books move her audience so much that readers yearn to read some more and therefore accord more opportunities for knowledge. On the other hand, since most of her books were written in the setting of Tulsa, her hometown, she was not provided with the chance to widen her world in terms of geographical and travel experiences which could have created more variety in themes and target audience. Being teenagers as initially her targeted readers, a distinctive cultural influence inspired and provoked Hinton’s imagination to write. As commonly and simply stated, culture is defined as “the customary beliefs, social forms, and material traits of a racial, religious or social group” (Merriam Webster p. 192). With clarity settled, it can be confirmed that S.E. Hinton derived most of her stories from the social enigma that enveloped her stay at Will Rogers High School. The behaviors of young adults have spurred emotions driving Hinton to write. As presented by Wilson, in her biography of S.E. Hinton, “the theme of teenagers figuring out things on their own is dominant in all of Hinton’s young adult novels and is perhaps the most central to The Outsiders”. (Wilson p. 16). Wilson averred that during Hinton’s writing of The Outsiders, she was besieged with an emotional difficulty facing her father being diagnosed with brain tumor, who eventually died by the time she was finishing the book. (Wilson p. 16) For anyone to delve into Hinton’s concerns as an author, it is pertinent to evaluate some facets of her personality. As honestly revealed in her biography, she is “a very private person, and I'm very uncomfortable talking about my personal life”. (S.E. Hinton.com About the Bio par. 1). Writing had been a rewarding and natural consequence of her love for reading. Having realized that reading brings enormous benefits to an individual; her primary concern is to share this wonderful gift to children all over the world. Her innate skills for observation made her realize that most of the literary works written then, do not reveal the reality of the times. She wanted to emphasize honestly and reality, despite the painful emergence of disturbing situations. The teenagers, who first benefited from The Outsiders, were overwhelmed and stunned by Hinton’s novels. Reading made them want to read more. This is the response that any writer would want to elicit from the audience. As quoted from Sutherland’s The Teenager Speaks, here are some quoted responses worth mentioning: “I feel that all teen-agers from all environments should read this novel," writes a fourteen-year-old girl. "It would give people a better understanding of these troubled teen-agers and not judge them by their long hair and odd ways." A boy the same age writes: "In presentation this story seemed very true to life as I know those kind of circumstances prevail in many N.Y. areas." Another is quoted in its entirety: "Dear S. E. Hinton, I am 10 years old, going into 5th grade, and I LOVE to read. One day, a friend of ours asked me if I wanted to read The Outsiders. I said okay. Even though I'm only 10, & your book was for teen-agers, I think it's the BEST book that I've EVER read! I really enjoyed it! [Signature] (and Believe me, I've read quite a few!)" (Sutherland par. 5) Hinton has shared her love for reading and writing through the famous novels she has written. Her unselfish pursuit to share her talents for writing is expressed in her concern to write a realistic discourse through an imaginary medium. By creatively defying the confines of fiction through her realistic depiction of the social ills of her time, Hinton had been effective and successful in encouraging the readers to be tuned to her novels. Her roaster of honors and awards attest to the effectiveness of her strategic writing style to capture the hearts and minds of her readers. Of course, of greater significance, S.E. Hinton’s innate possession of a genuine interest, dedication and love for her work enabled her to excel in this highly professional endeavor. Works Cited Fantastic Fiction. (2009). S E Hinton. Fantastic Fiction Limited. Lancashire, UK. Retrieved on March 27, 2009 from Hipple, M. (1997). Writers for Young Adults. 3 vols. Ted Hipple, editor. Charles Scribner's Sons. Kerby, M. (2007) Margaret A. Edwards Awards. Retrieved on March 29, 2009 from Peck, D. 'The Outsiders': 40 Years Later. New York Times Book Review; Sep 23, 2007; Research Library. pg. 31. S. E. Hinton.com. Frequently Asked Questions. Limemachine Productions. March 2007. Retrieved on March 27, 2009 from Sutherland, Z. "The Teen-Ager Speaks," in The Saturday Review (New York), January 27, 1968, p. 34. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary. (1997). Definition of Culture. Merriam-Webster, Incorporated. Springfield, Massachusetts, USA. Wilson, A. (2003). S.E. Hinton. The Library of Author Biographies. The Rosen Publishing Group. 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