Empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings of another, just like how Severus Snape and Harry Potter were able to put aside how much they loathe each other to show each other that they both miss Harry’s mother. Ponyboy Curtis is a prime example of letting go of your hate to show that you understand like he did with the Socs. Although, you may not be able to see that you understand, or someone else does without someone pointing it out to you. Ponyboy feels like the socs just don’t care about Johnny’s death because he killed Bob, but he realizes that everyone is human and that death of a murderer in self defense still means that someone will miss them no matter who it is.
I think that S.E. Hinton put this poem in here to foreshadow what happens later. Johnny was an example of something gold, something gold can not stay because it is almost as if they are too good for the world. Johnny died later because of his injuries of the burning church. He was gold because he protected his friends and stood up for them and always thought about other before himself. Something gold is like someone like Nelson Mandela or Ponyboy's parents. In a song I heard before it said that only the good die young and now I think I understand it because of this book, it means the good as in gold but they die when their timer stops ticking. It doesn't mean that if you die after you have had a long life it does not mean that you were not a good person. I think he recalled this poem firstly because of the horizon and it reminds him of his parents without him realizing it because nothing gold can stay. I think she is trying to say that trying to be gold should be one of your main goals as well as surrounding yourself with them.
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