Why does Randy visit Ponyboy in chapter 11 of The Outsiders?

At the beginning of chapter eleven, Randy Adderson visits Ponyboy, who is still physically trying to recover from the rumble and struggling psychologically with the tragic deaths of his two close friends. When Randy arrives, he tells Ponyboy that he is simply visiting to see if he is doing okay. However, Randy immediately begins talking about their upcoming court hearing. After Randy mentions that his father is extremely upset by the entire ordeal, he attempts to set the record straight by telling Pony that Bob Sheldon stabbed Johnny in the park. However, Pony insists that he had the knife and was responsible for killing Bob. When Randy tells Pony that he is wrong, Pony begins to scream that Johnny is not dead, which prompts Darry to ask Randy to leave.
One can surmise that Randy not only wanted to see if Pony was okay but also was interested in corroborating their stories before the trial. Randy doesn't want the judge to think he or Pony is lying, which is why he wanted to make sure Pony was thinking clearly. However, Randy discovers that Pony is suffering psychologically from his traumatic experience and cannot recall the past accurately.


Randy is one of Bob’s friends and a Soc. He comes to visit Ponyboy in chapter 11 after Johnny has died. Ponyboy is experiencing the loss and going through the stages of grief. Randy visits Ponyboy to check in on him and let him know that he is going to testify that Pony is innocent. He tells Pony,

My dad says for me to tell the truth and nobody can get hurt. He's kind of upset about all this. I mean, my dad's a good guy and everything, better than most, and I kind of let him down, being mixed up in all this. (chapter 11)

Randy wants to make sure that Pony is doing alright, but he wants to put his mind at ease. With everything that has happened—Bob dying, the church fire, and Pony having a mental breakdown—I think Randy wanted to help put Pony at ease by telling him that it was all going to be alright.
When Pony starts taking the blame for Bob’s death, Randy is confused. However, he learns that in coming to talk to Pony he has brought up Johnny, and the mention of him makes Pony confused. Pony doesn’t accept Johnny’s death, and he doesn’t believe Johnny would have stabbed Bob. Ponyboy has begun to idealize Johnny in his mind after the death of his friend, and Randy can see the extent of Pony’s sickness in his warped memory of the event.


If a reader goes by exactly what Randy says his reason for visiting Ponyboy is, then Randy comes to see Ponyboy in chapter 11 simply to check in on him and see how Ponyboy is doing after the recent rumble and everything else:

"No, thanks. Uh, Ponyboy, one reason I came here was to see if you were okay. . ."

Savvy readers will be able to infer that there is much more to Randy's visit. He's there because he is feeling guilty about everything that has recently transpired between the Greasers and the Socs. This is actually a big deal that Randy is feeling anything:

"And it's the first time I've felt anything in a long time."

If you remember all the way back to chapter 3, Cherry told Ponyboy that the problem with Socs is that they don't feel anything. Now, Randy is feeling guilty about his actions, the gang's actions, and the consequences that all of it has caused for his friends and family members.

"I wouldn't mind getting fined," Randy said, "but I feel lousy about the old man."

Before their conversation is over, Randy makes it clear that he is going to tell the judge the truth tomorrow.

"My dad says to tell the truth and nobody can get hurt. He's kind of upset about all this."
[...]
"Listen to me, Pony. You didn't do anything. It was your friend Johnny that had the knife..."

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