Further, Motorcycle Boy is an excellent example of the negative effects that intelligence has if not applied in a positive way. Motorcycle Boy is one of the lucky members that are naturally intelligent however they lack the ability to move forward due to a variety of reasons (In his case, he felt obligated to take care of his younger brother). Rusty James represents members of society that settle in life and have no ambition to change their course. Each character is symbolic of the types of individuals in life. The key players in this story are Rusty James and the Motorcycle Boy, which were briefly mentioned above and are the protagonists in the novel, along with Bif, Rusty James’s rival and Steve, his best friend.

Further, instead of coming out with a variety of their personality and character traits, he uses terminology and phrases to let the reader make inferences and analyze them in a greater aspect. Hinton uses a variety of techniques to describe the characters and allow the reader to understand and in an essence, “get inside their heads”. Hinton’s story is an eye opening novel that uses fascinating characters, an intriguing plot, and a heart-wrenching theme will keep you enthralled and yearning to learn more. The novel depicts the boys’ lives of poverty and ill-circumstances that become a gateway to the “gang world” where the only ways out are through risk or death. This is the story of two brothers, Rusty James, a boy of average intelligence that relied on fighting to overcome life’s problems and his older sibling, The Motorcycle Boy, an extremely intelligent young adult with limited resources to succeed. If you had no adult figures to turn to, could you raise yourself with the aid of only your brother, three years older than you or hold your own in a knife fight at the age of fourteen? Would you be able to escape the life of poverty and become a successful middle class or wealthy individual without the aid of a positive role model? These questions come to mind when reading the book, Rumble Fish by S. But one day, Rusty-James’s world comes apart, and this time the Motorcycle Boy isn’t around to pick up the pieces.

When he gets in over his head, the Motorcycle Boy has always been there to bail him out. Rusty James isn’t book-smart,-he relies more on his fists than his brains. What he wants most of all is to be just like his older brother, the Motorcycle Boy. Rusty-James is the number one tough guy among the junior high kids who hang out and shoot pool at Benny’s, and he enjoys keeping up his reputation.

Rumble Fish by S.E. Hinton