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That Was Then... This Is Now

153 statements
29 feature instances
7 referencing feature instances

That Was Then... This Is Now	type	TVTItem
That Was Then... This Is Now	label	That Was Then... This Is Now
That Was Then... This Is Now	page	ThatWasThenThisIsNow
That Was Then... This Is Now	comment	Mark and Bryon are best friends, the closest thing to a brother either of them has ever had. Both are sixteen-year-old greasers— pool hustlers, hoods. Mark can get away with anything, and Bryon can lie about anything. They're the perfect team. Over the year that passes, they come to see just how rough life treats the poor kids like them. The owner of the bar where they hustle pool at is shot. An innocent guy gets beaten half to death. Drugs show their effect on a child once intelligent and sensitive. Worst of all, Mark has turned out to be a completely different person than Bryon had estimated him to be. Should Bryon turn in someone closer than a brother to him?That Was Then, This Is Now is a 1971 coming-of-age novel by S. E. Hinton, the acclaimed author of The Outsiders and Rumble Fish. The book gives a darkly realistic portrayal of greaser culture in 1960s Tulsa, Oklahoma. A film adaptation was made in 1985, directed by Christopher Cain and starring Emilio Estevez (who also wrote the screenplay) as Mark and Craig Sheffer as Bryon.
That Was Then... This Is Now	fetched	2023-09-01T06:29:16Z
That Was Then... This Is Now	parsed	2023-09-01T06:29:16Z
That Was Then... This Is Now	isPartOf	DBTropes
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_10d9a349	type	Sharp-Dressed Man
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_10d9a349	comment	Sharpdressed Man: Mark is said to always know what to wear even though he doesn't seem to care.
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_10d9a349	featureApplicability	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_10d9a349	featureConfidence	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	That Was Then... This Is Now / int_10d9a349
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_18d15922	type	Title Drop
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_18d15922	comment	Title Drop: The title is only said twice during the course of the book, but both instances set up a devastating Ironic Echo: When Bryon talks with Mark about how they've grown up since they stopped getting involved in gang fights, and when Mark makes it clear he hates Bryon after he got him sent to prison for drug dealing.
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_18d15922	featureApplicability	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_18d15922	featureConfidence	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	That Was Then... This Is Now / int_18d15922
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_19851b86	type	The Sociopath
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_19851b86	comment	The Sociopath: It's implied at the end that this is what Mark became without Bryon's influence to keep him in check any longer.
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_19851b86	featureApplicability	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_19851b86	featureConfidence	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	That Was Then... This Is Now / int_19851b86
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_1b65dfad	type	The Cameo
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_1b65dfad	comment	The Cameo: As this book (and several more that followed) take place in the same setting as The Outsiders, not only Ponyboy makes a cameo in the book, so does Tim Shepard.
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_1b65dfad	featureApplicability	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_1b65dfad	featureConfidence	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	That Was Then... This Is Now / int_1b65dfad
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_22cf536c	type	Chekhov's Gun
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_22cf536c	comment	Chekhov's Gun: As we come to learn, Mark keeps a spare carton of cigarettes under his mattress. As Bryon comes to learn when trying to get it, it's also where Mark hides his pill bottle.
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_22cf536c	featureApplicability	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_22cf536c	featureConfidence	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	That Was Then... This Is Now / int_22cf536c
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_22e6c07e	type	Pervert Dad
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_22e6c07e	comment	Pervert Dad: Angela's husband's dad "slaps her bottom".
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_22e6c07e	featureApplicability	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_22e6c07e	featureConfidence	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	That Was Then... This Is Now / int_22e6c07e
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_3618ebb9	type	TheSixties
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_3618ebb9	comment	The '60s: The novel takes place circa 1965-66.
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_3618ebb9	featureApplicability	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_3618ebb9	featureConfidence	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	That Was Then... This Is Now / int_3618ebb9
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_36ae9f5d	type	Traumatic Haircut
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_36ae9f5d	comment	Traumatic Haircut: Mark cuts all of Angela's curly long hair to the scalp off while she is passed out drunk.
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_36ae9f5d	featureApplicability	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_36ae9f5d	featureConfidence	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	That Was Then... This Is Now / int_36ae9f5d
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_443b78cd	type	Tranquil Fury
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_443b78cd	comment	Tranquil Fury: Even though he realizes that it's not likely the pills Mark was selling were the same that caused M&M's LSD freakout, the second Bryon connects both in his head, the fact that drugs in general ruined M&M's life, it causes him to become "very cool" and call the cops on Mark.
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_443b78cd	featureApplicability	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_443b78cd	featureConfidence	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	That Was Then... This Is Now / int_443b78cd
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_44989f6f	type	"Could Have Avoided This!" Plot
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_44989f6f	comment	"Could Have Avoided This!" Plot: When it starts to click for Mark that Bryon was legitimately upset about him selling drugs, he begins pleading that he'll stop if it's bothering him so much. It almost makes you wonder what would've happened if Bryon held off on calling the cops.
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_44989f6f	featureApplicability	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_44989f6f	featureConfidence	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	That Was Then... This Is Now / int_44989f6f
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_453871ec	type	What Could Have Been
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_453871ec	comment	What Could Have Been: invoked At the end of the book, after visiting Mark in prison, and realizing that his former friend, the closest thing he had to a brother, wants him dead, Bryon re-examines everything that had transpired over the course of the book, and gets hung up about wondering how things could've been different:
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_453871ec	featureApplicability	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_453871ec	featureConfidence	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	That Was Then... This Is Now / int_453871ec
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_4e3d253b	type	Downer Ending
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_4e3d253b	comment	Downer Ending: Bryon turns in Mark to the police. Mark goes to prison and become a sociopath due to being betrayed by the only person he loved. Bryon is left wondering if he did the right thing and where he's going to go from here. It gets worse two books later on, in Tex: Mark breaks out of prison, hunts down Bryon, and shoots him... but doesn't kill him, mainly because the thought bored him; instead, he tries to force the titular character to drive him to the state line, only to wind up getting gunned down by the cops when he tries to flee.
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_4e3d253b	featureApplicability	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_4e3d253b	featureConfidence	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	That Was Then... This Is Now / int_4e3d253b
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_4e7c4536	type	Wham Line
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_4e7c4536	comment	Wham Line: Throughout the book, Mark has been earning money to help out around the house, but doesn't explain where he's getting it. Bryon winds up finding out the hard way towards the end of the book, when he tries to find some cigarettes:
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_4e7c4536	featureApplicability	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_4e7c4536	featureConfidence	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	That Was Then... This Is Now / int_4e7c4536
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_6439de78	type	Heroic Sacrifice
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_6439de78	comment	Heroic Sacrifice: Charlie dying in a shootout against two Texans that Bryon and Mark had hustled winds up being the driving force in Bryon's plotline, as it forces him to start growing up.
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_6439de78	featureApplicability	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_6439de78	featureConfidence	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	That Was Then... This Is Now / int_6439de78
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_658f7193	type	Lack of Empathy
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_658f7193	comment	Lack of Empathy: Part of the reason Mark can get away with so much is because he does not care about anyone but Bryon. He completely disregards all authority and is unfeeling and unmoved by things happening.
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_658f7193	featureApplicability	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_658f7193	featureConfidence	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	That Was Then... This Is Now / int_658f7193
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_7335ffa9	type	Grey-and-Gray Morality
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_7335ffa9	comment	Grey-and-Gray Morality: As Mark saw it, him selling drugs was the best way he could get money to help out around the house, as his criminal record meant finding a legitimate job was unlikely, and he didn't even need to take them to sell them.
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_7335ffa9	featureApplicability	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_7335ffa9	featureConfidence	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	That Was Then... This Is Now / int_7335ffa9
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_7870735b	type	From Bad to Worse
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_7870735b	comment	It gets worse two books later on, in Tex: Mark breaks out of prison, hunts down Bryon, and shoots him... but doesn't kill him, mainly because the thought bored him; instead, he tries to force the titular character to drive him to the state line, only to wind up getting gunned down by the cops when he tries to flee.
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_7870735b	featureApplicability	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_7870735b	featureConfidence	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	That Was Then... This Is Now / int_7870735b
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_9d12bbc1	type	Foreshadowing
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_9d12bbc1	comment	Foreshadowing: Early on, Bryon says in his narration that Angela would look beautiful even with all her hair cut off—as Mark actually does later. Mike's story of how he got sent to the hospital (due to being falsely accused of hurting an African American girl, Connie) has two key things of note attached to it: Mike admitting he harbors no hatred over what happened to him, mirroring how Bryon will decide against getting revenge on the Shepards after he gets assaulted in response to Mark cutting Angela's hair, and Mark's own reaction to the story mirrors how he will come to hate Bryon after he gets arrested: "I didn't think much about that statement then. But later I would—I still do. I think about it and think about it until I think I'm going crazy."
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_9d12bbc1	featureApplicability	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_9d12bbc1	featureConfidence	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	That Was Then... This Is Now / int_9d12bbc1
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_a1b141f4	type	My God, What Have I Done?
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_a1b141f4	comment	"I didn't think much about that statement then. But later I would—I still do. I think about it and think about it until I think I'm going crazy."
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_a1b141f4	featureApplicability	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_a1b141f4	featureConfidence	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	That Was Then... This Is Now / int_a1b141f4
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_ab5eea65	type	Dramatic Irony
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_ab5eea65	comment	Dramatic Irony: In the fourth chapter, we learn that the bartender of the bar/pool hall Bryon and Mark frequent, Charlie, had gotten his draft notice. One chapter later, he reveals that the military changed their mind upon discovering his police record. This is also the same chapter he dies.
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_ab5eea65	featureApplicability	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_ab5eea65	featureConfidence	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	That Was Then... This Is Now / int_ab5eea65
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_ad641426	type	Trademark Favorite Food
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_ad641426	comment	Trademark Favorite Food: M&M loves M&Ms, to the point where (per Byron's narration) he practically eats them nonstop, day after day.
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_ad641426	featureApplicability	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_ad641426	featureConfidence	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	That Was Then... This Is Now / int_ad641426
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_b06bbf4b	type	Be Careful What You Wish For
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_b06bbf4b	comment	Be Careful What You Wish For: When Angela is drunk, she expresses a wish to cut off her prized long hair. The boys do exactly that to her as revenge when she's passed out.
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_b06bbf4b	featureApplicability	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_b06bbf4b	featureConfidence	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	That Was Then... This Is Now / int_b06bbf4b
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_b1e8a3b3	type	Coming of Age Story
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_b1e8a3b3	comment	Coming of Age Story: By the end of the book, after everything he experienced (including Charlie dying defending him and Mark from those two Texans, M&M's violently negative reaction to LSD, and having to turn Mark over to the cops for dealing drugs), Bryon comes to realize that there's nothing he wouldn't give more for being able to make sense of life again:
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_b1e8a3b3	featureApplicability	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_b1e8a3b3	featureConfidence	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	That Was Then... This Is Now / int_b1e8a3b3
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_bac9f95d	type	Sweet Tooth
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_bac9f95d	comment	Sweet Tooth: This is the reason why M&M is called "M&M":
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_bac9f95d	featureApplicability	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_bac9f95d	featureConfidence	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	That Was Then... This Is Now / int_bac9f95d
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_d129e13e	type	"Eureka!" Moment
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_d129e13e	comment	"Eureka!" Moment: After discovering the pill container under Mark's mattress, Bryon describes his reaction as a machine going off in his head, "[going] click, click, click[, until] it came up with an answer [he] didn't want."
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_d129e13e	featureApplicability	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_d129e13e	featureConfidence	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	That Was Then... This Is Now / int_d129e13e
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_de7b7cbf	type	Drugs Are Bad
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_de7b7cbf	comment	Drugs Are Bad: If it wasn't painfully obvious, given how two major plot points involve Mark selling drugs in secret, and M&M having a violent reaction to LSD that even a doctor says he'll never fully recover from, that is one of the key messages of the book.
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_de7b7cbf	featureApplicability	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_de7b7cbf	featureConfidence	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	That Was Then... This Is Now / int_de7b7cbf
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_eb8f64a6	type	No Good Deed Goes Unpunished
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_eb8f64a6	comment	No Good Deed Goes Unpunished: Early on in the book, Bryon and Mark come across a boy their mother is friends with, Mike Chambers, in the hospital. As it happens, he was hanging out with a gang by a grocery store, when a black girl, Connie, went in to buy cigarettes. When they start harrassing and threatening her, Mike makes them back off, and offers her a ride home, even making a point of giving her a handkerchief when he sees she's crying. But upon dropping Connie off, a group of people who know Connie assume Mike had something to do with her crying, and pull him out of his car, and accuse him of hurting her. Mike tries to point out he didn't, but when Connie is asked her side of events, she does the following:
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_eb8f64a6	featureApplicability	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_eb8f64a6	featureConfidence	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	That Was Then... This Is Now / int_eb8f64a6
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_f0bb6c11	type	Sailor Earth
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_f0bb6c11	comment	Sailor Earth: Tim and Curly Sheppard had appeared in The Outsiders, with no mention of a sister. Angela appears for the first time in this book.
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_f0bb6c11	featureApplicability	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_f0bb6c11	featureConfidence	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	That Was Then... This Is Now / int_f0bb6c11
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_name	type	ItemName
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_name	comment
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_name	featureApplicability	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_name	featureConfidence	1.0
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	That Was Then... This Is Now / int_name
That Was Then... This Is Now / int_name	itemName	That Was Then... This Is Now

The following is a list of statements referring to the current page from other pages.

That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	Bad Guys Play Pool / int_e9bb8c9c
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	Hustler / int_e9bb8c9c
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	Lack of Empathy / int_e9bb8c9c
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	Sisterhood Eliminates Creep / int_e9bb8c9c
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	Toxic Friend Influence / int_e9bb8c9c
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	Traumatic Haircut / int_e9bb8c9c
That Was Then... This Is Now	hasFeature	Young Adult Literature / int_e9bb8c9c

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