Quote 1
"Maybe the two different worlds we live in weren't so different. We saw the same sunset." (3.18)
Cherry Valance gets Pony thinking about nature – something he already loves – as a connecting factor that doesn't care about class or wealth.
Quote 2
"Ponyboy… I mean… if I see you in the hall at school or something and so hi, well it's not personal or anything, but…[…] We couldn't let our parents see us with you all. You're a nice boy and everything…" (3.62)
Ouch! Cherry's comment shows just how committed she is to the rules and norms of her social circles, from peers to parents. It also suggests she's under lots and lots of pressure to be loyal to her group and conform to those rules, even as she wants to break them.
Quote 3
"I could fall in love with Dallas Winston. […] I hope I never see him again or I will." (3.65)
Cherry likes dangerous, violent, good-looking guys, regardless of how much money they have. Why do you think she shares this info with Pony, and how might it make him feel?
Quote 4
"Things are rough all over." (2.122)
This is what Cherry Valance tells Pony when they first meet. She's reminding him that everybody has problems that isolate them. She's right, but some problems are worse than others. At this point, she probably doesn't understand just how violently the Greasers are persecuted by the Socs.
Quote 5
"[Bob] had something that marked him different, maybe a little better than the crowd. Do you know what I mean?" (8.97)
I did. Cherry saw the same thing in Dallas. (8.98)
Cherry sees something special in both of these violent, dangerous boys. Does this tell us she has a generous and accepting heart? That she's fooled by appearances? Is she deep or shallow?
Quote 6
"I bet you watch sunsets, too." She was quiet for a minute while I nodded. "I used to watch them, too, before I got so busy…" (3.17)
By sharing her love of sunsets, and recognizing Pony as a sunset-lover too, Cherry's spurring his personal education. Learning to look at connecting factors as well as dividing ones broadens Pony's understanding of the world.
Quote 7
"It's not my idea of a good time to sit in a drive-in and watch people get drunk" (2.71)
Cherry has decided to keep alcohol out of her life, even if it means going to the movies without her boyfriend. Later in the novel, she blames alcohol for Bob's violence. Do you think she's right?