NORMAL PEOPLE by Sally Rooney

FIRST CHAPTER

Analysis

The first chapter of the novel involves the reader into the realistic world of the story. First of all, the reader observes that the chapters are divided according to time, so you can imagine that time is a significant part of the novel. The actions starts in “January 2011”, the beginning of the novel results to be also the beginning of every year. This is a symbolic message that makes the reader think that what you are going to read is common and happens every time in everyone's life.

The narrator is a third person narrator who speaks from the two main characters' point of view. The writer adopts the postmodern narrative technique of the sheet of point of view that provides the reader to read the story exactly in the way the two characters live it. As a result of the narrative choice, the reader seems to be free to make a personal judgment. Indeed, the sheet of point of view drags the reader into characters' minds and makes him involved in the story told. The two protagonists are presented with a mixture of telling and showing. The use of showing allows the reader also to understand the register used in the dialogues that is and informal register.

The two main characters are named Connel and Marianne (in the chapter is presented also a third character that is Lorainne, she is Connel's mother) and they come to life through their dressing styles, everyday routine, reputation and, last but not least, through the way they interact that also reveals their intimate feelings.

The setting is a close space (Marianne's house) that makes a reference with the intimate occasions they live.

By reading the chapter, Connel and Marianne seems to be both teenagers and students from the same school, while Lorainne is Marianne's housewife. Through this information, the reader can understand the different economic situation that the two characters live.

They also seems to be different in personality: while Marianne has got a strong personality, is self-confident and doesn't need other people approval, Connel is insecure, tentative and based his self-confidence on other people's reputation.

Despite Marianne comes from a high social class, at school he reputation is bad. On the contrary, while Connel belongs to the middle class, at school he is very popular.

The breaking-down between high and low cultural form is well expressed in postmodern novel.

An additional narrative technique adopted by the novelist is the self reflexivity that makes the reader know the characters' inner thoughts, involving him into their consciousness and their intimate feelings.

An other postmodern feature of the novel is the irony that the writer embodies in Marianne's behavior.

To conclude, the characters' personality don't come out only through their dialogue but also and mainly through their body languages that often reveals their intimate feelings.

The chapter introduces many argument of discussion that are the newborn relationship between the two characters, Marianne's unusual habits (in irony with the title of the novel: “Normal people”), the role of other people's judgments in someone's life and the domestic and school violence.