Author: Sally Rooney
Published: 2018
Genre: Contemporary Fiction / Coming-of-Age / Romance
Level: Suitable for A-Level study (some courses), adult & young adult readers
Setting: Ireland (2000s–2010s)
⭐ Why It Matters
Normal People is a modern classic of emotional realism. Through the intimate, tangled relationship between two Irish teenagers into adulthood, Sally Rooney explores love, mental health, class, power, communication, and the awkward beauty of trying to connect with others in a disconnected world.
👥 Main Characters
- Connell Waldron – Intelligent, introverted, working-class boy from a single-parent home. Self-conscious and emotionally repressed.
- Marianne Sheridan – Wealthy, intellectually sharp, emotionally closed-off girl from a troubled upper-class family.
- Lorraine – Connell’s kind and principled mother; she works as a cleaner for Marianne’s family.
- Alan – Marianne’s abusive older brother.
- Various friends, lovers, and classmates appear across the university years.
📚 Plot Summary
🔹 School Days – The Secret Relationship
Connell and Marianne attend the same school in a small Irish town. Connell is popular; Marianne is a loner. Despite their differences, they form a deep emotional and sexual bond.
But Connell, worried about what others will think, keeps their relationship secret. Marianne, hurt by this, distances herself. They separate when they both go off to Trinity College, Dublin.
🔹 University – Power Reversals
At university, Marianne becomes confident and socially admired, while Connell struggles with self-worth and isolation. Their roles are reversed, but they keep reconnecting — sleeping together, then parting.
Their communication remains fractured, often marred by misunderstanding, insecurity, and fear of vulnerability. Marianne endures emotionally unhealthy relationships, seeking pain as validation. Connell battles depression and thoughts of suicide, feeling displaced and ashamed of his background.
🔹 On/Off Love – Intensity Without Resolution
Over the years, Marianne and Connell’s connection deepens and complicates. They hurt each other, support each other, and remain unable to stay apart for long.
Connell finds some creative purpose in writing. Marianne begins to confront the trauma of her family dynamics. In rare moments, they seem almost happy — but fear and emotional distance always return.
🔹 Ending – Letting Go, Maybe
In the final scenes, Connell is offered a creative writing scholarship in New York. Marianne encourages him to go — saying she’ll stay behind.
They’re not together, but they’re not truly apart either. The novel ends with a note of quiet uncertainty and hope, leaving the future ambiguous.
🧠 Themes & Takeaways
- Class & Power – The emotional and social divide between working- and upper-class lives permeates their dynamic.
- Love & Pain – Rooney explores how real love can be messy, imperfect, and shaped by personal wounds.
- Mental Health – Depression, self-worth, trauma, and emotional isolation are honestly depicted.
- Identity & Communication – Who we are in public vs private, and how language often fails us.
- Intimacy – Both physical and emotional closeness are shown as simultaneously healing and terrifying.
