you hit the spot with this one! Rooney’s works are meant to be read critically for the full impact. Her books have minimal plot and are more about societal observations. And at the core of Rooney’s work is her critique of social class as pointed out. I think the problem is that a lot of people who pick her novels up because they are cool or popular don’t have experience of a working class background or at least read through that critical lens. Rooney’s works are not meant to be enjoyable, they’re meant to be enlightening. To not enjoy the novel because it’s not like the series just emphasises this class divide because not being middle class if difficult and not fun! Thank you for writing this 💛
i love this leah!! i think the distinction of normal people as an irish novel is sooooo important and since so many people discovered NP from tiktok or romance recs, it's crazy how quickly the irish context is swept under the rug! i'm so glad you wrote this!
I personally didn’t like Normal People. But that does not mean that I believe people who liked it or the protagonists needs therapy. They were just mere humans. As the title itself suggests they were indeed Normal People.
exactly and that’s such a fair response! in no way do people have to like every book they read, but i do think it’s still important to understand the author’s intentions.
I loved this book and I love this post. I truly feel that people who didn't enjoy "Normal People" just don't get it. Marianne and Connell's inability to make it work is so much deeper than a lack of communication, or a need to be more open about their feelings. It makes me sad that for many, analyzing literature stops when they leave the classroom. I read "Normal People" for the first time last month (really late, I know) and I think about Marianne and Connell every single day.
mcnally had this book shelved under “irish literature” and i noticed it as an important distinction as opposed to classifying it with “fiction” as many bookstores do
This is such great context. It also seems like a fundamentally wrong way to read a story, though! Stories aren’t about what people SHOULD do. They’re about what they DO do. If these were characters who were likely to get help (which they aren’t, as you explained so well) they would be different characters and this would be a different story. THIS story is about characters who don’t, and you can’t be a good-faith reader and get mad at a given story for not being about people it isn’t about doing things they didn’t do.
I grew up super conservative reading a lot of stories in which everyone did what they were supposed to and let me tell you, that is not the stuff of great literature
Excellent read. as a lapsed Catholic, I definitely picked up on the Catholic influence lingering while reading but had no idea how deep this ran in Irish society. loved loved loved this
as an Irish person, I love the realistic analysis of Irish culture in this! I always fear the Catholic influence will be overstated but I think this hit the nail on the head.
leah this is literally the most well written thing EVER i will be restacking sentences from this for the next week and thinking about it....i love you and your big brain so much
My issue with Normal People was the shallow and trivialised treatment of Marianne as compared to Connell. Marianne’s struggles were just as much as Connell’s, if not more, but the overwhelming shift of the narrative towards Connell, made it unappealing for me. One fully formed character and the one created just to support him felt and still feels sexist and unfeminist to me, like the product of a deeply rooted repression.
this is a fair criticism! both connell and marianne are the protagonists of the novel, but connell’s perspectives do take up a larger portion of the book. i don’t think it’s sexist necessarily, but i do agree it would’ve been nice for marianne’s character to be built upon a little more. i think this is something the show does really well though.
I found this very helpful context for a number of (fantastic!) modern works by Irish authors, eg the Bee Sting by Paul Murray and Beautiful World, Where Are You by Sally Rooney
Really enjoyed reading this! Nodding my head along with each line. Of course we can all have our preferences, but these flippant criticisms irk me too - as you say, it comes across as though there’s a lack of depth to the thinking behind it!
honestly, i was one of those people who read the book and felt so frustrated that they wouldn't just communicate. it made me so frustrated that i struggled to enjoy the book. this is making me realize there was a lot of context i didn't have and makes me realize i may have a lot more appreciation for this book than i thought. thank you!
Such an interesting piece! I liked the book but I’ve never really considered or even thought about the Irish context so you’ve given me some nice food for thought. Definitely want to give NP a reread now, haha.
you hit the spot with this one! Rooney’s works are meant to be read critically for the full impact. Her books have minimal plot and are more about societal observations. And at the core of Rooney’s work is her critique of social class as pointed out. I think the problem is that a lot of people who pick her novels up because they are cool or popular don’t have experience of a working class background or at least read through that critical lens. Rooney’s works are not meant to be enjoyable, they’re meant to be enlightening. To not enjoy the novel because it’s not like the series just emphasises this class divide because not being middle class if difficult and not fun! Thank you for writing this 💛
agree with everything you said here! it really is a novel about social class issues and how it impacts your life and relationships
i love this leah!! i think the distinction of normal people as an irish novel is sooooo important and since so many people discovered NP from tiktok or romance recs, it's crazy how quickly the irish context is swept under the rug! i'm so glad you wrote this!
thank you sarah! 🫶🏼🫶🏼
I personally didn’t like Normal People. But that does not mean that I believe people who liked it or the protagonists needs therapy. They were just mere humans. As the title itself suggests they were indeed Normal People.
exactly and that’s such a fair response! in no way do people have to like every book they read, but i do think it’s still important to understand the author’s intentions.
I loved this book and I love this post. I truly feel that people who didn't enjoy "Normal People" just don't get it. Marianne and Connell's inability to make it work is so much deeper than a lack of communication, or a need to be more open about their feelings. It makes me sad that for many, analyzing literature stops when they leave the classroom. I read "Normal People" for the first time last month (really late, I know) and I think about Marianne and Connell every single day.
YES continuing to analyse and engage critically with the literature you read is so important, and also just fun!
mcnally had this book shelved under “irish literature” and i noticed it as an important distinction as opposed to classifying it with “fiction” as many bookstores do
a very important distinction! a lot of irish literature historically has its own traditions and writing styles.
This is such great context. It also seems like a fundamentally wrong way to read a story, though! Stories aren’t about what people SHOULD do. They’re about what they DO do. If these were characters who were likely to get help (which they aren’t, as you explained so well) they would be different characters and this would be a different story. THIS story is about characters who don’t, and you can’t be a good-faith reader and get mad at a given story for not being about people it isn’t about doing things they didn’t do.
very true, focusing on what WE think the characters should do / act like defeats the whole point, we’re not the ones telling the story.
I grew up super conservative reading a lot of stories in which everyone did what they were supposed to and let me tell you, that is not the stuff of great literature
Excellent read. as a lapsed Catholic, I definitely picked up on the Catholic influence lingering while reading but had no idea how deep this ran in Irish society. loved loved loved this
thank you for reading! 🤍
as an Irish person, I love the realistic analysis of Irish culture in this! I always fear the Catholic influence will be overstated but I think this hit the nail on the head.
thank you for reading! 🫶🏼
oh leah, only you can convince me to reread normal people!
do it! i’m very tempted to re-watch the show too
leah this is literally the most well written thing EVER i will be restacking sentences from this for the next week and thinking about it....i love you and your big brain so much
omg elle thank you 😭😭
My issue with Normal People was the shallow and trivialised treatment of Marianne as compared to Connell. Marianne’s struggles were just as much as Connell’s, if not more, but the overwhelming shift of the narrative towards Connell, made it unappealing for me. One fully formed character and the one created just to support him felt and still feels sexist and unfeminist to me, like the product of a deeply rooted repression.
this is a fair criticism! both connell and marianne are the protagonists of the novel, but connell’s perspectives do take up a larger portion of the book. i don’t think it’s sexist necessarily, but i do agree it would’ve been nice for marianne’s character to be built upon a little more. i think this is something the show does really well though.
I found this very helpful context for a number of (fantastic!) modern works by Irish authors, eg the Bee Sting by Paul Murray and Beautiful World, Where Are You by Sally Rooney
yes! irish authors have their own writing traditions which i think is so fascinating
Really enjoyed reading this! Nodding my head along with each line. Of course we can all have our preferences, but these flippant criticisms irk me too - as you say, it comes across as though there’s a lack of depth to the thinking behind it!
exactly! it’s just too easy to brush something off with simple reasons like that
honestly, i was one of those people who read the book and felt so frustrated that they wouldn't just communicate. it made me so frustrated that i struggled to enjoy the book. this is making me realize there was a lot of context i didn't have and makes me realize i may have a lot more appreciation for this book than i thought. thank you!
thank you for reading! 🫶🏼
I left the book halfway, but after reading your piece I am going to pick it up again! 🙂
hope you have a different reading experience this time!
Such an interesting piece! I liked the book but I’ve never really considered or even thought about the Irish context so you’ve given me some nice food for thought. Definitely want to give NP a reread now, haha.
it’s definitely a good one to reread after learning a bit more background info!