Normal People

Marianne had the sense that her real life was happening somewhere very far away, happening without her, and she didn't know if she would ever find out where it was and become part of it.

Marianne and Connel

Karen, Joana, and Lorraine;

Karen

Lorraine

Joana

You were the only one I got along with. Frankly, I don't think Jamie or Peggy are particularly good people. It's not my business if you want to be friends with them; that's just my opinion.

Alan

Denise

She believes Maianne lacks “warmth,” by which she means the ability to beg for love from people who hate her.

Denise gave a tight-lipped smile. If you can't handle a little sibling rivalry, I don't know how you're going to manage adult life, darling, she said.

You know, Marianne is a very vulnerable person. And you did something very exploitative there, and you hurt her. So maybe it's good that you're feeling bad about it.

He had never tried to delude her into thinking she was socially acceptable; she'd deluded herself.

He pitied her in the end, but she also repulsed him.

I don't know what's wrong with me, says Marianne. I don't know why I can't be like normal people.

I'm used to it, she says. I've been lonely my whole life, really.