‘Normal People’ by Sally Rooney is a story of love in the setting of late 20th century Ireland. Love is at the core of the book and the TV show adaptation.
Marianne and Connell, the major characters in ‘Normal People’, stay connected from high school to college, sometimes dating each other and sometimes seeing other people. The dynamics of their relationship continuously shift with time.
During the high-school years in their small-town of Sligo, Marianne portrays a socially awkward and brilliant introvert. Connell is athletic and popular among his peers. Girls love him, guys want to be friends with him. They are the complete opposites in the eyes of people.
When they start college in Dublin, the roles change. Marianne gets popular given her status and intellect. She lives in a fashionable flat and throws parties there. Connell, however, feels trapped between financial struggles and finding his vocation. He is almost invisible in the big city. And they are once again opposites according to other people.
Regardless of what others think, Connell and Marianne share a powerful bond though. For each other, they are not opposing; they are complementary.
Thinking about these changing dynamics and their everlasting relationship, one wonders if love can exist under the capitalist skies.
Interdependence and vulnerability
In today’s literature and movies, independent values and personal achievements are favorable. People grow individually while sharing a relationship. Rooney, however, brings in a different angle. Marianne and Connell are not perfect; they are very much human with their flaws and psychological problems, and they grow with each other.
The interdependence of their relationship is unusual and can be linked to socialist values. Marianne and Connell are two plants sharing the same soil as Marianne suggests. This is a rebellion against individualism and thoughts surrounding personal happiness.
When they come together, there is no status or materialism. Marianne and Connell connect with their naked souls. If they are in different countries, they prefer letters over modern means of communication.
If Marianne falls, Connell picks her up. If Connell has a breakdown, Marianne cheers him up. Finding their path in life, they rely on each other and this union. Regardless of what other people see, they are equal in their relationship. With these features, it resembles a socialist love.
Suppression and miscommunication
While Marianne and Connell have a powerful connection and sense of equality, their backgrounds also hurt them rather silently. Even though they come together as a union, Connell feels suppression because of limited financial resources, and Marianne is exhausted by her family’s expectations. Their burdens related to societal norms intervene in their relationship.
Especially when Connell cannot pay his rent in Dublin and feels too proud to ask for help from Marianne, the problems heighten. He says that he needs to go back, Marianne interprets the situation as a break-up. The simple lack of communication takes a toll on their relationship.
The lack of communication of that moment and some others is parallel to the characters’ vulnerabilities. Connell feels vulnerable because he is not well off, and Marianne feels as if she is never enough. Both of these feelings are rooted in the expectations of modern society and thus capitalism.
Love exists as a rebellion
Despite their struggles, Marianne and Connell maintain their relationship over years. Distance or money cannot break their bond. They are two people as one rebelling against what everyone expects.
It is uncertain to what extent capitalism brings them together or tears them apart. But, their story with all its humanity proves that love exists. It is a communion and rebellion. They stay in love through interdependence.
Then, if modern love truly exists, what does it take for us to unite and be vulnerable? Do we choose to remain alone to be independent or to put our fears aside to love one another and coexist?
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Previously published on “Hello, Love”, a Medium publication.
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Photo credit: Masaaki Komori on Unsplash
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