Book Report – Ordinary People by Judith Guest
B. General information
1.
a. Ordinary People
b. The title refers to a an “ordinary” family divided by pain, but bound by their
struggle to heal. They try to fit in all day life again, after a traumatic event,
because life goes on.
c. The title fits the book well, because it is about a typical American family. This
family wants very much to be ordinary people, just like everybody else. They
don’t want to be pitied by their friends because of the loss of their son/brother.
This kind of tragedy could have happened to anyone.
Example: They are ordinary people, after all. Calvin, Chapter 11
2.
a. The author is Judith Guest
b. Judith Guest (1936) was born in Detroit. She is an American novelist and
screenwriter and lives in Minnesota. She studied English and Psychology
and graduated from the University of Michigan. She has been a schoolteacher
and a journalist. She is married and has three children. Ordinary People was
her first novel. Her other novels are Second Heaven, Killing Time in St. Cloud,
Errands and The Tarnished Eye. Her books are often about families dealing
with loneliness or tragic events like the death of a family member.
Source: www.judithguest.com
3.
a. Judith Guest published this book in 1976.
b. This book was significant for that time, because it became one of the great
bestsellers of the late 20th century. The work was winner of the Janet
Heidinger Kafka Prize in July 1976.
In that time some schools banned this book because of the sexually explicit
language and emotional disturbing subjects like the suicide attempt, divorce
and death. The dialogs between the American high school students are in the
teen slang. This book is adapted into a film winning several Oscars including
the Best Picture award in 1980.
4.
a. The genres of the book are domestic novel and psychological fiction.
b. It belongs to the domestic genre, because it is primarily concerned with the
everyday life of a family. It pictures the way of life, customs and manners of a
typical American middle class family. It is about their family dynamics after
traumatic events that took place.
, Ordinary people is one of the many psychological novels to emerge from the
60s and 70s. In that time psychiatry was gaining interest in mainstream
American Culture. It is a psychological novel, because this family struggles to
cope after their son/brother fatal accident. The parents’ marriage deteriorates.
Conrad is also recovering from a suicide attempt and is going to a very friendly
psychiatrist, Dr. Berger.
5.
a. Ordinary People has the combined themes of family relationships,
communication, and mental disorder.
Family relationships: As a family, the Jarrett’s might be expected to love one
another. Unfortunately, Buck's death and Conrad's suicide attempt put their
familial bonds under intense stress. Father is overprotective. Mother is
emotionally distant from Conrad, and from the rest of her family as well.
Communication: this family has big communication issues. The
miscommunication between the parents eventually leads to a separation.
Because at the end Conrad is more willing to show his emotions. The
relationship of Conrad and his father improves, because they open up to each
other.
Mental disorder: Conrad struggles with his mental illness. The mother seems
ashamed for her son's illness, and she is clinging to illusions of perfection. Cal
is overprotective and afraid that his son will try a second suicide attempt.
6.
a. Place: This story takes place in Evanston, a suburb of Chicago, Illinois. (Lake
Forest). People live in large homes. Conrad attends a typical American high
school. After school there are many activities like sport and music.
b. Time: The novel itself covers a period of almost a year, from September to
August 1975. The fatal accident occurred more than a year before the novel
begins. The accident and the events in the months since then are only
gradually filled in as the characters talk or think about them.
Example: In the summer of 1974 the sailing accident takes place, Buck dies,
Jarret survives. September, 30th, 1975, Conrad marks one month since
coming home from the hospital after a suicide attempt (Ch 1). In the epilogue it
is august 1976 and Conrad visits Joe Lazenby. Conrad is finally at peace with
the past.
7.
a. There are two narrators in this story: father and son. The point of view is
called: third-person omniscient. It's pretty significant that mother, Beth never
gets to narrate from her point of view.
The story is mostly told from the point of view of 17-year old Conrad.
Sometimes his thoughts and feelings are followed very closely. Conrad
2
B. General information
1.
a. Ordinary People
b. The title refers to a an “ordinary” family divided by pain, but bound by their
struggle to heal. They try to fit in all day life again, after a traumatic event,
because life goes on.
c. The title fits the book well, because it is about a typical American family. This
family wants very much to be ordinary people, just like everybody else. They
don’t want to be pitied by their friends because of the loss of their son/brother.
This kind of tragedy could have happened to anyone.
Example: They are ordinary people, after all. Calvin, Chapter 11
2.
a. The author is Judith Guest
b. Judith Guest (1936) was born in Detroit. She is an American novelist and
screenwriter and lives in Minnesota. She studied English and Psychology
and graduated from the University of Michigan. She has been a schoolteacher
and a journalist. She is married and has three children. Ordinary People was
her first novel. Her other novels are Second Heaven, Killing Time in St. Cloud,
Errands and The Tarnished Eye. Her books are often about families dealing
with loneliness or tragic events like the death of a family member.
Source: www.judithguest.com
3.
a. Judith Guest published this book in 1976.
b. This book was significant for that time, because it became one of the great
bestsellers of the late 20th century. The work was winner of the Janet
Heidinger Kafka Prize in July 1976.
In that time some schools banned this book because of the sexually explicit
language and emotional disturbing subjects like the suicide attempt, divorce
and death. The dialogs between the American high school students are in the
teen slang. This book is adapted into a film winning several Oscars including
the Best Picture award in 1980.
4.
a. The genres of the book are domestic novel and psychological fiction.
b. It belongs to the domestic genre, because it is primarily concerned with the
everyday life of a family. It pictures the way of life, customs and manners of a
typical American middle class family. It is about their family dynamics after
traumatic events that took place.
, Ordinary people is one of the many psychological novels to emerge from the
60s and 70s. In that time psychiatry was gaining interest in mainstream
American Culture. It is a psychological novel, because this family struggles to
cope after their son/brother fatal accident. The parents’ marriage deteriorates.
Conrad is also recovering from a suicide attempt and is going to a very friendly
psychiatrist, Dr. Berger.
5.
a. Ordinary People has the combined themes of family relationships,
communication, and mental disorder.
Family relationships: As a family, the Jarrett’s might be expected to love one
another. Unfortunately, Buck's death and Conrad's suicide attempt put their
familial bonds under intense stress. Father is overprotective. Mother is
emotionally distant from Conrad, and from the rest of her family as well.
Communication: this family has big communication issues. The
miscommunication between the parents eventually leads to a separation.
Because at the end Conrad is more willing to show his emotions. The
relationship of Conrad and his father improves, because they open up to each
other.
Mental disorder: Conrad struggles with his mental illness. The mother seems
ashamed for her son's illness, and she is clinging to illusions of perfection. Cal
is overprotective and afraid that his son will try a second suicide attempt.
6.
a. Place: This story takes place in Evanston, a suburb of Chicago, Illinois. (Lake
Forest). People live in large homes. Conrad attends a typical American high
school. After school there are many activities like sport and music.
b. Time: The novel itself covers a period of almost a year, from September to
August 1975. The fatal accident occurred more than a year before the novel
begins. The accident and the events in the months since then are only
gradually filled in as the characters talk or think about them.
Example: In the summer of 1974 the sailing accident takes place, Buck dies,
Jarret survives. September, 30th, 1975, Conrad marks one month since
coming home from the hospital after a suicide attempt (Ch 1). In the epilogue it
is august 1976 and Conrad visits Joe Lazenby. Conrad is finally at peace with
the past.
7.
a. There are two narrators in this story: father and son. The point of view is
called: third-person omniscient. It's pretty significant that mother, Beth never
gets to narrate from her point of view.
The story is mostly told from the point of view of 17-year old Conrad.
Sometimes his thoughts and feelings are followed very closely. Conrad
2
