Ordinary People

“This house. Too big for three people.”

Guest hints at the tragedy of Buck’s death from the beginning of the novel. The Jarrett Family must adjust to their new reality as a family of three instead of a family of four. At every turn, there are reminders of the loss they have faced.

“And what is fatherhood anyway? […] Looking for the signs. He knows what to look for now: loss of appetite, sleeplessness, poor school performance.”

Cal Jarrett, who thought he knew what it meant to be a father, finds himself questioning everything after Conrad Jarrett attempts suicide. He is constantly looking back on the past to see if there were signs he missed or if he could have done something differently to prevent it. Cal’s feeling that he missed signs of Conrad’s depression has led to endless worrying that something might happen to him again.

“His old self. That is the image that must be dispelled.”

The Jarrett family strives for some sense of normalcy following Buck’s death and Conrad’s attempted suicide. Cal struggles to accept that Conrad will never be quite the same person he was before these two tragedies. The theme of Grief and Its Many Forms is reinforced in this quote as Guest demonstrates a different kind of grieving: Conrad doesn’t have to literally die for his family to grieve the loss of who he was before the sailing accident.