Ordinary People

Detailed Summary & Analysis

Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 Chapter 16 Chapter 17 Chapter 18 Chapter 19 Chapter 20 Chapter 21 Chapter 22 Chapter 23 Chapter 24 Chapter 25 Chapter 26 Chapter 27 Chapter 28 Chapter 29 Chapter 30 Chapter 31 Epilogue

Themes

All Themes Mental Disorder Fate vs. Responsibility "Family" and Love Body/Mind Duality

Quotes

Characters

All Characters Conrad Jarrett Calvin (Cal) Jarrett Beth Jarrett Dr. Berger (Joe) Lazenby

Symbols

All Symbols Color Water Music Religious Imagery

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Ordinary People

Judith Guest

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Introduction

Plot Summary

Detailed Summary
& Analysis

Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Epilogue

Themes

All Themes
Mental Disorder
Fate vs. Responsibility
"Family" and Love
Body/Mind Duality

Quotes

Characters

All Characters
Conrad Jarrett
Calvin (Cal) Jarrett
Beth Jarrett
Dr. Berger
(Joe) Lazenby

Symbols

All Symbols
Color
Water
Music
Religious Imagery

Theme Wheel

Ordinary People Study Guide

It's easy to cite LitCharts for use in academic papers and reports.

MLA

Brannum, Barry. "Ordinary People." LitCharts. LitCharts LLC, 15 Dec 2013. Web. 15 Dec 2019.

Chicago

Brannum, Barry. "Ordinary People." LitCharts LLC, December 15, 2013. Retrieved December 15, 2019. https://www.litcharts.com/lit/ordinary-people.

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