Normal People

- Hey. - Hi.

- Is everything all right? - Yeah.

I just, uh... haven't had a midnight call from you in a while.

Oh.

Everything's all right? Nothing's happened, no?

No. Uh, nothing's happened.

Okay.

Oh!

Um, I just, uh...

I keep thinking how, um...

how nice to was to see you at the party.

And I, uh, I, I thought...

I, I was thinking, um...

that I've missed having you in my life.

And that maybe it would be nice to like, um... have you in it again?

I know we've not, uh...

we haven't really done the whole friendship thing. But, um...

I guess I was just wondering if we could.

Mm-hmm. Yeah.

Uh, sounds good.

Okay.

- Hi. - Hiya.

- How's things? - Good. You?

Yeah. Good.

This is, uh, this is a nice place.

- My hallway. - Uh, yeah, I know.

The, the hallway's great.

- Ah, come in. - Yeah.

- Hey, everyone. This is Connell. - Hi. How are ya?

- Hi, I'm Joanna. - Connell.

- Nice to meet you. - Good to meet ya. How are ya?

- Sorry, that was a bit formal. - Oh, that's all right.

Do you want some wine, dude? I've got red, or...

Ah, yeah, no, red, red's good. Thank you.

So, Connell, you were at school with the heavenly Marianne?

Ah, Jesus, Peg. And you do English, right?

- Uh, yeah. Yeah. - And Marianne says you write.

Uh, not really.

I so nearly did English. That course looks great.

- Yeah, it's been really good. - Really, really good. Yeah.

Connell, what was Marianne like at school?

Uh, s... smart.

Well, obviously, but what was she like? - Uh...

What, are you scared of her? Are you scared what she'll say

- if you tell us all the truth? - Uh...

Did she go around absolutely annihilating people?

Uh... yeah. She did do a bit of that, all right.

- Knew it. - Thanks for that, Peggy.

Connell, you can sit.

- Oh, sorry. Yes, of course. Please. - Thank you.

Well, I think it's all an act. Deep down, Marianne's just a nice girl.

What about me, Jamie? Am I a nice girl, deep down?

No, you're a nice girl superficially,

and deep down, you are a fucking monster.

- Too true. - So true.

I'm so glad you acknowledge it.

Yeah, well, obviously. But he said I'm nice. I come across nice.

Yeah, I think that was...

- I don't know what to say. - Everyone is gonna say...

Jesus Christ.

- Such a little cheat. - I'm not a cheat. I'm just...

very good at pool. There's a difference.

- Ah, questionable. - Wow. He's modest.

Oh, my God.

You are literally insufferable.

- All right, come on. Who's next? - Uh, Peggy.

You look like you could hold a cue.

- Ooh. - Ooh.

- I'm busy right now. Thanks. - I'll give you a game.

- Yes. Thrash him, please. - Do my best.

Ready to get absolutely destroyed, Gareth?

Are you ready to shut up, Jamie?

- Oh, God. Let Gareth win, please. - Are you ready for this, Marianne?

He thinks it's a Diet Coke ad.

Are you ready for this?

- Are you hating every second? - Didn't say that.

- They're fun. Aren't they? - Sure. Just, uh...

- don't think I understand them, is all. - Understand them?

Yeah, I don't know, it's...

I suppose they're just a bit different from my own friends.

- What, your friends here, or back home? - Mm, both.

Well... I know they can be a bit intense, but, uh...

at the end of the day, they're my friends. It's different for you.

Mm. Yeah.

- You're welcome. - Oh, yes!

Teresa! You look amazing.

- Connell, shot? - Can I grab one of those?

Thanks very much.

- Hi. - Oh, hi.

- Hi, Teresa. - Hi. How are you?

- Good to see you again. - Yeah, you, too.

- Oh, there you go. - Sure thing. Cheers.

- Me as well? - Yeah, you as well.

Ugh.

I said I was coming for one.

- Yeah. So... - Shots right away.

Yeah.

- Hello. - Hi.

Thanks.

- How are you feeling? - Awful.

You left early.

- What did I miss? - More alcohol.

- Bad dancing to bad music. - Is there any gossip?

No, not really. Em...

Oh, uh, Teresa and your pal left pretty soon after you did.

- Looked very cozy. - Mm.

It's funny. I can't picture the two of you guys, uh...

hanging out in school and stuff.

- Well, we didn't, really. - Right. Yeah. That makes sense.

Is he, like...

smart?

- Well, he's smarter than me. - Right.

He's actually the smartest person I've ever met.

Fair enough. We should probably get to the library.

Yeah, I obviously have a lot of work to do to become...

the smartest person you've ever met, so...

- I don't think it's possible. - Ah, do you not think?

- No. - He's the smartest person

you've ever met?

- All right? - Well, well. Walk of fucking shame.

- You all right, Elaine? - I don't think

- I can get you out of this one, Connell. - Good night, then.

- I'm just gonna grab a shower. - I bet you are.

And be out of your way.

- Was it, though? - Good to see you, Elaine.

That man's a dark horse. He'll tell you nothing.

So, rather than looking at modernism solely as a literary phenomenon,

we can regard it as a historical process,

enfolding within and along with other significant processes

and developments of the 1910s and '20s. Thank you.

Oh, a bit of housekeeping. Next week's lecture will be in the Jonathan Swift.

- Hey. - Could I read your Joyce essay?

The one that you got that unprecedented, like, literally impossible mark in.

- Oh. Where'd you hear that? - Talk of the year.

- People are competitive. - Yeah.

Right.

I'm going to the literary society later on.

- Oh, right. - Yeah, they're looking for new

- members, actually. - Ah, okay.

You look really sweet when you're concentrating.

You have a really cute serious face.

God, I'm so distracted by this committee bullshit.

There was another argument last night.

Phil went off on Hannah, and I think she might resign.

It's just... It's just so fucking boring, you know?

I, I really need to finish this before class.

Sure. It's fine.

What's it like?

You're, like, this star.

- You're top of the class. - I don't know what you mean.

Do you enjoy it?

- Being recognized like that? - Ah.

Don't think I'm brilliant or anything like that.

- Mm? - No, I mean it.

It's just... no one else does their reading properly.

They literally show up to discuss a book that they haven't even read,

and then they just bang on about it, like, with complete confidence.

And then... people are fools.

And that bothers you?

I suppose it does a little bit.

No, that's not even it. It's... What upsets me is it's...

is that I... barely know what to say half the time, like...

Like outside of this. Outside of work.