Throughout life people undergo major changes in their personality and attitude. These changes are affected by the events in their lives and the relationships they have with other people. Many people define who they are by the people around them, their friends and family. The novel, Ordinary People by Judith Guest, shows the truth in this. During the novel, many people come into contact with Conrad and greatly affect his life. Throughout the novel, the relationships that Conrad has with many of the other characters in the story cause him to change his behavior and attitude toward life.
             In the beginning of the novel Conrad has just returned from a hospital for attempted suicide. Right away, Conrad finds it difficult to wake up in the morning because he is afraid that only anxiety and failure will be waiting for him. He isn't used to living at home, without the daily hospital routine that he had become used to. He tries to make up his own routine, by going back to what everything was like before his trip to the hospital. However, he is unable to. He is not the same person that he was before. He is continuously reminded of his older brother's death, and because of this, he breaks his friendship with his old best friend, Lazenby. Also, Conrad is having a difficult time dealing with his feelings. He keeps all of his emotions bottled up inside of him, trying to make it look like everything is okay. He is constantly trying to satisfy his feelings while making things look good to satisfy his parents.
             Through talking to Dr. Berger, Conrad is learning how to deal with his emotions and begins to heal. Conrad tells Berger about how he doesn't want to swim anymore. When Berger asks him why he doesn't just quit then he says he doesn't want to quit because it will look bad. "It'd look so stupid. I go to him and beg for one more chance. Then, I swim for two months and quit again. Can't you see how stupid...