Choices (1986) Timeline Explained – Every Event in Order

Terry wants to make her own decision about the pregnancy because she and Scott have already broken up, and he dumped her before learning about the pregnancy. Additionally, Scott has taken a hard anti-abortion stance, equating abortion with murder, which makes involving him in her decision impossible. Terry sees keeping the baby as potentially derailing her law school dreams and wants autonomy over her body and future.

Foreshadowing: Earlier scenes establish Terry as a determined law student focused on her career, making her reluctance to accept motherhood more understandable.

• terry granger
• scott
• abortion decision
• law school
• ex-boyfriend

Evan Granger opposes abortion when his daughter Terry is pregnant, insisting she may not have the right to choose. However, when his wife Marisa discovers she is pregnant, Evan also opposes her having the baby, saying he doesn't want to be at a high school graduation when he's eighty. This contradiction reveals Evan's underlying control over the family decisions and his discomfort with any unplanned life changes, regardless of his stated moral positions.

Foreshadowing: Early scenes show Evan as a judge who values duty and tradition, but also someone who struggles with change.

• evan granger
• hypocrisy
• abortion stance
• marisa pregnancy
• control

Marisa wants to keep her baby because despite the agreement she and Evan made to not have children, she has quietly hoped for a child of her own. Her pregnancy represents a desire for motherhood that she suppressed for the marriage. When she discovers she's pregnant, she stands firm in wanting to keep the baby, challenging both the earlier pact and Evan's objections.

Foreshadowing: The summary notes Marisa carries 'her own quiet hopes for the future,' hinting at her unspoken desire for a child.

• marisa granger
• pregnancy
• keep baby
• marriage pact
• motherhood

Scott insists on marrying Terry and demands the fetus be carried to term because he has become strongly anti-abortion, equating ending a pregnancy with murder. His position is rooted in his moral beliefs rather than love or commitment, and he seeks to control Terry's decision by threatening to take legal action or force her hand through social pressure.

Foreshadowing: Scott's character is established as someone who dumped Terry and now judges her for her situation.

• scott
• terry
• marriage
• anti-abortion
• pressure

Marisa's pregnancy transforms the conflict from a single daughter's crisis into a three-way family dilemma. It exposes Evan's hypocrisy and forces him to confront his actual beliefs about control versus choice. It also shifts Terry's situation from being the sole focus of moral debate to sharing the spotlight with another pregnant woman in the same household, complicating everyone's positions.

Foreshadowing: The discovery comes after Terry's situation has already polarized the family, creating a second shockwave.

• marisa pregnancy
• family conflict
• evan hypocrisy
• three-way dilemma

When Evan says he doesn't want to be at a high school graduation when he's eighty, he's expressing his concern about being too old to raise a child. At his current age plus the time it would take for a child to graduate high school, he calculates he'd be around eighty. This reveals his practical fears about aging and parenthood rather than moral objections, contrasting sharply with his stance on Terry's pregnancy.

Foreshadowing: Evan's retirement and advanced age are established early in the film.

• evan
• age
• parenthood
• graduation
• concern

Terry faces a conflict between her dream of becoming a lawyer and the reality of an unplanned pregnancy. As a law student, she has worked toward an independent future and a career. A baby would require her to postpone or abandon those plans, creating a fundamental tension between her ambitions and the responsibility of motherhood. This internal struggle drives much of her decision-making process.

Foreshadowing: Terry returns home 'on a break from law school,' establishing her academic path as central to her identity.

• terry
• law school
• baby
• career
• ambition
• decision

The film ends with each character making hard decisions that reflect their values and priorities. Terry must decide whether to continue her pregnancy despite her career goals. Marisa stands firm in wanting to keep her baby against Evan's wishes. Evan is forced to reconcile his stated beliefs with his actual behavior. The resolution is described as bittersweet, with no clear winners, as each person confronts what they're willing to sacrifice.

Foreshadowing: The timeline explicitly states the family 'confronts options and begins to make decisions.'

• resolution
• choices
• evan
• terry
• marisa
• bittersweet ending

The conflict expands beyond Terry's pregnancy because Marisa's surprise pregnancy mirrors and exposes the contradictions in Evan's positions. The household becomes a microcosm of larger debates about autonomy, responsibility, and control. Questions emerge about how much parents should influence their children's bodies and futures, and when convictions about right and wrong become obstacles to compassion. The two pregnancies create layered tension that tests every relationship.

Foreshadowing: The summary explicitly describes the family dynamic as 'a microcosm of larger debates.'

• family conflict
• abortion debate
• autonomy
• control
• larger themes

Marisa's pregnancy is revealed after Terry's situation has already caused maximum family tension, which amplifies its impact dramatically. This timing forces the family to process two major crises simultaneously and prevents any easy resolution to Terry's dilemma. The late reveal also serves to expose Evan's hypocrisy more starkly, as his reactions to both pregnancies reveal his true motivations.

Foreshadowing: The timeline places Marisa's discovery after Terry's conflict has already escalated.

• marisa pregnancy
• timing
• reveal
• dramatic impact
• hypocrisy