Sisyphus was given a punishment by the gods, to push a rock up a hill, only to have it fall down on him again. Mersault is a person accused of murder who has spent over a year in jail. What both these characters have come to realize is that they are forced to live in these situations created by the gods, therefore they might as well enjoy or get used to them.
Mersault is forced to live in a cell, without his cigarettes, and with limited visitation rights. When this happens, Mersault recalls what his mother told him. She said, ”One gets used to everything.” When
Mersault realizes he is not going to get out of jail, he becomes indifferent, just like he always does, and accepts his situation, searching for any positive aspects to his incarceration. He defies punishment by accepting his situation and enjoying himself in jail.
Therefore, the whole point of Mersault going to jail is obliterated.
When Mersault is condemned to death, he does not act surprised, although he wishes he did not have to die. After a while he also accepts that. It does not matter to him that he is dying, so long as he is dying for a purpose. Sisyphus is damned for eternity to roll a rock up a hill. If he were to view his fate decreed upon him as punishment, for the rest of forever, then he would only sicken an already terminally ill situation
(speaking metaphorically of course). Sisyphus starts to find meaning in his work, starts to enjoy his work, almost to take pride in his work, like a true laborer.
Mersault is like Sysiphus, in many ways. The only real notable difference is that Sisyphus has been punished by the gods, whereas
Mersault does not believe in god. Mersault is indifferent to his situation, as is Sisyphus, as apparent from Camus’ description. Mersault and Sisyphus both expressed a love for life (Mersault’s heart jumped at the idea of being pardoned, Sisyphus is being “punished” due to his desire to stay in the real world). And most importantly, Mersault and
Sisyphus both defy their detractors. They overcome their rulers.
Mersault does not do it to prove anything to anybody. He just does it because it would be pointless to act any other way. With Sisyphus he can hold his head higher than the gods now, his work has ceased to be
... of him making it into a sad horror story, he finds death to be a joke. He doesn't really care where he is buried but is extremely cynical when he ask that after being dead, will he still feel the rain?
When he writes, “I went to look for him, but at the same moment this thought came into my mind, “Don’t let me find him! If only I could get rid of this dead weight, so that I could use all my strength to struggle for my own survival, and only worry about myself”” (pg.101) This is one of the first times you see that the way he has changed mentally because in the beginning of the story, the only thing he cared about was keeping up with his father. This shows that he really doesn’t care about anything besides own survival anymore. Later when his father dies he writes “I did not weep, and it pained me that I could not weep … And, in the depths of my being in the recesses of my weakened conscience, could I have searched it, I might find something like – Free at last!” In this you see that he thought of his father like he was a burden and that he was happy he no longer had to look after him. Also he says that he could not weep over his father’s death when his father used to be the only thing that kept him going, and he never wanted to be separated from his
In the essay The Myth of Sisyphus, Albert Camus attempts to give answers to some tough questions. He wants to know if life is worth living or how we can make it worth living, as well as whether or not it is possible to live with certainty. To him, the absurd man realizes that life is absurd after his expectations are repeatedly contradicted and he realizes the world is an unreasonable place that cannot be explained. These unreasonable expectations of certainty ultimately cause many absurd men to think that life is not worth living when they are faced with what they feel is a hopeless situation. Camus offers an alternative to the problem the absurd man faces and it is not suicide or “Philosophical suicide”. Other philosophers commit philosophical suicide by suggesting that there is enough evidence, whatever it maybe, that one should survive on hope alone or make some leap. But Camus thinks that if a person is honest and truthful to themselves that they know they are nothing more than “a stranger” in this world. So how does one live a life worth living when faced with absurdity?
...he still has family - his uncle - he gets hope. There are more and more people who he cares for now.
In the short story “The Reach,” Stephen King addresses the fact that in life there is a constant fear of death, but when confronted with it is easier to accept when someone has seen many deaths and knows that they are dying themselves. The narrator of the story knows that she is dying and, being an elder, has seen many deaths. We reach this conclusion when she questions the love she has for others and no longer cries when others die around her anymore. She has seen many deaths in the years and can only accept that death is inevitable and a part of life. Mostly everyone she grew up with has passed on already.
From past experiences in ones life, whether it be the death of a long aged gold fish to a deceased elder, one knows the pain and suffering that goes on afterwards. For one to finally move on and continue life without a tear in their eyes may take a while, yet having that immense step means to put the emotions aside and live life. Hamlet's father was murdered, and he soon sees his mother move on so quickly and marries his uncle, to continue being the queen. Hamlet's love for his father does not fade away within a two month span like his mother; he refuses to accept the fact that his father was killed, instead of a natural death. Because of this, Hamlet does not know what to do with his life. He mentions "O, that this too too sallied flesh would melt,/ Or that the Everlasting had not fixed/ His canon `against self-slaughter" (129-132). Immediately does Hamlet questions the existence of his own life, as he feels the need to melt and disappear, ultimately referring to suicide. The problem we face...
successful, or rich, or famous, or healthy he is; he will die. There is nothing externally that is
Death is not a lover.” (57). As it is shown the woman feels hopeless so she kills herself. Although she is not the only one who wishes to die. The little boy admits to his father that he no longer wants to live in such a cruel world. “After a while he said: You mean you wish that you were
One of the major themes of Homer’s Odyssey is the importance of cunning over strength. This also happens to be the case with Odysseus and his long ten year journey home from fighting in Troy. Odysseus uses his intelligence over strength to ‘fight’ through tough times and bring himself home to Ithaca. Odysseus uses his intelligence when he has his men tie him down while passing the Sirens, so he himself will be able to hear their beautiful song, but not be entranced by their singing. He also uses cunning to escape from the Cyclops’ cave without being harmed. He then uses his cunning by storing away all of the armory, shields, and knives from the suitors so he is able to kill them easily.
Burdens are bore by people within their everyday lives, and within even the simplest of lifestyles. The example made by Albert Camus in The Myth of Sisyphus uses Sisyphus to exemplify how life can be empty for some and viewed as futile and while this presents challenges, it is what one does with the difficulty that results in what the quality of life may be. Within this depiction, Camus presents the concept of absurdity, which can be viewed as a part of the essence in human existence and should be taken as a challenge to be continued. Sisyphus, although repeating an endless retribution, finds the ability to look past this punishment and forward towards a “silent joy” that allows him to live in an uncertain state. In defining the interest, which
The Myth of Sisyphus is the most revealing commentary on Albert Camus’ reasoning. Defining the absurd as arising from the meeting of two elements: the absence of meaning in the natural world, and mankind’s inherent desire to seek out meaning. The author projects his philosophy of devoid from religious belief and middle-class morality through an unremarkable protagonist throughout the novel. Sisyphus, an absurd hero due to embracing his ludicrous task and chooses to find meaning in rolling a huge stone uphill only to have it to roll back to be pushed up the hill. The face of the Absurd feels that the world becomes strange and inhuman. No longer recognizing the beauty in nature but instead, views the world for what it is – strange and incoherent.
...er continue living in an unjust and cruel world, even though they are capable of taking the easy way out. He brings the question of the afterlife for the main reason why humans don’t commit suicide.
...ven a choice few have: to save himself from certain death or to continue on to gain immortal glory.
Toward the end of the semester we read Albert Camus version of the Myth of Sisyphus.