Analysis Of The Plague By Albert Camus

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When thousands of rats begin dying and rotting in the streets of Oran, the citizens are bewildered. It is when the peculiar cases of a severe fever begin appearing that Dr. Rieux and Dr. Castel dare to consider that the plague has descended upon the city. For this reason, The Plague by Albert Camus is appropriately named. The novel explores the condition of a society living in constant fear of a disease that almost guarantees death. The title does not only reflect the name of the disease but as well as the event of the plague. The book is a chronicle of the events and the conditions, that urge the reader to hold on to the past.
When the strict quarantine regulations are enforced, nobody is spared by the plague’s wrath. Every person in Oran must fight the plague. Dr. Rieux in particular takes it upon himself to spearhead the battle with the disease. With the onset of the disease Rieux struggles with compelling authorities to enact laws to prevent the spread of the disease. The authorities are complacent however, and do not take action until the disease has overwhelmed the city far too much. Although the odds are much against him, Rieux refuses against giving up in his battle against the disease. Rieux finds himself not only in conflict with the disease, but with his peers and himself. Father Paneloux urges Rieux to give up his desperate battle with the plague, as he believes he is only interfering with God who is trying to cleanse the city. Rieux pauses, and questions not only Paneloux’s word but his own reason for fighting the disease. Rieux realizes he is morally obligated to serve the thousands of ill people and overcomes these conflicts to continue fighting the disease, and overall defeats the plague.
Rieux defeats the plagu...

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...eader sees the use of foreshadowing with the death of the rats. The thousands of dead rats foreshadows the upcoming pestilence in Oran. Camus continues to use the rats to foreshadow humanity throughout the novel as well. Near the end of the book, the rats return to Oran, marking the end of the plague for humans. Paired with foreshadowing is imagery. Camus uses the weather to mark shifts in the disease. “The aspect of the sea, too, changed; its dark-blue translucency had gone and, under the lowering sky, it had steely or silvery glints that hurt the eyes to look at. The damp heat of the spring made everyone long for the coming of the dry, clean summer heat.” (Camus 15) The heat marks a rise in the mortalities in Oran, and when it becomes cooler, deaths begin to reduce. The use of these elements help the reader grasp the sometimes complex ideas presented in the novel.

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