Meursault, An Anti-Hero In The Stranger, By Albert Camus

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Camus generates a man who is so honest that his honesty is his only admirable trait. Meursault, an anti-hero is an inconspicuous and nonchalant man who does not believe in god – though he believes in physical pleasures. Such physical pleasures are taken away as he is imprisoned for murder. Meursault only aware of his previous liberties and happiness after his imprisonment. The notion of existentialism is used throughout The Stranger to expose the true and cold nature of humans – Meursault is the perfect example of the truth in the face of society.
Book Two opens to Meursault in prison, tranquilly surveying the judicial procedures unfolding around him. Though objecting to an appointed lawyer, the court appoints one. The lawyer then refers to …show more content…

“Nevertheless, I answered that I had pretty much lost the habit of analyzing myself and that it was hard for me to tell him what he wanted to know. I probably did love Maman, but that didn't mean anything…I explained to him…that my nature was such that my physical needs often got in the way of my feelings.”Meursault is not unable to experience deep, complex relationships with others he simply refutes the notion that such relationships have any value over physical pleasures. All his relationships are based on superficial impressions rather than deep-felt emotional ties. His nonchalant nature enables him to treat others without feeling a sense of duty or loyalty towards them: they are only somebody, never an individual. Only when others purposefully seek his discomfort does he recognize that “to feel less alone, I …show more content…

He highlights – in his view – that nothing matters because we all live and die: what we do it not important. "Do you really love this earth as much as all that?" [the chaplain] murmured. I didn't answer. …"No, I refuse to believe you! I know that at one time or another you've wished for another life." I said of course I had, but it didn't mean any more than wishing to be rich, to be able to swim faster, or to have a more nicely shaped mouth…[he] wanted to know how I pictured this other life. Then I shouted at him, "One where I could remember this life!"…He tried to change the subject by asking me why I was calling him 'monsieur' and not 'father.' That got me mad, and I told him he wasn't my father. Meursault stubbornly refuses to accept religion's 'higher meanings' and insists on the importance of physical experience. His steadfast nihilism frustrates those who try to manipulate his ways of thinking, even perceiving Meursault’s perspective as a threat to their own ideas, painting Meursault as a threat to the social normality’s. The strain between life’s meaninglessness and others persistent efforts to levy their own view highlights Camus’ Absurdism; humans must accept the utter indifference the world takes on human life. Meursault is the absurd hero that Camus requires both figuratively and

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