Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
The Character of Meursault in The Outsider
Essay of meursaults development in the stranger
Meursault as an anti hero in The Stranger
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Recommended: The Character of Meursault in The Outsider
Meursault in The Stranger is the embodiment of Camus’ ideas in the Myth of Sisyphus and The Absurd Hero. In both the Myth of Sisyphus and The Absurd Hero, Camus embodies the idea of absurdism, a philosophical belief that human beings exist in a purposeless world. Albert Camus believed that individuals should embrace the absurd conditions of human existence while also searching for their meaning. Camus expresses that human life is only understood at the point of death. Through the ideas of Camus, Meursault possess this belief that life is futile and lives in the moment and accepts the fate he encounters during his trial.
In The Stranger, Meursault lacks morals and enjoys the present pleasures(coffee and cigarettes) in life. As previously stated, he lives in the moment. He does whatever he wants to do and lives as honest as he can as well as following the same routine daily without
He feels free. He reflected on the life he lived and realizes the importance of his life. Rather than feeling regret or remorse for killing the Arab, he accepts his fate. Meursault is able to face death as he becomes aware of it and finally receives a visible perception of his own life and through this, as stated, accepted his fate. Death stands no importance to Meursault but, in value, it does. Killing the Arab did not drastically change the world. It surely did not make a difference in the universe. Meursault knows he deserves the execution, but is fine with that. He shows that death is his freedom. Meursault looks up to the sky, sees the stars, and says that he was happy. Camus absurdist philosophy of accepting death is confirmed through Meursault when faced with execution and accepting death, while also becoming content. There is no division or morality of right and wrong, or a sense of it either. We all live while searching for meaning but in the end, it is irrelevant because we all
The Stranger written by Albert Camus is an absurdist novel revolving around the protagonist, Meursault. A major motif in the novel is violence. There are various places where violence takes place and they lead to the major violent act, which relates directly to the theme of the book. The major violent act of killing an Arab committed by Meursault leads to the complete metamorphosis of his character and he realizes the absurdity of life.
A man by the name of Thornton Wilder said, “We live in what is, but we find 1,000 ways not to face it,” and to me this quote is saying we live in a world full of tragedies and emotion, but always find a way to stay away from them. In, The Stranger, Meursault suffers from his mother’s death and struggles with finding happiness. This attitude sets up a theme in the story. How he avoids emotions to serious events causes Meursault to think about how a person's life isn’t really important in society. Meursault refuses to think about anything such as fate or God and only believes what he can see. He can only use logic. Whether it is his mother's death, Marie's need to prove her love, or even his killing of the Arab, nothing actually affects his emotions. This quote applies to Meursault because he is a bothered man who can never face his feelings.
In The Stranger, Albert Camus describes the life of the protagonist, Meursault, through life changing events. The passage chosen illustrates Meursault’s view during his time in prison for killing the Arab. In prison, one can see the shifts in Meursault’s character and the acceptance of this new lifestyle. Camus manipulates diction to indicate the changes in Meursault caused by time thinking of memories in prison and realization of his pointless life. Because Camus published this book at the beginning of World War II, people at this time period also questions life and death similar to how Meursault does.
At first glance, Meursault could be seen as an evil man. He shows no grief at his mother’s funeral, worrying more about the heat. His first reaction to his mother’s death is not sadness, it is a matter-of-fact, unemotional acceptance of the situation. “Maman died today. Or yesterday maybe, I don’t know.” Later on in the story, Meursault kills an Arab on the beach, and his only concern is that he has ruined the calm, pleasant day he was having. When he is in jail, the magistrate comes in an attempt to save Meursault’s soul, but instead of cooperating, Meursault simply confounds the magistrate by refusing to believe in God. Even at his trial, Meursault doesn’t show any remorse for having killed the Arab. Based on this evidence alone, how can we not see Meursault as evil?
Society believes Meursault as an emotionless killer or a stranger to society’s morality, Meursault then can’t explain why he couldn’t feel any emotion, drive, or thoughts of remorse for his murder. Lastly, when the chaplain visits Meursault against his wishes, this scene shows how society expects everyone to ask for forgiveness from God when near death. Meursault then thinks it is absurd and refuses to believe it because he says it’s ridiculous and there’s no time at all.
Albert Camus’ The Stranger offers one man’s incite into the justice of society. Monsieur Meursault, the main protagonist in the novel, believes that morals and the concept of right and wrong possess no importance. This idea influences him to act distinctively in situations that require emotion and just decision, including feeling sadness over his mother’s death, the abuse of a woman, and his killing of an innocent man. In these situations Meursault apathetically devoids himself of all emotion and abstains from dealing with the reality in front of him. When confronted by the court over his murder, he reiterates his habitual motto on life that nothing matters anyways, so why care? His uncaring response inflames the people working within the
Albert Camus is a skillful writer noted for showing aspects of culture and society through the depiction of his characters. In The Stranger, Camus illustrates the existentialism culture and how that comes into play in the life of the protagonist Meursault. The Stranger, as suggested by the title, is a novel revolving around the protagonist, Meursault, who is a stranger to the French-Algerian society as he challenges its values. Camus vividly portrays Meursault’s journey through the use of imagery, irony, and symbolism. In The Stranger, Albert Camus uses the minor character, Raymond Sintes, to illustrate the contrasting nature of Meursault and how his friendship with Raymond leads to his downfall.
Meursault is truthful to himself and others throughout The Stranger. Unlike most, he doesn’t feel it necessary to lie in order to make others feel better. He is truthful, regardless of whether or not the truth may hurt. For example, in chapter four Marie asked Meursault if he loved her. Instead of lying to her or giving a vague answer Meursault told her that he probably didn’t love her, but it wasn’t important anyway.
In his works, The Stranger (The Outsider) and Myth of Sisyphus, Camus addresses the consciousness of Meursault and Sisyphus through their fate.
...everyone is surrounded by death. Camus explains that life isn’t about what is not envisioned, but it’s about what is evident. Meursault’s feeling of apathy is directly related to his conviction that life lacks necessary order and meaning, “As if that blind rage had washed me clean, rid me of hope…I opened myself to the gentle indifference of the world,” as he awaits his impending death, he finally recognizes that life is the most complex entity in the universe and one only has one life to live, so live it wisely (122). In the end, Meursault changed spiritually because he didn’t concentrate as much on the physical world because while he was in prison, he thought about life’s gifts and (although still atheist) realizes that faith in yourself and life is very important. There is also some irony here; he finally realizes the meaning of live just as he awaits his death.
After his realization, Meursault sees that his mother too began to live in the last of her days. He understands “why at the end of her life she had taken a fiance, why she had played at beginning again” (122). Meursault wants to go out with a bang just like his mother had. Even in a place where life has no purpose “evening was a wistful respite” (122). The time before death is a short period to really live life, finding rest and relief before death comes and wipes it away. Meursault learns a lesson from this and then understands what he must do to give his life purpose. He feels “ready to live it all again too. . .and opened [himself] to the gentle indifference of the world” (122). The essence he used to create himself was everything that went against the beliefs of society. He wants people to “greet [him] with cries of hate” because this validates the fact that he is not like them. Camus uses absurdism to lead Meursault to find himself, not what others want of him, but what he wants. In the actions Meursault took to break free from conformity did he gain true
“But from the moment he knows, his tragedy begins.” Meursault is not unlike Sisyphus. In the novel, The Stranger, by Albert Camus, we watch this character change from a carefree man who loves being alive and free to a man who is imprisoned for a meaningless murder he commits but who eventually finds happiness in his fate.
Obviously, his murder of the Arab is a sin, one that results in his arrest and eventual execution. Looking deeper into Meursault’s psyche, though, the reader sees that he cares little for human life. In fact, upon hearing about his mother’s death, he comments that it “doesn’t mean anything” (Camus 1). This stands in contrast to the Christian interpretation that "Human life is sacred… involves the creative action of God and it remains for ever in a special relationship with the Creator" (Catechism 2258). It is his lack of compassion for human life that allows him to so easily be drawn to murdering the Arab. His opposition to basic moral values is what is ultimately responsible for his ironically Christ-like
The main character of The Stranger Meursault is much like Sisyphus, the man who was cursed with absurdity to push a boulder up a mountain every time it rolled down. This describes Meursault’s life and the events that take place during the novel including the death of his mother, his relationship with Marie, writing the letter for Raymond, swimming with his friends, killing the Arab, the trials, his imprisonment, talking with the chaplain, and his inevitable demise.
Albert Camus wrote The Stranger during the Existentialist movement, which explains why the main character in the novel, Meursault, is characterized as detached and emotionless, two of the aspects of existentialism. In Meursault, Camus creates a character he intends his readers to relate to, because he creates characters placed in realistic situations. He wants the reader to form a changing, ambiguous opinion of Meursault. From what Meursault narrates to the reader in the novel, the reader can understand why he attempts to find order and understanding in a confused and mystifying world.