The Stranger Ap Language Essay

The Stranger is a captivatingly odd novel that delves into the mind and actions of a French sociopath, Monsieur Meursault. The author, Albert Camus, successfully captures the essence of Meursault in using language and plot organization that cater to his character. The language and plot organization is what makes The Stranger so unique—the language is almost painfully direct and the organization is simple yet expressive of Meursault. However If I were a novelist, I would not organize my story and use the same direct language as Camus did, because the style in which The Stranger is written and organized is specific to the character’s circumstances.

Camus’ writing style is quite simple. He uses direct, plain, matter-of-fact language, which

is appropriate for the voice of the book. Readers have to keep in mind that Camus is writing as if he is Meursault, and that Meursault is a sociopath. As a sociopath, he has issues connecting with people like how a writer would try to traditionally connect with the reader. Because of this, the language and type of writing Camus uses has to be sociopath-specific. Now, although the writing is appropriate for Meursault’s character, it is completely inappropriate for the situations he encounters throughout the book. This inappropriateness only adds to the novel, in that it indicates to the reader that Meursault is indeed a sociopath, making the direct, plain language even more necessary to his character. So in turn, if I were a novelist, perhaps writing about a sociopathic character’s mother dying, said sociopath befriending abusers and pimps, and then killing an Arab man, I would use the same kind of plain, direct, language that Camus did in order to maintain Meursault’s persona, or lack thereof. However, I would not use this for writing style for any other fictional work unless the protagonist had some sort of emotional hindrance like Meursault.
Although the type of language is not appropriate for the situations Meursault encounters, it is necessary for understanding the plot.

Because of the sequence of the events, the plain, matter-of-fact, deliberate language is justifiable. There are three major events in the novel that stand out to the reader and to Meursault: Maman’s funeral, killing the Arab on the beach, and standing in the courtroom awaiting his sentence. These three events seem so independent that merely implying plot details wouldn’t be enough to help the reader understand the connections between them. Oftentimes in the novel, Camus didn’t provide the reader with explicitly major details between the significant events. In fact, because of Meursault’s character, he can’t. This is because even amidst serious situations, Meursault manages to deviate from the matter at hand and focus on trivial details. Like at Maman’s funeral, “I’d never noticed what huge stomachs old women can have”(Camus 10). He aimlessly wanders about his own thoughts, and oftentimes his thoughts are quite random If I were a novelist writing a story, I wouldn’t use such deliberate language unless the protagonist was in similar circumstances to Meursault’s. Because he’s an emotionally detached sociopath experiencing seemingly disconnected major events, deliberate language is extremely necessary for the reader to understand the connections between significant

events.
Camus’ organization of The Stranger is spotty, yet clean.

It’s sequential and balanced, yet somehow feels flawed. As aforementioned, the major events are clear: Maman dying, shooting the Arab, and his court hearing and sentencing. However, it is the events in between that make the story’s organization feel odd or almost misplaced. In between the major events, Meursault befriends Salmano, a horribly sadistic man, and Raymond, a pimp. He also turns down a better job offer and begins a sexual relationship with a woman named Marie. The point of these minor events doesn’t seem like it was meant to build up to the major plot points, but to make Meursault seem human. Meursault is a sociopath who harbors little to no concern for anyone other than himself. For example, when Raymond’s girlfriend cried for Meursault to call the police and he said, “I told her I didn’t like cops”(Camus 36). Yet because of the organization of the novel and the specific placement of details of Meursault’s personal life, the reader is almost forced to sympathize with him on some level. If Camus had written The Stranger excluding details regarding Meursault’s personal life and focusing primarily on how the major events affected him, the novel simply wouldn’t be as good. Without the organization, Meursault’s character wouldn’t resonate with the general readers and The Stranger would just be a story about an unremorseful, sociopathic murderer. Although I personally wouldn’t use this organization when writing

a novel, it works very well in the case of The Stranger.
Camus’ writing and organization is unequivocally two of the most thought provoking aspects of the novel besides the plot itself. He so delicately wraps them around such a blunt-hearted, unremorseful man in a way that still manages to capture the reader’s emotions yet maintain the sullen atmosphere of the novel. I personally wouldn’t utilize his methods when writing a story because they are so molded around the plot and protagonist. Unsurprisingly, the direct, deliberate language and humanizing organization prove to cater best to The Stranger.