“The Stranger” was written by Albert Camus as an interpretation of the illustrations of the absurdist world during the war in Paris. He uses the connection of “Existentialism is a Humanism” because Meursault, the protagonist, reacts differently to every scenario, rather than acting like a normal, sympathetic human being. He has trouble defining his essence and developing emotional connections with society. The definition of a stranger is a person who is described to be unaware or not familiar with one’s surroundings. A stranger could also be defined as a person who is entirely unaccustomed to a feeling, situation, or situation. In my personal opinion, Meursault is estranged from himself, and society. He has a personal connection with nature, …show more content…
but uses it as excuse to avoid reality. He’s portrayed as an outcast throughout the book, and never speaks up for himself. He never justifies for his actions and Meursault isolates himself mentally, emotionally, and spiritually leading up to some serious consequences. I believe Meursault is portrayed to be estranged from society because he has no sentimental reaction, promoting social detachment from the world.
Meursault seems to be much interested in the world around him, such as the physical aspects rather any emotional connection. I believe Meursault uses nature as an excuse to escape reality. There are many scenes where he much more interested in his surroundings such as the sky, the weather, or the sun. The author wrote the book in this style to give his readers the thought that there is no higher existence and there is no specific meaning to human life. This connects back to “Existentialism is a Humanism” by Jean-Paul Sartre. Meursault focuses the majority of his attention on things that physically affect his body, the physical relationship with Marie, weather, and anything else that seems to be conspicuous. For example, when Maman was buried, Meursault was very bothered by the heat but he felt no remorse towards his mother. “The Sun was beginning to bear down on the earth and it was getting hotter by the minute … I was hot in my dark clothes.” (Camus …show more content…
15) In chapter 6, Meursault kills an Arab without hesitation but does not give any reason why he felt the need to do so. He blames the sun for “blinding” him and he describes the feel of “cymbals of light crashing onto his forehead..” (Camus 59) As the story unfolds, he becomes very observant of his surroundings and lists his day to day activities. Meursault is very minimalistic when he describes his emotions. He lets life pass by when he is up in his apartment, watching the people walk by in his town. The trial scene that takes place in Part 2 represents the society that surrounds Meursault and how they closely observe him. They take note of how he is emotionally detached from his mother and how he reacts when his mother is buried. During Meursault's judgement, the prosecutor and his lawyer give their interpretation of the crime he takes part in. They base it upon their logic, reasoning, and concepts of cause and effect. Right before Meursault is sentenced, he mentions that his “physical needs often get in the way of of his feelings.” He does not refrain from what they persecutes him for.
He is charged as guilty, but refuses to say anything or defend himself. He goes on with his life, without fear of the consequences of being in jail. Meursault does not feel contentment nor misery. This also connects to the concept of “Existentialism is Humanism” because we believe everything that was placed on this earth has a personal value. “Thus the paper-knife is at the same time an article producible in a certain manner and one which, on the other hand, serves a definite purpose, for one cannot suppose that a man would produce a paper-knife without knowing what it was for.” (Sartre) This proves that even the simplest of things, such as a paper knife, truly still have essence and a purpose. The essence of Meursault may be different from everyone else’s but I don't believe it’s inaccurate. Meursault finds no inspiration whatsoever to become an emotional attached man
Meursault does not appear to be estranged from himself because he remains true to his own morals. He continues to stand his ground, even when society is against him. Meursault was a primitive person, but even when he remained in jail he did not even change his bizarre beliefs. Even when Meursault acknowledged the fact that he was sentenced to death, he did not turn to God. He didn’t believe in any religion. He claims he did not have time for religion and thought it wasn’t necessary. Meursault believed that people were privileged, but were promised
death. Meursault did not have the desire to be like everyone else, but he truly didn’t care anything at all. Therefore, he is a stranger because he remains a divergent individual, yet by being unique he remains true to himself. Meursault is not a stranger and believes in the right of free will. This specifically connects back to Jean- Paul’s philosophy of “Existentialism is Humanism.” Meursault believed that he had the free will to make all those decisions, and he decided to grieve differently about his mother’s death. “What is at the very heart and center of existentialism, is the absolute character of the free commitment, by which every man realises himself in realising a type of humanity – a commitment always understandable, to no matter whom in no matter what epoch – and its bearing upon the relativity of the cultural pattern which may result from such absolute commitment” (Sarte) Meursault was never in the wrong for making the decisions just because he isolated himself from society.
Meursault resists being typecast into an archetypal moral category in many of his deeds and actions. Many of his actions in Part One of the novel help contribute to the fuzzy picture of the character. For example, at his mother's funeral, Meursault does not cry or weep in the typical mourning fashion, but rather sleeps during the vigil and entices one of the other mourners present to smoke a cigarette with him. This would be typically considered "evil" behavior, in the context of the story. He could easily been seen as disrespectful and seditious toward his mother and the established procedures of mourning, which seem to be fairly definite at that era in France. However, this "evil" mold can easily be shaken if one considers that Meursault may be more shaken than anyone else present at the funeral. Considering the other events in the novel, it seems as though he does not have a large capacity for emotion. Based on this, it is not unreasonable to assume that the events leading up to and including his mother's death may have overtaxed his limited scope of emotion, and he was therefore nearly incapable of mourning in the "normal" or expected way for his mother, but rather had to resort to his own, more c...
He, however, seemed question his presence because the death of his mom or even from the absence of his father—the fairly dynamic that every child should have (both parents present). In chapter two Meursault found himself alone in his apartment as Marie had left for work earlier that morning. In this section he explains that, “After lunch I was a little bored and I wandered around the apartment” (21). In this quote, Meursault demonstrates just how meaningless is life is. To have nothing more to do with his time than walk around his apartment shows that Meursault is questioning his place in this world. He is a man with virtually only two friends—Raymond and Marie—and a neighbor that he associates with on occasion about his dog. As he wanders the apartment he explains that he lives, “in just one room now” (21), one that he literally put his dining table in so that he could eat in his room. This quote symbolizes his loneliness as a person. Not only is the apartment too big for him, the world is too, and his is basically alone in both. For some reason—maybe a tragedy or trauma that he faced in earlier years—Meursault has closed himself off from the world and does not express love for anyone or anything. In fact, Meursault made a statement about the death of his mother saying that, “at one time or another, all normal people have wished their loved ones were dead" (65). At this point in the story, I think that Meursault may not have had the best family dynamic. He does not speak of anyone else but Maman, and mentions a father that he does not know. So, he may not feel like he belongs or does not know how to. He also explains that, “it was one of Maman’s ideas, and she often repeated it, that after a while you could get used to anything” (77). This quote could explain the fact that Meursault is closed off—he has gotten so used to not having anyone around that truly cares for him (his
Meursault is a fairly average individual who is distinctive more in his apathy and passive pessimism than in anything else. He rarely talks because he generally has nothing to say, and he does what is requested of him because he feels that resisting commands is more of a bother than it is worth. Meursault never did anything notable or distinctive in his life: a fact which makes the events of the book all the more intriguing.
Meursault, an unemotional, a moral, sensory-orientated character at the beginning of the book, turns into an emotional, happy man who understands the "meaninglessness" and absurdity of life by the end of the book. Meursault realizes that the universe is indifferent to man's life and this realization makes him happy. He realizes that there is no God and that the old codes of religious authoritarianism are not enough to suffice man's spiritual needs. One has to create one's won meaning in an absurd, meaningless world.
By the end of Meursault is imprisoned somewhere he has always mentally and emotionally been. Being isolated make him act as a stranger even more. The title describes a strange person.
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?
I know my subject by his first name only, Maynard, by listening to his frequent conversations with his close friend Rolando I have discovered they enjoy talking about alcoholic beverages, movies, and video games among other things. He is of average height and a slim build with frizzy short black hair and wears glasses.
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.
Since he cares little for the affairs of the world, claiming they do not mean anything, then justice—a major concern of the world—also means nothing to him. His actions both before and after his decision to kill a man without provocation demonstrate his apathetic view of the world, and his indifference to justice. Therefore Meursault’s search for justice, culminated by the court’s decision to execute him, remains an example to all of the inability of society to instill justice in criminals. Meursault’s perpetual refusal to acquire a sense of morality and emotion instigates skepticism in all who learn of his story of society’s true ability to instill justice in the
A stranger is also someone who looks and acts strangely which is fitting to Meursault. Meursault never shows emotion and finds it annoying when people do. At his mother’s funeral he gets annoyed of a lady he didn’t
I, Albert Camus, am a famous French author who had written The Stranger in 1942. I was born in Algeria, and my experiences there had deeply influenced my thoughts, my work, and my philosophies. The Stranger strongly represents my philosophy involving the absurd and existentialism. When I was twenty-five, I moved to France and joined the resistance movement during World War II. After the liberation from Nazi Germany, I became a political journalist and a columnist for Combat, a French newspaper. In 1947, I retired from my journalist career and continued to write fiction and playwrights for the theatre (Simpson). Although I primarily consider myself a writer instead of a philosopher and I deny being an existentialist, the philosophy I most agree with is indeed existentialism. As one will find in my novel, The Stranger, the main character Meursault views the world and situations through an outside perspective, extreme detachment, and a lack of empathy. His characters tend to view the world as an outsider because I personally grew up in many groups
During the first half of the novel, we see many examples of Meursault’s freedom and how he exercises it. He does what he wants, when he wants to with no regard to how he affects the people around him. Meursault lives his life with no restrictions. He is his own boss. Relaxed and free.
Meursault lives an average life, but one important factor in the story is that he does not seem to express his emotions. Some of his character traits could label Meursault as an existentialist because he does not care about anything except physical things. When his mother died, many other people were crying, but all Meursault worried about was the heat. He is very honest as well, and he does not try to cover up the fact that he did not cry during his mother’s funeral.... ...
When Meursault is actually exiled from those around him, and is thrown in jail is when he realizes emotions and the idea of freedom. In the beginning of the story the Meursault demonstrates lack of emotions, detachment, and
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.