What Is Meursault's Point Of View

In the novel ¬¬The Outsider, Camus uses first person point of view. Therefore, the only character that one really gets to know on a deeper level is Meursault, the narrator and the protagonist. From the use of this point of view, several effects were created, including the revelation of Meursault’s character, as well as the explanation of the concept of absurdism. In addition, through this point of view, the reader is made to feel more open and sympathetic towards Meursault, as the concept of absurdism is a difficult one to see objectively rather than in a negative light, however, the use of first person point of view in the novel engages connection, thus helps a reader to be open to the idea. Through reading the inner thoughts of Meursault,

The use of first person point of view greatly improved the understanding of this characteristic, as one is able to read his complete lack of emotion, and his complete lack of compassion. For example, soon after he is told his mother is dead, Meursault says, “The woman kept on crying. I wished I didn’t have to listen to her anymore, But I didn’t dare say anything.” This quote showed that Meursault did not care about the woman, nor was he sad himself about the death of his mother. Other expressions of sadness served to simply annoy him. Here, Meursault is revealed to be isolated, as though everyone else cares, he does not. This would not be revealed with another point of view, as here, one is able to read Meursault’s inner thoughts, thus revealing him as emotionless. This is evident again when Meursault speaks of possibly marrying Marie. He said, “That evening Marie came by to see me and asked me if I wanted to marry her. I said it didn’t make any difference to me and that we could if she wanted to. Then she wanted to know if I loved her. I answered the same way I had the last time, that it didn’t mean anything but that I probably didn’t love her. ‘So why marry me, then?’ she said. I explained to her that it didn’t really matter and that if she wanted to, we could get married. […] Then she pointed out that marriage was a serious

Absurdism is the belief that life has no deeper meaning, thus through looking into Meursault’s character, Meursault is revealed as an absurdist, and thus this concept is effectively portrayed. In the novel, Meursault does not engage in much dialogue, but rather internally thinks about his own desires. However, on the occasion of his mother’s funeral, Meursault quotes the nurse, saying she was correct in saying that “If you go slowly, you risk getting sunstroke. But if you go too fast, you perspire and then in church you catch a chill”. Meursault was a character who did not dive into the deeper meaning of another’s rambles, however, he reflected on this statement on two occasions. Towards the end of the novel, in the courtroom, he reflects, and thinks to himself “She was right. There was no way out.” By being able to read Meursault’s thoughts on this statement, the concept of absurdism was shown. He understood this statement from the nurse as there was no way to win in the game of life; no matter what you do, there will be consequence since everybody is made equal by death, thus there was no point in trying to find a deeper meaning in something superficial. Towards the end of part one, when Meursault is talking to Masson, Meursault describes him as having a strange habit, of “finishing off every statement with an ‘and what’s more’, even when,