The Relationship between Meursault and Marie in

The Stranger, a Novel by Albert Camus

The Even Stranger Relationship I realized that while reading any book it is
very important to consider the viewpoints of every character. As Meursault's
views were very uninteresting I found myself in the viewpoint of other
characters more often. Specifically I found myself in the viewpoint of Marie
very frequently, asking myself Why would anyone want to marry a guy like
that? I decided to look into the relationship of Meursault and Marie more
closely, and found that while Maries relationship with Meursault is emotional
Meursault only cares for Marie physically. From the very first moment
Meursault sees Marie the only things I found mentioned were physical,
nothing is said about her personality or the like. Meursault sees Marie at the
pool and he only notes physical contact rather than anything emotional.
Meursault notes things such as letting his hand stray over her breasts or
Maries stomach rising and falling gently under his head (Camus 14).The first
moment in which Meursault meets Marie their focuses are very different.
Meursault is constantly focusing on physical things while Marie is attempting
an emotional connection. At first I believed Meursault to simply be a player
however, Meursault's lack of emotional connection shows that he is only
interested in a physical relationship. When Marie asked Meursault for
marriage I was absolutely livid. Meursault's reaction clearly shows that he has
no emotional connection to Marie, while Maries questions and remarks show
that she cares emotionally for him. Marie comes one day and asks him if hed
marry her. He said he didnt mind if she was keen on it, theyd get married.
Marie later asks If thats how you feel,, why marry me? The whole time I was
yelling inside What are you doing with your life Marie! Marriage is usually a
very emotional event and he shows no second thought. While once again
Marie seems to be emotional, questioning Meursault and pressing on for
answers. Meursaults lack of emotional response shows that to him the
relationship is purely physical, while for Marie the relationship is not purely
physical as she is very emotional with her questions of love. The last
significant interaction I found between Marie and Meursault was at jail.
Marie rushes with questions as to if Meursault is fine or not askingWell?,
What about it? Are you all right, have you everything you want(Camus 47)?
Meanwhile Meursault is examining her body once again and has physical
desires such as to squeeze her shoulders, through the thin dress(Camus 47).
Marie rushes questioning showing care for Meursault asking if hes ok or not.
While Meursault can only seem to focus on his physical desires with Marie
and fails to be able to show any signs of emotional companionship to Marie.
This is a very big moment as anyone in Meursault's shoes would act
completely different from how he acted.I found The Stranger absolutely
fascinating and vexing at the same time. It was irritating to see how Marie was
so irrational in her choice of love, the whole time I was dying inside calling her
a fool. However, it was fascinating to see Meursaults idea of the relationship
differ so much from Maries idea of the relationship in that Maries was
emotional and Meursault's was physical.

Character Analysis of Mersault in the Stranger, a

Novel by Albert Camus
The Stranger by Albert Camus is a profound philosophical novel exploring
the tensions between the expectations of society, the nature of humanity, and
individual responsibility and integrity. The novel is a first person narrative of
an emotionless man, Meursault, who murders an Arab without remorse and
ends up being sentenced to death. Meursault is completely alienated from his
emotions and has no ambitions. His only relationships within society are
physically with Marie and superficially with his neighbors and coworkers. In
court Meursault is found guilty for his indifference towards the death of his
mother and society as a whole, not for murdering a man. Meursault is a threat
to society because he does not accept societys rules. The absence of emotion in
Meursault is apparent from the beginning of the novel. In Part One,
Meursault attends his mothers funeral at an old persons home. The first lines
of the narrative display his emotional indifference Maman died today. Or
yesterday maybe, I dont know. I got a telegram from the home Mother
deceased. Funeral tomorrow. Faithfully yours. That doesnt mean anything.
Maybe it was yesterday. (3). Meursault feels nothing from the death of his
mother and all he seems to care about is what day she passed away on, a
frivolous fact. A persons mother only dies once, the fact that Meursault sheds
no tears, sleeps during most of vigil, and doesnt even bother to take a final
glance at Maman before her casket is sealed all point to a complete lack of
feeling in his character. The woman kept on crying. I wished I didnt have to
listen to her anymore. But I didnt dare say anything. (10). Compassion is an
emotion and like all other emotions Meursault feels none. The utter deficiency
of ambition in Meursaults life leaves him outside the bounds of societal
pressures and laws. In Chapter two of The Stranger, Marie, Meursaults
significant other, asks him about the idea of marrying her "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." In this scene Meursault
illustrates a total lack of passion in response to a major life event that could
affect the rest of his life. Meursaults lack of passion results in him making
irrational decisions, without analyzing their consequences. Meursault
murders an Arab without remorse. The only rational Mersault gives for his
act was the sun. the sun was the same as it had been the day Id buried Maman
and like then, my forehead especially was hurting me, all the veins in it
throbbing under the skin. It was this burning which I couldnt stand anymore,
that made me move forward. (59). At the trial it becomes clear that Meursault
is being charged for his indifference to normal human emotions. Mersault is a
threat to society because he has separated himself from the conventions that
hold it together. Mersault is prosecuted and convicted for his lack of social
conscience and not for killing an Arab. The magistrate asks Mersault if he
loved his mother and is repulsed by the emotionless answer. Yes the same as
anyone. (67). He also demanded to know if Mersault believed in God. I said
no. He sat down indignantly. He said it was impossible all men believed in
God. (69). Mersault cannot bring himself to accede to any authority. The
prosecutor in his summation accuses Mersault of lacking remorse and
Mersault thinks, Of course, I couldnt help admitting that he was right. I didnt
feel much remorse for what Id done. (100). Meursault has insufficient motive
for murdering the Arab and no remorse for the deed. For society to function,
citizens must live their life according to certain guidelines, for instance, thou
shall not kill and honor thy mother and father. Mersault is an atheist, but he
is not put to death for that reason, rather he is condemned for his disregard of
the values that society demands of its citizens. Mersault rejects those values
and the state has no choice, but the guillotine. In facing death Mersault shows
his indifference to life by stating, since were all going to die, its obvious that
when and how doesnt matter.(114). Mersault has lived his life in a manner
that threatens social order. It is not surprising that his trial focuses more on
his attitude toward life then on the murder of a young Arab man. Mersault s
sentence is for refusing to conform and his indifference to the rules of society.
The states must protect order at all costs, and its greatest power is the power
over life and death, and so Mersault is sentenced to death. Word CitedCamus,
Albert. The Stranger. Trans. Matthew Ward. New York First Vintage
International, 1988. Printed.
============================================================

The Character of Meursault in the Novel The

Stranger by Albert Camus
The StrangerAlbert Camus novel The Stranger surprises us with a main character
named Meursault who is nonchalant and indifferent about the world. Meursault is
undeniably unique and it is difficult to understand him through his emotions.
However, by observing his actions we can make connections in order to understand
Meursaults fate and the consequences to his behavior.In the beginning, Meursault
hears about his mothers death, but he doesnt mourn over his loss. He surprisingly
chooses not to see his mother one last time before her coffin is sealed which leads
one to infer that they didnt share a particularly close relationship with one another
and he was also unsure of her exact age. During the funeral, he is more concerned
about the unbearable heat outdoors instead of the actual event that is taking place
around him. While it is difficult to describe Meursault in words, based on the way
he is introduced into the novel he seems to be indifferent towards emotions and
interacting with others. It seems as if he is detached from the mindset of any
regular human being because he lives a very routine life with no strings attached.
Meursault may seem to be a cold person, but it is better to describe him as
emotionally unattached because he has a complicated personality. Meursault
proves that he is more interested in things rather than people. There isnt much that
catches his eye, but he takes interest in the weather, nature, coffee, cigarettes, and
the sun. On the day after his mothers funeral, he almost routinely sleeps late and
spends his afternoon on his balcony while observing other people, admiring the
weather, and of course smoking. Furthermore, Meursault cannot particularly relate
to others or understand their feelings because he barely understands himself. His
attitude towards others point out how he is direct and short when it comes to
describing particular situations. One interesting interaction Meursault experiences
is his relationship to Marie. He keeps their relationship on a physical level while
Marie seeks love and affection. This proves that he is incapable of having feelings
for her on an emotional level. Meursault cannot love Marie, he can only appreciate
her. When Marie asks him if he loves her, he replies that he isnt sure and it doesnt
mean anything. In addition, Marie asks Meursault if he wants to marry her, but he
says that it doesnt matter and it makes no difference to him. His reaction proves
that there is no meaning to anything in Meursaults life because he can only
interpret life as a bunch of occurrences. Meursault doesnt look back at the past and
he cannot foresee his future with Marie he lives in the moment. The turning point
in the novel is when Meursault goes to visit a beach house with others while being
followed by a group of people he describes as Arabs who are native Algerians. At
one point, a fight breaks out on the beach when one of the Arabs who happens to
be the brother of Raymonds mistress slashes Raymond with a knife. Meursault
fails to warn Raymond in time to prevent the incident but what is interesting is that
after the event he refuses to explain what happened. Meursault is indifferent about
the entire attack, instead he sticks to his interests and watches the sea while
smoking cigarettes. Furthermore, as Meursault decides to take a walk along the
beach by himself, he becomes fascinated by the sun. However, as the Arab pulls
out his knife, the suns reflection hits Meursaults eyes which leads him to shoot
once, before taking 4 additional shots towards the already fallen Arab thus, killing
the man. There is no explanation as to why Meursault shot the Arab four additional
times. It was just an action that happened in the moment, a reflex. It is at this point
that the story took an immediate change if events, because all of the sudden the
main character turns into a murderer with a lot of explaining to do.When Meursault
is thrown into jail, he is faced with questions that he himself is not sure how to
answer. In court, he is blamed for his reactions to past events other than the
shooting which is odd. Meursault is accused of being insensitive during his
mothers funeral but he says that he doesnt analyze himself, but he probably loves
his mother even though that doesnt mean anything. Even his lawyer is disgusted by
Meursaults indifference which begins to show how he is starting to become hated
by others. As he is interrogated, Meursault is asked if he believes in god, but his
indifference for religion leads him to be singled out as an atheist and named
Monsieur Antichrist. It is obvious that the trial is unfair, but this may be because
society is not used to dealing with a character such as Meursault who is
unclassifiable. Instead, he is blamed for not behaving or reacting as a normal
person should. When he is sentenced to death it goes to show how society decided
to get rid of him because his view on the world are seemingly meaningless, too
unethical, and socially unacceptable. Meursaults indifference to everything and the
fact that he doesnt believe in God are why others see his life as meaningless and he
is even described as evil. However, Meursault picks up details that we dont such as
his fascination towards the article about a Czechoslovakian man whose family
commit suicide after they realized who they killed. Life in prison doesnt seem to
bother him because he is used to living routinely and in a simple fashion.During
the trial, Meursault is accused of things that are in no relation to the actual murder
he committed. This shows how there is a fault in the court system because it judges
people instead of dealing with how to find justice after crimes. In court, the
prosecutor accused Meursault of showing no remorse as evidence of murder. His
lack of remorse for the his mothers death threatens the moral basis of society
because he lacked emotions towards anything. The way the trial took place shows
how Meursault isnt being fairly judged because he wasnt being accused of crimes,
but instead he is being blamed for having no morals, and being soulless and evil
which is why the judge believes he can be blamed for other cases as well.
Meursault realized that he was being hated by everyone in the courtroom and his
lawyer was also going off-topic which made him feel excluded from his own case.
After Meursault is faced with the death penalty, he spends the final days of his life
pondering and fantasizing about executions and how his execution by guillotine
might take place. He is faced with many ideas and concerns while he is in prison,
and at one point he believes that the only thing that is important is a chance to
escape and freedom. However, his mind becomes steadier and peaceful when he
tells himself that everyone eventually dies. Meursault surprisingly begins to self
analyze himself and he takes a final step in developing his consciousness. His
thoughts about the execution, his mother, and the trial help him him accept
himself. He finally realizes that death is inevitable and he wishes to go away in
peace. Meursaults realizations came almost out of nowhere are they are the final
steps he takes in life as a person. In the end, Camus portrays Meursault as an
absurd character who is indifferent to the world around him. While Meursault may
be a man of few words, he shows how society has a greater power over us because
its the people who stand out from the rest that are in danger.

The Importance of the Meal in the Third Chapet of The Stranger by Albert
Camus

In chapter two of How to Read Literature Like a Professor, Nice to Eat with
You Acts of Communion, the author tell his readers that in literature, a meal
is never just a meal. Whenever people eat or drink together, its communion.
Communion is the sharing or exchanging of intimate thoughts and feelings
and in literature it isnt usually religious. Meals together show how well
characters are, or arent, getting along. All those at the table (or wherever said
communion is taking place) have something in common, the basic human need
for sustenance. In The Stranger, a meal takes place between Meursault and
Raymond Sintes in the third chapter. Raymond casually invited Meursault to
a dinner of blood sausage and wine at his place and Meursault accepts so he
wont have to worry about providing a meal from himself. This is where
Meursaults troubles begin. At this dinner is where he becomes entangled in
Raymonds problems with his mistress and the Arab, the man Meursault later
on murder. Meursault focuses a lot on his surroundings, comparing it to his
own apartment. Raymond tells Meursault about his fight with his mistress
brother and his plan to get revenge on her, asking for his help in luring her
back to Raymonds. Both of them are under the influence of wine, Meursault
often commenting on how much he is consuming. This scene in The Stranger
connect to chapter two of How to Read Literature like a Professor because
Raymond is sharing intimate thoughts and feelings with Meursault, enlisting
his help. Though Meursault isnt making much of an effort to connect with
Raymond he is going along with the plan and agreeing to anything Raymond
says. This is a turning point in the story because Meursault become involved
with something that eventually leads to his demise. Before he was just
observing those around him and being detached but Raymond ropes him into
a plan and a bond is formed between them. Unlike with Marie, Meursault
doesnt get anything physical in return for his relationship with Raymond.
This meal ties them together because Meursault is a part of the plot against
Raymonds mistress and unintentionally becomes an enemy of the man he later
on murders.In chapter eleven of How to Read Literature Like a Professor,
More Than Its Gonna Hurt You Concerning Violence, the author explains
how violence can be symbolic, thematic, biblical, Shakespearean, Romantic,
allegorical, andor transcendent. The two main categories of violence in
literature are character caused and violence for which the characters are not
responsible. A shooting, such as in The Stranger, is character caused violence.
While violence in literature is symbolic, it is impossible to generalize. In The
Stranger Meursault shoots an Arab man on the beach. During the passage he
blames the heat for pushing him towards the lone Arab. He doesnt just shoot
once bullet, but pauses after the first to shoot four more directly into the body
of the Arab. This violence shows Meursaults disregard for human life. Though
the conflict with the Arab mostly belongs to Raymond, Meursault kills him.
Subconsciously he must have needed that control over human life, or at least
the proof that it didnt matter. Still, as Thomas C. Foster said, there can be a
range of reasons for violence. Meursaults mindset is that death is senseless
and without reason or rationality, just like life. Whether he was murdered or
caught an illness, the Arab would have died. Meursault blames the sun
because throughout the entire book he is more connected to the physical
world than his innerself. The similarities between the character caused death,
the murder of the Arab, and the non-character caused death, Meursaults
mother, is that Meursault is not affected emotionally by either. He admits to
having no remorse for his actions and is indifferent to both deaths. Its a
reflection of nihilism and absurdist, the belief that there is no meaning in life.
Even the violence is not violent. There is no gore or vivid descriptions of the
body. The life just ceases to exist. In chapter thirteen of How to Read
Literature Like a Professor, Is That a Symbol, Foster explains that everything
is a symbol, but interpreting can be tricky. Symbols arent always objects but
can be actions. Symbols are built on emotional reactions of the reader. There
are many symbols in The Stranger such as the heat, the crucifix, and the
courtroom. Meursault is affected by heat at his mothers funeral, on the beach
when he commits the murder, and in the courtroom during his trial. The sun
is always intense to him and makes him dizzy. The heat blazes and its
something that Meursault cant control, just like death. Neither have a regard
for human life. Meursault almost leaves the beach before approaching the
Arab but the sun pushes him forward and seemingly makes the choice for
him. Another symbol, the crucifix, is related directly to Christianity which
Meursault disregards in favor for an absurdist view. He is an atheist and
doesnt believe in any God or afterlife. The crucifix represents everything
Meursault rejects. The magistrate is appalled by the fact that Meursault does
not weep at the sight f the crucifix like other criminals but it is because he
does not believe in the search for a higher order like society expects. A third
symbol is the courtroom. The courtroom is full of people who do not
understand Meursault and saw himself as removed from the courtroom,
especially when his lawyer started referring to himself as I, speaking for
Meursault. The room was basically an entire community judging Meursault
for not fitting in with the rest of society. He didnt grieve for his mother of his
soul which made him immoral in their eyes. During the trial they try to
rationalize the murder, although Meursault knows there was no real reason
for it. This is similar to humans trying to rationalize the universe and their
lives when its not fully possible. Its not possible to formulate a logical reason
for the murder and because of that Meursault gets the death penalty. The
ultimate rejection from society.

The Motif of Death in the Novel The Stranger by

Albert Camus
Death's connection to Absurdist Existentialism in The Stranger by Albert
CamusThe Stranger by Albert Camus has been captivating readers with a
man's journey from free man to death row inmate for generations. The novel
follows the debatably-protagonistic Mersault throiughout this journey, and is
well known for it's unusual tone and grim subject matter. Told primarily in
first-person, the words of Mersault are dull and uncaring, even as death
follows him like a lost dog, beginning with the passing of his mother all the
way to his own execution. Camus, therefore, gets his point across not through
Mersault himself, but through the action of the novel and through symbols
and motifs, a key motif throughout the novel is death. Camus uses death as a
vehicle not only to advance the story, but to perpetuate his idea of
absurdity.The opening line of The Stranger is a prime example of this.
"Maman died today. Or yesterday maybe, I don't know. I got a telegram from
the home "Mother deceased. Funeral tomrrow. Faithfully yours." That
doesn't mean anything. Maybe it was yesterday." (Camus, 3) The quick
procession of statements not only introduces you to Mersault and his
termperament, but immediately forces the reader to confront death. He
continues to treat death, the death of his mother at that, extremely casually,
even complaining that he has to borrow funeral clothes and expressing
annoyance at weeping funeral-goers. Within the first few pages, the idea that
death is an innate part of life is planted into the reader's head. This idea goes
hand in hand with the idea that life is inherantly meaningless, and a search for
meaning will create more conflict than inner peace, which is the key idea in
Camus' absurdist school of thought.This school of thought dominates the text,
and Mersault's indifference and penchant for lengthy descriptions helps
highlight it at some points. While Mersault himself doesn't realize it until he
makes peace with his execution, a main idea in not onlyThe Stranger but in
absurdism as a discipline is that despite the chaotic and sometimes unfair
nature of the world, everybody is equal in death. In part one, Mersault
describes an acquaintance, Salamano, and his dog, saying that they "have
been inseperable for eight years. The spaniel has a skin disease ... which
makes all of its hair fall out and leaves it covered with brown sores and scabs.
After living together for so long, ... they've ended up looking like each other. ...
They look as if they belong to the same species." (26) Not only does Mersault's
complete lack of reaction or disgust when describing the decaying dog's health
continue to represent the lack of importance surrounding death as a concept,
but the man and the dog are compared and equalized in their decay,
reinforcing absurdist ideas. This is revisited when Mersault explains that the
dog was a replacement of sorts for Salamano's late wife - the dog is once again
compared to something completely different, the two entities equalized in
death. The idea that a dead wide could be replaced with a dog also continues
the trend of treating death with nonchalance.Death, to Mersault, is treated
flippantly seemingly because he isn't concious of it. After the death of his
mother, he goes on a date and sees a comedy film- all death has caused
Mersault is a slight inconvienience. He even states at the beginning of the
novel that it doesn't seem real to him, saying "For now, it's almost as if
Maman weren't dead." (3) Even as he describes committing murder, he
removes himself from it. When he pulls the trigger on the man, he blames the
trigger itself, stating that "the trigger gave." (59) This lack of agency on
Mersault's part suggests he's without the ability to comprehend that hecaused
a death and that his actions will change his life forever. Even going into his
criminal investigation, he attempts to shake his interrogating officer's hand
before remembering that he'd committed murder.This nonunderstanding of
death pushes further another focal point of absurdism. Questioning death and
meaning brings about chaos, whereas accepting death brings peace. Conflict is
not only represented physically with Mersault's murder trial, but is
represented through his revelations surrounding his own execution. One
cannot accept something they're unaware or unconcious of, and we follow
Mersault from being unaware of to accepting death after his verdict is given.
Mersault is described by the prosecutor during sentancing as a "monster"
(102), which not only reinforces the idea that all creatures are equal in death,
but shocks Mersault. This in combination with the presiding judge using
"bizarre language" (107) to explain his execution cements Mersault's doubts
and confusions about his own death. Mersault questioning his death, however,
brings him strife.He gets caught up and holds out hope - something he's
repeatedly insinuated he doesn't have - for an appeal. He begins thinking on
his life and his choices, and this discord is uncharacteristic of Mersault.
Caring about death makes Mersault linger on his thoughts and even express
fear and doubt surrounding his death. For example, Mersault fearfully states
"I would always begin by assuning the worst my appeal was denied." (114)
and even describes that he would "reason with himself" (112) when thinking
about his inevitable death. This represents conflict. Mersault realizes that
through his actions he brought himself into unhappiness.It isn't until he
revisits his mother's death that Mersault brings the balance back by
acceptinhile pondering himself, he thinks of his mother's love affair. She was
so close to death yet she was ready to begin something new. He compares this
to his own situation and he is able to rid himself of all hope. Hope for his
appeal, a want for life and a fear of death were holding him down. He
becomes conscious less of death, and more of himself, stating that with "gentle
indifference" he "had been happy and that I Mersault was happy again."
(123) His realization sets him free, and his revelation ties together Camus'
absurdist philosophy. Human life is chaotic, meaningless, and ends
anticlimactically in death- and the sooner you accept it, the better things are.
The last quote of the novel exemplifies this acceptance. Mersault says "I had
only to wish that there be a large crowd of spectators the day of my execution
and that they greet me with cries of hate." The text begins by forcing the
reader to suspend disbelief and accept death without question, and the text
ends with Mersault finally doing the same. This not only highlights the cyclical
nature of life and death, but it exemplifies and perpetuates absurdity.

The Notion of Absurd and Irrationality in Society

in The Stranger by Albert Camus
Do we have control over our fate or are society and the universe making
decisions about our lives without us and our opinion? Albert Camuss novel
The Stranger emphasizes several important ideas that connect human
existence in the world and notion of absurd, but some of them are especially
significant. Camus investigates the nature of absurdity in judicial system and
an oppression of the individual in a prejudiced and an unbalanced universe.
Camus demonstrates how the judicial system is a reflection of an irrational
society and an indifferent universe. Meursault is the main character who kills
the Arab man and goes to prison for the crime, but during the trial the reason
for his crime changes by the impact of society. Camus explores how the trial
violates humanity and how the people judge Meursaults personal life instead
of a committed crime as it should be. I am going to reflect the authors main
idea through analyzing injustice towards Meursault from irrational society
that he lives in because of him refusing to accept common social norms and
beliefs.Camus shows that the universe is absurd because cannot accept
Meursaults individuality. As a result, society rejects him for his indifference
and isolation from the norms of public. He is a peculiar person and that is
why other people do not understand him and he does not fit into society. In
the book, Meursault states what a prosecutor said, He stated that I had no
place in a society whose most fundamental rules I ignored and that I could no
appeal to the same human heart whose elementary response I knew nothing
of(102). Meursault is different from others and there is no place for his
peculiar personality. He almost never shows his emotional responses. He
enjoys his physical existence, but he is emotionless towards everything that is
going on in his life. In societys opinion he is passive toward his mothers death
because he does not cry at her funeral. Everything he feels is just physical
discomfort while everyone are crying and feel grief. After her death, he
continues to live his usual life, enjoys physical existence and never looks back.
Meursault feels free from any conventional expectations of his life and usual
human behavior. He denies the existence of God, rejects the crucifix and
expects nothing from the afterlife, while other people believe in God because
without him life becomes meaningless for them. In fact, he does not feel guilt
in killing the Arab man because he is a type of person who is always just
moving on with his life. He does not analyze his life and his behavior towards
people who live around him. All this individualism is not normal for society
and that is why there is a conflict between Meursault and others. It is a cause
why Meursault is non-conformist to the rules of society he lives in.
Unfortunately, society looks at him with accusation because he acts and thinks
differently than most of the people. They would rather condemn him for his
actions than accept his distinctive nature.Camus shows through the trial that
society is absurd because only few days after trial Meursault was sentenced to
death. At first the trial was looking for rational explanation of his crime, but
then society changed the reason of it. Society started to ignore the fact of his
crime and became more interested in his personality. Meursaults impression
is that, All of the long speeches, all the interminable days and hours people
had spent talking about my soul, had left me with the impression of a colorless
swirling river that was making me dizzy (104). He also states, Everything was
happening without my participation. My fate was being decided without
anyone so much as asking my opinion (98). It shows that judge is examining
his individuality and is not paying attention to his physical existence in the
courtroom. During the trial, the prosecutor tries to persuade the jury that
Meursault has no feelings or morals instead of proving him guilty of murder.
Meursault states, He told me that he now had to turn to some question that
might seem irrelevant to my case but might in fact have a significant bearing
on it(87). Even if his relationships with his mother are not connected with the
murder, the prosecutor emphasizes on their importance for the court. After
Maries examination, the prosecutor makes his verdict so fast and does not
give Marie any opportunity to add something for Meursaults defense.
Meursault states, The prosecutor than rose, and very gravely and with what
struck me as real emotion in his voice, his finger pointed at me, said slowly
and distinctly, Gentlemen of the jury, the day after his mother death, this man
was out swimming, starting up a dubious liaison and going to the movies, a
comedy, for laughs(94). The prosecutor proves Meursaults lack of emotions
through the relationships with his mother and Marie. All the facts that the
prosecutor presents are valid and true, though unrelated to this case. Camus
also shows how the judge is biased when Celeste says that Meursault is a
man(92). By saying this Celeste means that Meursault is an intelligent person
who knows how to behave in society and also is a good friend. It seems that
judge does not want to hear Celeste and uses what he says against Meursault.
At the end the jury sentences Meursault to death not because he kills a man,
but because he does not show proper emotions over his mothers death. The
prosecutor claims, I felt this painful duty made easier, lighter, clearer by the
certain knowledge of sacred imperative and by the horror I fell when I look
into a mans face and all I see is a monster(102). From the prosecutors point of
view, Meursault is a monster who is morally guilty in killing his mother
because of his emotionless response. As the result, society sees him as a
monster who must be punished for his reaction on his mothers death and his
behavior at her funeral. It is a hard for society to accept the person who is
lacking the ability to feel. The trial is judging his nature and his inner being.
Meursault has to be executed because it feels wrong for society to allow him to
live his own life. Camus shows how irrational this verdict and the trial are
because in a rational society Meursaults emotions toward his mother would
not have influenced the verdict.The trial and conviction of Meursault
represent the absurdity in The Stranger. Camus demonstrates how societys
injustice is absurd and does not always focus on relevant facts. The judicial
system cannot be objective because it considers an emotional side of ones
personality together with the persons responsibility for the murder. Camus
explains that perception means everything and there is no absolute truth. He
also shows that the verdict on Meursault is irrational because he is judged for
lack of emotions and for him not fitting within societys norms. The author
clarifies that society rejects people as Meursault because their way of living is
not within the common norms of the public. Camus demonstrates that society
is irrational and cannot accept individual behavior and is able to condemn a
man for his different beliefs and attitudes toward life. But, are people in
society truly honest and open with their emotions and feelings toward each
other?

The Stranger's Tragedy That Leads to Finding

One's Identity by Albert Camus
Mr. RhodesEnglish II A Period 520 February 1999The Faces of DeathIn The
Stranger Camus shows that Meursault can find his true identity only through
an encounter with death. Meursault goes through some deaths in his life that
lead to his own. This awkward, but most entertaining, character discovers
himself through the tragedy that occurs in his life. His life is a full one and he
faces each situation the same way.The encounters of death starts here, the
death of Meursault's mother. "I wanted to see Maman right away"(Camus 4),
this extraordinary quote by Meursault is a side of him that we do not get to
see that often. That is one of the few times we get to see his loving side come
out and show his affection to his mom. He accomplishes the capability of
getting is inner feelings out. Camus expresses the true thoughts of Meursault
by saying, "That's partly why I didn't go there much this past year. And also
because it took up my Sunday - to mention the trouble of getting to the bus,
buying tickets, and spending 2 hours traveling"(5). Meursault tells us that he
really didn't want to go through all that trouble just to see his own mom. He
has feelings for his mom, as you heard in the last quote, but not enough to go
see her. As Bree said," . . . Meursault's error lies precisely in his
estrangement"(112). Bree is saying that Meursault is a great guy and all, but
his main, and big, problem is his personality.The most important part of
finding his own identity was the murder of the Arab. Meursault gets out of
hand and shoots an Arab dead. "My whole being tensed and I squeezed my
hand around the revolver"(59 Camus). Meursault had the revolver in his
hand and he claims that because he was so tensed about everything that was
going on, that made him shoot the gun. He has some mental problems as you
can see, Meursault is normal most of the time, but he defiantly has his
moments. Albert Camus tries to show that Meursault is finding himself
through this violent act he has done, "I knew that I had shattered the
harmony of the day, the exceptional silence of a beach where I'd been
happy"(59). Meursault is slowly finding his true self, after you read this quote,
you think he has realized the terrible thing that he has done, and that he
broke the beautiful day that he was having. He feels the grief of doing this to
the Arab. But once again Meursault gets out of hand when he " . . . fired four
more times at the motionless body where the bullets lodged without leaving a
trace"(Camus 59). Meursault tries to find his identity by thinking everything
over, but then his craziness takes over again. The whole murder scene can be
summed up in this simple quote by Bree, " . . . the revolver shot jolts
Meursault out of his purely negative state. At this time he is aware that he has
committed an irreparable act. . ." (114). Germaine Bree reveals the feelings
that Meursault does not show. So Meursault explore his identity by shooting a
man and realizing that he has changed his life forever.One way of saying it is
that he has changed his life forever, but another way is that he just sent
himself to death row. What Meursault did was a great thing by making
another step to find his own identity, but also sent him to jail. Now he must
make his final stage to find himself, who he really is. "On my way out I was
even going to shake his hand, but just in time, I remembered that I killed a
man" (Camus 64), when Meursault said that just in time he remembered, that
was a very important thing that he did. That's important because he shows
that he is expressing courtesy and respect for other. He is accepting who he is.
Camus tells that Meursault's feelings come out again, "When I was first
imprisoned, the hardest thing was that my thoughts were still those of a free
man" (76). Meursault feels that he liked his life the way it was before the
killing. This is the most important part of the book, Meursault thinks of the
way his life would be if he would have never had done that. He is completing
his final stage of finding himself. " . . . I had only to wish that there be a large
crowd of spectators the day of my execution and that they greet me with cries
of hate" (Camus 123), this amazing quote shows that Meursault knows that
his day is coming and that he has done nothing but caused harm to the city
and his friends. He has finally found that person that he really is, a caring,
loving and respectful person. It is just a shame that after all the hard work to
find himself, and he does, he has to die.The encounters of death have slowly
showed the way for Meursault. He was able to see who he really is.
Meursault's journey has been a full one. This journey started with the
dreadfully painful death of Meursault's mom. Then it went to Meursault
killing the Arab, which helped him show his inner feelings. Last of all, was the
waiting for his own execution. When Meursault realized what was going on,
and put everything together, he was able to find his own identity. Germaine
Bree has the answer to the whole problem, "It is clear that Meursault's initial
mental attitude proves inadequate to cope with even the simplest of lives"
(117).

An Analysis of Mersault's Existentialism in The

Stranger by Albert Camus
Imagine a person with no feelings, no friends, isolated both emotionally and
physically. They dont feel threatened by "normal" things, making the
"normal" person threatened by him. In the book, The Stranger, by Albert
Camus, we embark on a journey through the mind of an existentialist. So we
meet Mersault, the main character in the book, and in my opinion, the
epitome of existentialism. Throughout reading, we have observed Mersaults
self-aware behavior in many scenes of the book. One instance was at the
funeral. "Some of the women were crying. She was in the second row, hidden
behind one of her companions, and I couldnt see her very well. She was crying
softly, steadily in little sobs. I thought shed never stop. The others seemed not
to hear her. They sat there hunched up, gloomy and silent. They would look at
the casket, or their canes or whatever else, but that was all they would look at.
The woman kept on crying. It surprised me, because I didnt know who she
was, I wished I didnt have to listen to her anymore. But I didnt dare say
anything." Mersault doesnt seem very sympathetic to the elderly womans
feelings. "After a while he explained, without looking at me, She was very
close to your mother. She says your mother was her only friend and now she
hasnt got anyone. We just sat there for awhile. The womans sighs and sobs
were quieting down. She sniffled a lot. Then finally she shut up. I didnt feel
drowsy anymore, but I was tired and my back was hurting me. Now it was all
these people not making a sound that was getting on my nerves. Except that
every now and then Id hear a strange noise and I couldnt figure out what it
was. Finally I realized that some of the old people were sucking at their cheeks
and making these weird smacking noises. They were so lost in their thoughts
that they werent even aware of it. I even had the impression that the dead
woman lying in front of them didnt mean anything. But I think now that that
was a false impression." In that last paragraph from the text, we see Mersault
referring to his mother as the "dead woman", and not as his mother. He
seems to view her as a stranger. He is unemotional but he notices almost
everything about his surroundings. Another instance in which we see
Mersault exhibiting self-aware behavior was while he was watching the
pallbearer and the perspiring people. "He was walking with great dignity,
without a single wasted motion. Afew beads of sweat were forming on his
forehead, but he didnt wipe them off." Another place where we see mersault
being self-aware was on his balcony. "My room looks over the main street in
the neighborhood. It was a beautiful afternoon. Yet the pavement was wet and
slippery, and what few people there were, were in a hurry. First, there were
families out for a walk two little boys in sailor suits, with trousers below the
knees, looking a little cramped in their stiff clothes, and a little girl with a big
pink bow and black patent-leather shoes. Behind them, an enormous mother,
in a brown silk dress, and the father, a rather frail little man I know by sight.
He had on a straw hat and a bow tie and was carrying a walking stick. Seeing
him with his wife, I can understand why people in the neighborhood said he
was distinguished. A little while later the local boys went by, hair greased
back, red ties, tight-fitting jackets, with embroidered pocket hankerchiefs and
square toed shoes. I thought they must be heading to the movies in town. That
was why they were leaving so early and hurrying toward the streetcar,
laughing loudly." Another aspect of being an existentialist is trying to be
social but always ending up isolated and alone, even if you are in a crowd of
people, you are still mentally alone. We see this existential behavior in a few
different forms. One of which being the fact that his and Maries relationship
is based and ruled solely on physical impulse and physical attraction. When he
met Marie, he noticed her physical beauty and reacted to her touch. He didnt
speak to her much. On page 41 in the text, the point that their relationship is
ruled by physical attraction is proven. "That evening Marie came by to see me
and asked me if I wanted to marry her. I said it didnt 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 didnt mean anything but
that I probably didnt love her. So why marry me then? She said. I explained
to her that it really didnt matter and that if she wanted to, we could get
married. Besides, she was the one who was doing the asking and all I was
saying was yes. Then she pointed out that marriage was a serious thing. I said
No. She stopped talking for a minute and looked at me without saying
anything. Then she spoke. She just wanted to know if I would have accepted
the same proposal from another woman, with whom I was involved in the
same way. I said, Sure. Then she said she wondered if she loved me, and there
was no way I could know about that." Mersault also demonstrates the "trying
to be social but failing" qualities with his friend Raymond. He always seems to
agree with Raymond, and I wonder whether that is to save himself from
actually having to act like a human being and carry on a conversation, or if its
just easier for him to agree than to have an opinion. Maybe he feels his
opinion doesnt matter. Mersault reacts to people rather than actually
interacting. This in itself makes him seem more existential to the "normal"
person. He spends a large amount of the book watching and listening intently
to his surroundings, and a lot of time thinking about things. The final look at
Mersaults existential viewpoints that impact this story is the fact that he tries
to seek meaning in a meaningless life. A lot of things that normally matter to
most people, dont seem to phase Mersault. Such as the fact that Mamans
death was totally meaningless to him. He didnt care when she died, and he
didnt want to see her body one last time before the funeral. This leads the
reader to believe that he is a heartless man. We see the same behavior when
the subject of love and marriage comes up. When Marie asks him whether
hed feel the same way with another woman he kind of shrugs and says sure,
which gives the impression that he doesnt really care. At his trial proceedings
he seems to be interested in what is going on, but after a while it doesnt
matter. He said, "Whatever interest you can get people to take in you doesnt
last very long." In the end, he comes of as being unremorseful about what he
had done. When his trial comes to a close, he reveals that he doesnt believe in
God, that love and faith in some sort of higher being, family and ambition, all
these things can give people reason to believe in God, to love this person, to
want to succeed. Mersault doesnt seem to understand that concept. But I
believe that as Mersaults life was coming to a close, he was finally able to find
meaning in his seemingly meaningless life. I took the following paragraph
from pages 122 123 in the text. "For the first time in a long time I thought
about Maman. I felt as if I understood why at the end of her life she had taken
a fiance, why she had played at the beginning again. Even there, in that home
where lives were fading out, evening was a kind of wistful respite. So close to
death, Maman must have felt free then, ready to live it all again. Nobody,
nobody had the right to cry over her. And I felt ready to live it all again too.
As if that blind rage had washed me clean, rid me of hope for the first time, in
that night alive with signs and stars, I opened myself to the gentle indifference
of the world. Finding it so much like myself-so like a brother really-I felt that
I had been happy and that I was happy again. For everything to be
consummated, for me to feel less alone, I had to only wish that there be a large
crowd of spectators the day of my execution, and that they greet me with cries
of hate." I think that the last paragraphs of the book show that Mersault did
indeed find some sort of meaning at the end of his life. Maybe not a normal
persons definition of meaning, but that of an existentialist. So, in conclusion I
believe that Mersault embarked on an existential journey and that he was able
to find meaning at the end of his life.