The Stranger Essay - 1048 Words

Albert Camus influential novel, The Stranger, a great work of existentialism, examines the absurdity of life and indifference of the world. This paper provides a summary of the novel, and outlines some of the novels main themes. The novels protagoinist, Meursault, is a distanced and indifferent young man. He does not believe in God, and lives his life with seemingly sensuous abandon. After Meursault is caught up in the life of a local pimp, he rather inexplicably murders a young man on the beach, and is put on trial. In a ridiculous and seemingly arbitrary trial, he is essentially tried and found guilty for failing to adhere to societys beliefs and morals. It is during this trial that Meursault comes to terms with the absurdity†¦show more content†¦There he meets Marie Cardona, who he frolics with in the water. Later, although Marie is somewhat disturbed at the death of Meursaults mother, she agrees to see a comedy with him that evening. The next morning, Meursault en joys lunch on the balcony, and amuses himself by watching people pass by. On Monday, Meursault goes to work. He joins his friend Emmanuel for lunch, takes a nap and returns to work. After work to runs into his neighbor Salamano and his dog. He also encounters Raymond, who is rumored to be a pimp, and they discuss Raymonds cheating girlfriend, and his conflict with an Arab. The rest of the week continues in the same manner, with Meursault attending the movies with Emmanuel, and a swimming with Marie. They play in the water again, and she asks him if he loves her, to which he replies that it didnt mean anything but that I didnt think so (p. 38). They are interrupted by the loud noises from a fight between Raymond and his girlfriend. Salamano notes that he has lost his dog, and cries with grief. Meursault receives a phone call from Raymond work, that notes is continuing conflict with the Arabs. In the evening, Marie asks Meursault if you will marry her, even though he notes that he does not love her. Later, Marie and Meursault need to Raymonds and his friend on the beach. They encounter to Arabs, a fight begins, and Raymond is slightly hurt. Later in the evening, Meursault encountersShow MoreRelatedThe Stranger1548 Words   |  7 PagesAlbert Camus creates a series of characters in The Stranger whose personality traits and motivations mirror those that are overlooked by the average man. Camus develops various characters and scenarios that are considered rude and unpleasant, but because it has become common, society accepts it as norms. Camus incorporates atrocious personality traits of the characters, variety, consistency, and everyone’s fate through the creation of the characters. Camus demonstrates the disregarded reason behindRead MoreStranger2325 Words   |  10 PagesDiscussion Questions for The Stranger (1946); translated by Matthew Ward, 1988. Part One Chapter 1. 1. How does Camus set up Meursaults personality -- how does Meursault respond to others conversation, to ordinary social situations, and to the death of his mother? 2. On page 10, Meursault says that at the viewing of his mother, he felt as if the elderly people there were judging him. Offer a conjecture about why he might have had that feeling. (It is worth paying attention to such references toRead More The Stranger Essay879 Words   |  4 PagesThe Stranger The Stranger exhibits a society that has confined itself with a specific set of social standards that dictate the manner in which people are supposed to act. This ideology determines the level of morality, and how much emphasis should placed on following this certain ethical structure. Albert Camuss main character, Meursault, is depicted as a nonconformist that is unwilling to play societys game. Through Meursaults failure to comply with societys values and conform toRead MoreMetamorphosis And The Stranger1288 Words   |  6 Pagesexistence. The Metamorphosis, written by Kafka in 1915, follows a traveling salesman who struggles with his purpose in life. Similar to that story, Camus’s The Stranger, published in 1942, details the unnecessary undoing of an Algerian man who follows his own morals, not society’s morals. Within Kafka s The Metamorphosis and Camus s The Stranger, the characters isolation in society, illogical thoughts without real reasoning, and freedom to choose reflect the concept of Existentialism by illustratingRead MoreExistentialism In The Stranger1413 Words   |  6 PagesThe novel, The Stranger, written by French author Albert Camus, is a philosophical fiction piece published in 1942. This book used both Existentialism and Absurdism to promote Meursault s problem throughout the book. Both of these are related to Modernism, which was the aftermath of the industrial revolution. â€Å"Modernism is a phil osophical movement that along with cultural trends and changes arose wide-scale and far reaching transformations in western society during the late 19th and early 20th century†(KoofersRead MoreEssay The Stranger754 Words   |  4 Pages nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Albert Camus’ The Stranger, is told by narrarator, Meursault . Our speaker seems to be a person detached from feelings, he shows no emotion. Neither the external world in which Meursault lives nor the internal world of his thoughts and attitudes possesses any rational order. He doesn’t have reasons for doing half of the things he does. For these reasons I believe Meursault is determined, but doesn’t know it. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Our protagonist and narraratorRead More The Stranger Essay962 Words   |  4 PagesThe Stranger The Stranger was originally written in French. When Stuart Gilbert translated the novel, he came across a small problem. â€Å"The title of Camus’ classic novel is difficult to render into English because the French word bears the connotations of both ‘stranger’ and ‘foreigner’ at the same time, and each of these concepts is at play in the novel.† (Mairowitz1) Finding the right translation was crucial because the title is symbolic. â€Å"The Stranger symbolizes the theme of theRead More The Stranger Essay1496 Words   |  6 PagesAlbert Camus creates a series of characters in The Stranger whose personality traits and motivations mirror those that are overlooked upon by the average man. Camus develops various characters and scenarios that show true humanity which tends to have been ignored due to the fact of how typical it has become. Camus incorporates abominable personality traits of the characters, variety, consistency, and every one’s fate. Camus demonstrates the disregarded reason behind the origins of relationships betweenRead MoreThe Stranger Essay963 Words   |  4 PagesThe Stranger Chris Drusbosky 3/5/12 Professor Krauss In the story â€Å"The Stranger† by Albert Camus, the belief that the themes of loss and retrieval are at the core of Mersault’s mythology, and that they illumine the notion of exile to which he returns so often is widely discussed. I however do not believe that either one of those themes has anything to do with the Mersault and the exile to which he returns to so often, rather I believe that Mersault’s own attitude is the reason for the exileRead MoreAnalysis Of The Book The Stranger 1191 Words   |  5 PagesThe Characterization of Meursault in The Stranger In The Stranger, the author Albert Camus, initially portrays Meursault as a monotonous character lacking emotions toward the events surrounding his life. Meursault reflects indifference at the thought of his girlfriend s proposal in addition to not demonstrating empathy in relation to Raymond s abusive actions toward his girlfriend. Even so, Meursault s character gradually develops from a detached individual to a dynamic person as secondary characters