Camu and the True Artist

Also in this essay Woolfolk shows what Camus thinks of writing as free process without limitations. Finally, Woolfolk gives different examples and counter arguments of Camus' thoughts of Marxism and Christianity.

Camus stresses the role of true writers. He says that writers have to understand not to judge circumstances, situations, and atmospheres around them. Also, writers have to be able to say "No" to some experiences and historical events especially violence.

Woolfolk reveals Camus' rejection to the limitations forced upon writers by authorities. Camus refers to such limitations as political engagement where he sees a lot of dangers on the different segments of society, precisely "victims of social injustice."

Woolfolk considers Camus' rejection to engagement of art by politics. Woolfolk states the reasons of Camus' rejection to political engagement. One of the most important is: "it threatened to overwhelm the higher discipline that art represented in distracting immediacies of struggle for power." In addition, Camus sees as a writer that "his work must serve as evidence of judging the effect of engagement'. Also, Woolfolk talks about art's incoherence and its danger within the person himself and within society.

Woolfolk reveals the counter idea in which art is taking control and containing politics. He gives many examples. For instance, George Orwell, who believes in the attempts of European literature to widen imagination so that it can contain political movements.

Woolfolk gives us a very important example on the first story that crossed political engagement as Camus' thinks. Also, Woolfolk describes why Camus refuses political engagement, because it resets upon the way revolutionaries forget their promises when they become in power.

Woolfolk discusses the reasons for rejection of Marxism by Camus. Camus rejects Marxism because it is like Christianity, where both put the human in historical world rather than a normal one and he says that "Marxism repeats the mistake of Christianity." Moreover; Camus refuses Marxism because of the sacrifice people have to pay in order to benefit in the future, which is another form of violence against humanity, "Marx accepted the necessity of misery and violence in the name of the future."

Moreover, Camus refuses forcing people in the name of authority. Camus rejects judgment and forms of power since they limit arts and prevent writers from being creative and limits their intellectual strategies. Also, Camus questions the relation ship between power and religion and wonder about their unity.