Throughout The Stranger the reader can sense Meursault’s detachment from society. One could describe Meursault and society as diametrically opposed. His cold shoulder towards society and refusing to conform leads him ultimately to his downfall. Meursault challenges society and it’s moral values by not expressing sadness about his mother's death, not loving his fiancee Marie, committing murder, and much more. Due to this protagonist's seemingly immoral values, society views him as a threat.
From the very beginning of the novel, the reader can sense Meursault's psychological disconnect. The opening line of The Stranger reads, “Maman died today. Or yesterday maybe, I don’t know. I got a telegram from the home: “Mother deceased. Funeral tomorrow.
He has an indifference towards human life and refuses to play society’s game. Meursault can feel there is something different about him but cannot be fully aware of his life. This fact can be seen originally at his mother's funeral. At the funeral everyone crowds together, mourning his mother's death, but he could not relate to anyone. Meursault is aware that he does not live up to society's standards when it comes to interactions with others. Throughout his trial, he can see society judging him through his jury and the people who watch his execution. When Meursault is in jail he starts to see society differently. He cannot come to terms with the fact that society sees him as a criminal. As Meursault’s execution day nears the reader can see a change in emotion. Throughout the book, the closest he comes to being angry is a feeling of annoyance and the closest he comes to being happy is when he feels content; but towards the end he can be seen showing actual emotion. He screams with cries of joy and anger at the chaplin which is the most emotion the reader sees from Meursault. The reader can sense a feeling of acceptance flowing through Meursault. Instead of being indifferent to society, Meursault finally accepts society, even though he is different and does not
Efforts to engage Meursault in secular structures of meaning are equally futile. When Meursault's boss offers Meursault a position in Paris, he expects Meursault to embrace the opportunity for career advancement. Meursault, though, lacks all ambition and turns down the boss' offer without considering it. As a student, Meursault recalls, "I had lots of ambitions…But when I had to give up my studies I learned very quickly that none of it really mattered." When Marie asks Meursault whether he wants to marry her, she expects him to take the institution of marriage seriously. Yet Meursault is indifferent towards it, thinks "it didn't mean anything" to love a person, and agrees to marry Marie simply because she wants to marry him. Though he grows fond of her, he doesn't cultivate any attachment to her more meaningful than superficial attraction. Throughout his trial, Meursault is equally bemused by the meaninglessness of the justice system and finds its attempts to impose rational, meaningful structure on his actions ridiculous. He considers the guilty verdict he eventually receives entirely arbitrary, and describes its "certainty" as "arrogant."
The title The Stranger sums up the novel into two words. Meursault acts mentally, physically, and emotionally strange to the reader. Only because Albert Camus made Meursault so isolated. Many humans show emotions on everyday things, and that is why Meursault would be considered strange because he does not act as we would say a normal human should.
In part one of “The Stranger”, the sentences are short, choppy and nondescriptive. Description and detail in the this part of the writing are devoted only to those things that seem unimportant, like coffee or the weather. An example of this style occurs on page 31 when Raymond is describing his plans for revenge on his mistress, “But that wasn’t what he wanted. He was going to think about it. But first he wanted to ask me something” (Camus, 31). In terms of length and vocabulary, there isn’t much variety between these three sentences. This gives the impression that Meursault is not looking into his situation very deeply and is extremely passive about the events he is being presented to. This is contrasted greatly in part two as Meursault is ...
Albert Camus used The Stranger to develop the idea of a singular, solely physical life. This development was established through the protagonist, Meursault, and his thoughts. To some, Meursault’s philosophy may seem to some extent, a madness. Needless to say, Meursault is a sociopath, incapable of understanding the how and why of what he does. His mental defect contributed to the story’s plot as a whole and also encouraged the reader to reevaluate or reinforce their personal beliefs.
Meursault (the narrator) in The Stranger only sees and only wants to see the absolute truth in society. The readers first encounter with him...
The Stranger reflects the anxiety and concerns of the time period through the tension between the old hopes of religion and the cold reason of stark reality. In the midst of the build up and eruption of conflict with the Second World War, with novel being published in 1942, the unraveling of the control of religion and the marked devaluation of human life brought a number of the old hopes and old crutches of faith into question. The novel opens with “Mother died today. Or maybe yesterday.” This blunt lack of importance placed on death is used against Meursault in his trial by the prosecutor. The prosecutor so lashes out at the protagonist on his lack of acceptance of the standards of emotional response and moral expectations on this social norm that Meursault’s defense attorney demands, “Is my client on trial for burying his mother or for killing a man?” Camus’s implication is that the man is on trial for all these rejections of the norms. The prosecutor is the society and the group mind of the people struggling with these tensions. Later in the opening paragraphs, Meursault notes “mother had never given thought to religion in her life.” He then chooses to have a drink next to the coffi...
... mother, he does not react in a way most people do. He does not cry but instead accepts what has happened and realizes that he can not change it. He goes back and does physical things he would do on a normal day. When the caretaker offers him coffee, he accepts it, he smokes a cigarette and has sex with a woman he just met. Meursault also does not lie to escape death. He refuses to conform to society and lie. He would rather be seen as an outsider than do something that he does not believe in. Finally, Meursault, will not believe in G-d or Christianity just because it is the only thing to turn to before he is put to death. When Meursault decides not to cry at his mother’s funeral, he accepts himself as an outsider. When he is considered an outsider, it does not matter if he is guilty or innocent; at the end of the day he guilty just for being different.
His beliefs began to form during his experience of World War II and after the terrors of the war; many other people believed that the human existence had no meaning. The Stranger could be classified as an existentialist novel because the protagonist of the story, Meursault, also seems to have existentialist beliefs. Meursault is a character that is very out of touch with the world. His attitude and morals were not accepted by the people of the society in the story, which leads to his death sentence. When people deal with a death, they grieve by crying or showing some type of sad emotion.
In The Stranger, Albert Camus describes the life of the protagonist, Meursault, through life changing events. The passage chosen illustrates Meursault’s view during his time in prison for killing the Arab. In prison, one can see the shifts in Meursault’s character and the acceptance of this new lifestyle. Camus manipulates diction to indicate the changes in Meursault caused by time thinking of memories in prison and realization of his pointless life. Because Camus published this book at the beginning of World War II, people at this time period also questions life and death similar to how Meursault does.
...according to him, a man who is morally guilty of killing his mother severs himself from society in the same way as a man who raises a murderous hand against the father who begat him.” This quote is telling how society input their feelings and ideas onto Meursault. The persecutor compares Meursault emotionless and lack on remorse for his killing the same as a person killing their own father. 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, drives, or thoughts of remorse for his murder. Lastly, when the chaplain visits Meursault against his wishes, this scene showed how society expects everyone to ask for forgiveness from god when near death. Meursault then thinks it is absurd and refused to believe in him because he says it’s ridiculous and there’s no time at all.
...ists, Meursault has his own values which are incompatible to the values of the world. Values that would be very significant for most people, such as love for someone or suffering at a parent’s death, do not matter to him, at least not on a sentimental level. He simply does not care that his mother is dead, or that Marie loves him:
In Albert Camus’ absurdist novel, The Stranger, Meursault’s detachment from society and his killing of the Arab reveal moral and ethical implications for him and his society. As is common in many absurdist novels, Camus discusses the estrangement - and later development - of an individual in a benign and indifferent universe, one in which conformity prevails. Camus not only satirizes the conformity of society, but religion and the legal system as well. By writing in the first person (from the standpoint of Meursault), he draws in the reader, making the evils of society more prevalent.
The main character of The Stranger Meursault is much like Sisyphus, the man who was cursed with absurdity to push a boulder up a mountain every time it rolled down. This describes Meursault’s life and the events that take place during the novel including the death of his mother, his relationship with Marie, writing the letter for Raymond, swimming with his friends, killing the Arab, the trials, his imprisonment, talking with the chaplain, and his inevitable demise.
All in all, the many points that were made, displays more than enough evidence of why the novel is called "The Stranger" and who "The Stranger" was exactly. Again, the book is titled "The Stranger" because through out the story, it is based around a man who seems very different from other people. Especially since he believes the idea of the meaninglessness of human existence. His motives, his ideology, and his way of life are different from others, and because of this, it makes him a Stranger. This character, Meursault, is alienated and divided from the rest of society. He is detached from the world which makes him emotionless throughout the story, like during his mother's death to Marie asking him if he loves her. In the end, Meursault always will seem like "The Stranger" to both the readers and society.
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.