My first impression of the quote is that Meursault has lost hope and motivation for life. I feel that Meursault has been through challenging obstacles and he was an earnest person who had desire to succeed. In addition, I wonder how his past could have resulted in him losing his ambition. When he mentions “students”, it reflected how studious and ambitious he was. The word “but” made me disappointed because that words represents the contrast between his past and present life. I thought it was interesting how he described himself as a student instead of a kid or child. As a grown up, he does not have the desire to explore opportunities for growth. He is disinterested in everything and doesn't particularly care about what is happening.
Meursault is an amoral person. He does not think about the choices he makes, but instead he tries to please people that interests him. He was committed to his actions and did not back out on any of them. He didn’t have second thoughts of what he has done. He has helped a thug.(add more here). He has killed an Arab and goes to jail for it. He says, “At first, I didn’t take him seriously. I was led into a curtained room; there was a single lamp on his desk which was shining on a chair where he had me sit while he remained standing in the shadows. I had read descriptions of scenes like this in books and it all seemed like a game to me”(Camus 78). Meursault does not take the interview seriously. He believes he has done nothing wrong. It proves difficult for him to view himself as a criminal because he truly believes in the simplicity of this case---he was at the wrong place at the wrong time, and it was all a matter of absurd luck. He does not believe there is a God in this world. He is now sentenced with the death penalty. Before he died he says, “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 only to wish
Meursault is an isolated and incredibly honest man. He will not lie to save his life. His moods are affected strongly by nature and he is thoroughly independent. Meursault does not accept the idea of God or the conventional idea of happiness. Although it may not appear so, Meursault greatly transforms by the end of the novel.
To begin with, Meursault follows the phrase “existence precedes essence.” Meursault does not follow cultural norms and is defined through his actions. He does not determine himself through a title like his job and believes that “none of it really [matters]” (Camus 41). He does not believe in God and thinks that questions about deities and the universe “[seem] unimportant” (Camus 41). Meursault’s experiences also align themselves with this existential idea. Not only does he not cry at his mother’s funeral, which is important in society, but he kills the Arab for no particular reason. Morality, which many people consider to be a core of what it means to be human, goes hand in hand with the subject of murder. This concern was of no consequence to Meursault. He creates himself and defines the rest of his life with that one action, “knocking four quick times on the door of unhappiness” (Camus 59). Next, Meursault is authentic to himself. Through not “crying once” on the day of Maman’s funeral, Meursault does what he wants rather than sticking to the role of the loyal and loving son. He does not act for the sake of duty or what society tells him to do, he is true to the life he has created for himself. Finally, in The Stranger, Meursault encounters anxiety and nothingness which lead him to an existential realization. In the final scene of the novel, he angrily tells the priest that “none of his certainties was worth one hair on a woman’s head” (Camus 120). Here, he realizes that defining one’s life through facts like religion is not enough and that without it, the priest is nothing. The only path to meaning is through simple, real existence. In this moment, facing his death and nothingness, Meursault truly realizes that “nothing, nothing [matters]” (Camus 121). So, in true existentialist fashion, Meursault accepts the way he has lived
Because of its omnipresent and inevitable nature, the sun is cleverly chosen to symbolize societal pressure and to metaphorically represent life. Through the use of this symbolism, the novel leads the reader to understanding and appreciating the implications of existentialism. In the final stage of Meursault’s life, he is content in realising that the universe is irrational, and that it is absurd that humans seek a rational order in life. It is interesting to note the contradicting ideas here. While Meursault realises that the universe is chaotic and irrational, he is content. Though he acknowledges the fact that the universe has no sun and is therefore irrational, he is able to find comfort as he is illuminated by the power of existentialism.
...he world, which causes him to encounter a form of enlightenment that makes him come to realization of the true world. The realization of the world sprouts the idea that the universe is indifferent and life has no true meaning. Because Meursault realizes that the universe is indifferent to people and that he makes no importance to the world, he is reborn to a life that makes sense to him. The nonexistent emotions from the first part and the outburst of emotions from the second part cause a juxtaposition of Meursault as a character in the two sections. Camus uses elemental diction and sentence structure to portray this change in character and his acceptance of the universe around him. He accepts his death, finding that his life is truly meaningless, and believes that his life is a model for the philosophical ideas that he has come in terms with.
Meursault is very much like someone autistic. Autism is a developmental disorder which affects a person’s communication skills, social restrictions and behavior. Like people with autism, Meursault doesn’t know when to show emotions nor think they are important. You can see this pattern in Meursault when he is informed about his mother’s passing. It does not seem to affect him at all and shows this by saying “Maman died today. Or yesterday maybe, I don’t know” (Camus 3).
The main character of this novel is a man that has become misunderstood till the end. He doesn’t see the little things behind everything. He just goes with whatever is said, not disagreeing, but leaving the decision making to you. Meursault sent his mother away because he couldn’t personally care for her needs. He later learned that everyone frowned down upon him, for that. Meursault doesn’t feel sad that his mother died because they had no relationship. They didn’t talk, he didn’t visit her, and they learned how to live without each other. They both had their own lives. The last line of chapter one is significant because Meursault implies that nothing has changed in his life due to his mother dying. He spent the weekend mourning and come tomorrow, he’ll be at work.
Meursault does not care for objects in his world. He does not see the importance of certain words whose definitions attempt to explain human relationships either amongst themselves or their emotions in general. He does not follow 'conventional' social beliefs nor does he believe in God, nor salvation. Meursault however loves his life. It is a pure love derived from enjoying his existence on a day-to-day basis, rarely looking back and never looking forward. His love is not dependent on doing what society or some religion has deemed correct, but on what he feels he wants to do despite what most would consider common.
Meursault’s careless attitude affects the people around and his relationship with those characters. When he and Marie begin their romance, he doesn’t reall...
...re is no inherent meaning in life - its entire value lies in living itself. Meursault feels he has been happy, and longs to live. When he must die, he wants a crowd to greet him "with cries of hate"; they are screaming because they want life and the world to have meaning; they need this because that is what their entire existence is built upon. As the magistrate asked of Meursault, "Do you want my life to be meaningless?" Meursault understands how estranged the individual truly is from society. Until the conclusion, he was a stranger to himself as well as to the rest of the world. In the end, he opens himself "to the gentle indifference of the world," and "finding it so much like myself, - like a brother really," feels he has been happy, and is again. Society finds this unacceptable, and by refusing to conform to its face-value standards, Meursault must die.
During the culmination of the The Stranger, Meursault essentially proclaims his absurd notion regarding his view of the world – nothing really matters, we all live and we all die, and essentially what we do before we die is in the end irrelevant – and this belief of his further substantiates the logical argument that he could most plausibly be considered an absurd protagonist. Meursault eventually acknowledges the belief that one’s current life is quite synonymous to one’s future death, which is Camu’s existentialist belief portrayed via Meursault. Furthermore, he also asserts that one will only find genuine happiness in life if and only if one attempts to find the meaning in life without the motivation of the almighty, or any other type of
...hat society makes people have a closed mind. Meursault wants these people to notice that a person can be alienated from the customs of the society but yet still can live a justifiable life.
This notion disagrees with the idea of revolt which sees life as hopeless and vain, “Actually, I was sure of myself, sure about everything, far surer than he; sure of my present life and of the death that was coming. That, no doubt, was all I had;” (Camus 74). Meursault realizes that his life meant something despite the uninvolved way he lived it. The hope of human interchangeability is pathetic as Meursault argues in this scene. Having his life planned out for the remainder of his existence made him all the more appreciate and see that it was all he had to look forward to. Arguing that to live for some meaning in some other supposed life is to not live at
...everyone is surrounded by death. Camus explains that life isn’t about what is not envisioned, but it’s about what is evident. Meursault’s feeling of apathy is directly related to his conviction that life lacks necessary order and meaning, “As if that blind rage had washed me clean, rid me of hope…I opened myself to the gentle indifference of the world,” as he awaits his impending death, he finally recognizes that life is the most complex entity in the universe and one only has one life to live, so live it wisely (122). In the end, Meursault changed spiritually because he didn’t concentrate as much on the physical world because while he was in prison, he thought about life’s gifts and (although still atheist) realizes that faith in yourself and life is very important. There is also some irony here; he finally realizes the meaning of live just as he awaits his death.
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