Meursault's Search For Identity In Hamlet

In classic literature, it’s often quite easy to get lost in the timeline of what you read. This mode of writing is often picked by authors when the narrator or main character tends to get lost in thought. Often, this stylistic choice gives us a better sense of how the character feels– lost in time, confused, or even lacking identity.

Throughout Hamlet, Shakespeare flaunts with intense existential questions. Is life absurd? He plays with the idea of action and consequence. A pensive and vengeful Prince Hamlet finds King Claudius, Prince Hamlet’s murderous uncle, who knows that even faith can’t wash his hands of the blood he spilled killing King Hamlet. Both Prince Hamlet and King Claudius contemplate the idea of Heaven at the altar.

At last,

He tells his lady friend, Marie, and she is excited at the idea of seeing Paris. But, Meursault being Meursault turns down the job without consideration. He is ambivalent about going all the way to Paris and he lacks the ambition and motivation to accept the job offer. Later, Marie proposes marriage to him– but, he doesn’t take it seriously. Meursault thinks that marriage is pointless, as he feels that there’s no real significance behind it– the thought of being bound to somebody for life is absurd to him. Nearing the end of the book, he is imprisoned. In this time, he begins to contemplate his own death, as his execution (for killing the Arab) is inevitable. While in captivity, the chaplain visits him to help him with faith, but Meursault could not be less interested. In fact, he is annoyed by the chaplain’s presence and his attempts to make Meursault a man of faith. As an atheist, he is irritated by this. He asks the chaplain to stop wasting his time, as he only has a little time left. The chaplain continues to talk about God. At last, the seemingly apathetic Meursault explodes with catharsis: “Throughout the whole absurd life I’d lived, a dark wind had been rising toward me from somewhere deep in my future, across years that were still to come, and as it passed, this wind leveled whatever was offered to me at the time, in years no more real than the ones I was living.” (Camus 121). At last, we see

Existentialism makes up every single part of the last three pages of L’Etranger, but this last, impactful line puts the nail in the coffin (death pun not intended). He wants his execution to feel less alone, because he doesn’t want to be the only one to be happy at his death– he wants the spectators to greet him with cries of hate (because he had no reason) so that once he is killed, they are happy, therefore they’re all