The Ignorance Of Misfortunes In Albert Camus The Fall

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Recommended: A thesis on role of the narrator in story telling

The main character of The Fall is Jean-Baptiste Clamence, who is now living a life of misfortune, and continuous judgment after he entered an awakening, to which he accepts any punishment going towards him. The novel begins with Jean presenting himself to “you”, and I say you because the narrator is directly speaking to the reading throughout the novel. It is later revealed that the both of you are in a bar in Amsterdam after the second world war. The narrator explains that he is known for commonly being there, and that he has no better place to be. Later on Jean reveals another thing about his life, that he used to be a very successful lawyer with lots of money, and extremely adored by the public. The awakening he enters is when one day he …show more content…

This is where he presents the theme that individuals only care about themselves and their well fortune, while ignoring the rest of society and helping others in need. In a sense, Camus is criticizing the society in which we live in, by demonstrating the ignorance of individuals without misfortunes. The setting plays a critical role in emphasizing the darkness that is brought upon to theme. An Amsterdam after WWII can be eerie and full of dullness, as a result of defeat, which in turn, reflects the attitude of Jean after he had remembered the death that had occured in the past. The narrator play many roles in the novel, but overall he is presented as a person who is present to vitalize the importance of preserving a society in which no falls …show more content…

Jean is constantly living in fear of him losing his life. As he has become narcissist and believes his life is all that matters. He has also came to realization with an ideology that society has implemented inside of him, which is that man does not take you seriously until you are dead. Therefore the author also enters a contradiction in which he believes his point can be made if he dies. But the complicated mind a Jean enters many different contradictions to which is also believes his death could be misinterpreted, and therefore as a result die in a futile attempt to present a proper images of himself. Much like Jean, Dante is exploring a dark world, which is presented to be hell, and is fearful of joining his acquaintances into a world where everything is destructive. This fear is resembled to Amsterdam in which Jean is fearful of being talked down upon, and eventually killed by the negligence of society, much like how he did to the women he watched drown. "And suddenly - a leopard near the place/the way grew steep...a lion came at me...then a grim she-wolf" this quote from Dante Alighieri in which his symbols represent the different stages and shifts in attitude Jean goes through in the novel. In which, The leopard represents lust, the lion represents pride and the she-wolf represents

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