Heroism In Albert Camus's The Plague

A hero is someone who helps others in a time of need, helps others out of genuineness, and sacrifices their life for others. In Albert Camus, The Plague, Joseph Grand is identified as a hero because he brings salvation to the society of Oran. Grand is a municipal clerk in Oran, and when the plague hits, is asked to help out with keeping count of people. Without questioning it, Grand begins and continues to help the citizens of Oran. Joseph Grand’s authenticity and heroism are manifested through relieving suffering, sacrifice, and devoting his life to work. Joseph Grand 's core value of heroism manifests through relieving suffering out of genuineness. Grand is a municipal clerk in the town of Oran. He is never promoted from his job throughout

Although Grand is fairly old, he still manages to help Tarrou create and maintain the sanitary squads. Knowing that the plague is incurable and deadly, Grand refuses to do nothing to help. Rieux comments on how Grand sacrifices his time to help others, “All he had asked was to be allotted light duties: he was too old for anything else. He could give his time from six to eight every evening” (134). While Grand knew he was not able to do much to help combat the plague, he still persisted and handled any task that was given to him. Another example of Grand sacrificing his time for others is when he calls Rieux because of Cottard, his neighbor. When Grand finds suspicious writing on a door, he decides to go in and check if everything is okay. When he finds Cottard hanging himself, he helps him get down. In his call to Rieux, Grand says “‘Thanks, Doctor, for remembering me. But this time it’s somebody else. The man next door has had an accident. Please come at once” (18). Grand could have easily ignored the sign on the door and went about his day, but he sacrificed time out of his day to help someone who was in need. By sacrificing his time and life for others, Grand helped save multiple lives in Oran. The sacrifices Grand makes for the people of Oran add to his core value of authenticity and heroism. Not only does Grand make many sacrifices for Oran, but he also is very

Grand tells Rieux about how he married a young woman named Jeanne when he was a teenager. He explains to Rieux that this marriage failed due to his devotion to work. Rieux explains his account of the conversation, “As the head of the office where Grand was employed hadn’t kept his promise, Jeanne, too, had to work outside...he gradually lost his grip of himself, had less and less to say, and failed to keep alive the feeling in his wife that she was loved” (82). Even as a young man, Grand was committed to working very hard as a clerk. Grand works as a municipal clerk in Oran, and when the plague hits, he is given the job to tally all the deaths in the town. Without complaining, Grand takes on the job and helps Rieux by recording the data. This information is crucial to help save people in the town and create sanitary squads. Rieux comments on the rigorous work Grand completes everyday, “...nonetheless, he went on adding up the figures and compiling the statistics needed for the sanitary groups. Patiently every evening he brought his totals up to date, illustrated them with graphs, and racked his brains to present his data in the most exact, clearest form” (137). Even though no one is forcing him to, Grand spends a lot of time willingly helping others combat the plague. With his hard work and commitment to helping others, Grand helps save the lives of many in