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Non-Conformity In Albert Camus's The Stranger

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A society contained to a set of principles punishes the non-conformers this is what sociology calls social control; when conformity is rewarded, and non-conformity is punished. This is represented in Albert Camus ' The Stranger aptly named as Meursault the main character doesn 't abide by general societal norms and rather than getting convicted for the murder he did commit he feels he is sentenced because of not loving his mother as society expects and, in a way, he is. Through Meursault 's actions of killing the unnamed Arab, helping Raymond, not grieving his mother, and having no true wants but basic primal necessities the reader can consider him immoral or evil from his violence; however, with the full presentation of his character which the reader experiences, as Meursault is the narrator, when he is imprisoned the reader reacts more sympathetically than they would if they had been one of the jury members.

From the beginning of The Stranger, the reader understands Meursault is a complex character. The very first line of the book is, "Maman died today. Or yesterday maybe, I don 't know," (pg. 3). This introduces Meursault and his emotional indifference extremely well and sets the precedence for the entire book. By focusing on a trivial detail rather than how she died or expressing his grief the reader doesn 't connect to Meursault. He goes on to say it doesn 't mean anything, referring to the telegram 's information; however, it 's almost conveyed in a way that the
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