During the beginning of the novel, Meursault goes to his neighbor Raymond’s house. The visit results into a physical fight due to insults made towards Meursault. Relating to aspects on violence, this scene was made to show simple
One of the most important passages within the novel is when Meursault repeatedly defies the chaplain in the cell. It serves as a pinnacle for the entire story, and grants readers a look into the main characters state of mind. In this passage, Meursault comes to a dramatic realization of who he is through an existential epiphany, and with thorough analysis the overall significance of the passage to the story is revealed. In the passage the chaplain visits Meursault much to Meursault’s displeasure.
Meursault shows his lack of emotional attachment to people: "I explained to him, however, that my nature was such that my physical needs often got in the way of my feelings"( page 41). Meursault shows the regrets of his nature but also, at the same time, explains that it’s not going to change. Rather than focusing on finding someone to spend his life with, Meursault would rather find someone who can always keep him pampered. Meursault again shows his regret for his actions when he says, "I wanted to try to explain to him that it was because of the sun, the sea, the light, in fact, everything, that I had simply loved him with no personal motive" (Page 68). Meursault shows his lack of care for those whom he loved, but at the same time shows that Meursault might not be able to fully control what he does, but rather does everything out of impulse, therefore making him regret his actions in some situations.
Meursault constantly has varying thoughts dancing around his mind, one of which is the environment. The environment is behind all of Meursault’s struggles and problems in his mental world and interferes with his physical world as well, causing him to think that the world is irrational. Holden’s attitude toward the world is particularly similar to Meursault’s because nihilism and absurdism are quite similar. Both believe that the world is irrational and out to get them. The only difference between the two is that Meursault discovers that even though he believes that the world manipulated him and demanded to kill the
(3), suggest that Meursault was not very close to his mother. These two sentences are the first impressions of Meursault. This point it is where readers can notice something is indeed wrong with him. The disconnection between Meursault and his mother provokes a hatred towards Meursault, especially from the prosecutor. The prosecutor argues against Meursault for his relationship with his mother than for his actual crime.
The battle for existence is what drives Meursault to connect more to the physical world. In The Stranger by Albert Camus, there’s a young, detached man named Meursault living in French Algiers. At the beginning of the novel, Meursault receives a telegram, which informs him of his mother’s death. He acts calm during and after the funeral and frolics around with his girlfriend, Marie. While on the beach with his friends, they are suddenly confronted by Arabs and get into a fight.
The Stranger, written by Albert Camus, It follows the story of our tragic hero, Meursault, shortly after his mother dies through the events that lead to him being sentenced to death. Camus uses the motif of weather to express Meursault’s emotions. The Stranger shows how even when a person does not explicitly express emotion they are shown in some way. How emotions are expressed is a window to a person's personality. I will first discuss how Meursault appears emotionless, than how Camus uses the motif of weather to express Meursault’s emotions for him and lastly what impact this makes.
Meursault’s apathy for his mother’s death, isolation and indifference to others, and disregard for interpersonal relationships negatively impact his trial and eventually bring his demise. His character traits make him into a cold, heartless man, which serves as the basis for the prosecutor’s argument during the trial. Meursault is repeatedly condemned for showing no emotion and feeling no remorse, both for the death of this mother and killing someone. His detached attitude leads him to make little effort to defend himself in the court. His neglect of relationships with his mother provides testament for the prosecution that he is a monster.
Meursault’s lack of morality due to his corruption by society is what eventually lead to his isolation from the world and those he
He is unable to make ration and irrational decisions when using the gun and he is unable to think clearly. All of his action when the sun is on him reflects his ignorant to recognize himself and a driving force to commit crimes. Meursault’s actions are not done by him thinking, but more when the sun reflects makes Meursault more motivated to take action. The reason
It is in these bizarre acts that the others deem Meursault a stranger. His disregard for social constructions presents the views of the existentialist philosophy. Love is known to be deception by existential theory due to one’s desire to have someone else love him or her. Also, as mentioned before, Meursault’s conviction in God’s nonexistence makes him detached not only concerning death, but also to love, morals (Meursault also befriends his neighbor, who is also thought to be a pimp by others), and other basic human conceptions. When new friend-the pimp- asks for his help to embarrass his ex-girlfriend, Meursault again with any consideration agrees to something that would have normally been thought of as insane, and does not contemplate that there may be consequences for this agreement.
(59) After long passages describing the painful violence of the sun, Camus’s transition into the murder is shockingly abrupt, provoking a sense of bewilderment at the unexpected randomness of the murder, conveying effectively the irrationality of Meursault’s murder of the man. However, during the trial, when Meursault reveals that he murdered the Arab only because of the sun, refusing to allow others impose their logical but false interpretations upon his life, “people laughed” (103) and even his own “lawyer threw up his hand” (103) as they are unable comprehend and accept such an irrational motivation. To protect themselves from this harsh reality of the universe, they can only fabricate and impose their own logical explanation for Meursault’s behavior. The prosecutor, for instance, is convinced Meursault murdered the man in cold blood, certain in the narrative he has constructed out of events completely unrelated to the murder, from Meursault’s “ignorance when asked Maman’s age” (99) to his association with a man of “doubtful morality” (99). In both cases, Meursault’s indifference for societal standards of morality has painted him as a man immoral and cold-hearted enough to premeditate the murder.
It can be quite easy to make assumptions about one’s character upon first glance or first encounter, but often these first assumptions are not a direct representation of a person’s true disposition. In the short story, “The Diary of a Madman” by Guy de Maupassant, an esteemed magistrate is being remembered for the model citizen he was, having lived a life that no one could subject to criticism. However, a notary uncovered his diary in a drawer in his home, in which he entailed his tendencies and cravings for murder that no one had expected of him. Within this text, the author uses the character of the magistrate to convey the theme that one’s true character cannot be decided from external appearance or actions. From the beginning of the text, it is made evident that this man was revered as the most well-respected judge in all of France.
Meursault notices that during the trial, “there was a lot said about [him], maybe more about [him] than about [his] crime” (98). By having Meursault 's personality be the focal point of the courtroom 's dialogue, Camus implies that Meursault 's persona plays a crucial role in his trial. Instead of focusing on the murder of the Arab, the prosecutor repeatedly mentions Meursault 's "dubious liaison"(94), his "insensitivity" (99) during Maman’s funeral, and his friendship with Raymond, who is a man "of doubtful morality" (99). Through the emphasis on Meursault 's -according to society- 'immoral ' ways, the prosecutor eliminates any sort of sympathy the jury has for Meursault. Following Marie 's testimony, the prosecutor once again exhibits his confidence that bias against Meursault will stem from hearing about his behaviour.
Everything he will say; the magistrate will not believe him, he even feels there is no need for a lawyer because he thinks everything he does, is right and there is not something to question. He comes to understand that he trying to find meaning in his own life, make him impotent to society’s eyes, he only murdered an Arab and that is it. During the trial, there are investigators that learn that Meursault does not feel any remorse at his mother funeral. As Meursault does not have any evidence why he kills the Arab man, the lawyer thinks that it will be a strong argument if Meursault can come up with some answers for the questions. The investigator asks,” If I had felt any sadness that day” (Camus 65).
