Comparing The Stranger To Anthem, By Albert Camus

Equality 7-2521, who decides to change his name to Prometheus in the final chapters of the novella, had his own vision of a perfect society. Upon discovering “I” while he is reading in the house, Equality 7-2521 becomes aware that he is the center of his own universe, and nobody has control over his actions now. He says, “I understood that centuries of chains and lashes will not kill the spirit of man nor the sense of truth within him” (Rand 58). It is clear that he would never include any of the rules that were present in his past society in his new and improved one. Equality 7-2521 completely let go of his old life and refused to be held back among the masses. Equality 7-2521’s curse that was always frowned upon finally was looked at in a positive way. He is unafraid and proud, finally discovering himself and becoming his own man.

At the end of the story, Equality 7-2521 wants to live in a world without the rules and controls the council has set forth. Equality 7-2521 re-invents electricity, surpassing the best Scholars in his society. As well, Equality 7-2521's brilliance continues, as shown as at the end of the novel, when he’s writing philosophies on the meaning of life. The story proves that even though society is equal, human creativity creates a more diverse way of life.

The struggle of Equality 7-2521 is that he is positive that everything the government is doing is wrong. He finally realizes all of the wrong doings in his world. He first discovers an underground railroad. He realizes all of the amazing things that is out there that his world isn’t allowed to know about. He takes in that everything he has been raised thinking is all wrong. At first he becomes confused of why his world would do this. All these laws are placed because the government wanted a perfect world. What they think is perfect is the total opposite of perfect. You are selected into your job and department. You have no name, all you have is what category you are in and some numbers after. Those numbers are there just so you can know who one another is. Men can’t love women. Women can’t love men. They want everyone to be happy and not go through

Equality 7-2521, the main character of Anthem, lives in a society where everything is controlled by the government. There is no individuality; every person refers to themself as “we.” After finding a secret tunnel, Equality 7-2521 escapes here to write about himself and his childhood stories. Although he knows that he is breaking the law, he states that he feels guilt for his actions. As Equality 7-2521 writes about his childhood, it is discovered that he never wanted to be a street sweeper; his desire in life was to be a scholar so that he could explore and learn things about life. He remembers an instance where someone was executed for using the word “I”. Equality 7-2521 believed that he was called to be the next Transgressor. During the nights, he experiments in his tunnel. One night, he discovered electricity. While Equality 7-2521 is at work, he sees a young woman whom he referred to as the “Golden One.” Although the laws forbid men and women from speaking to each other, Equality

To start off, Equality7-2521 is self-centered and is probably the most self-centered character in this book. This trait that he possesses sets him apart from mostly everyone in his society. From a very young age he recognized that he was different and he knew that unlike the others he wanted to learn and wanted his questions to be answered. He broke his very first rule at a young age. This rule was not to wish for a certain career because the council of vocations knows where you are needed amongst your brothers and sisters. (Chapter 1 page 22)

“...we waited for the earth to rise and strike us in the face. But we ran. We knew not where we were going. We knew only that we must run, run to the end of our days.”-Equality 7-2521 in Ayn Rand’s Anthem. Equality 7-2521 was always been different. He wanted to become a scholar but became a street sweeper instead. One day he meets Liberty 5-3000. They fall in love but this against the law. When Equality discovers electricity he show the council of scholars. The council disapproves of his ideas and Equality runs away to the forest. Liberty secretly followed. They find a house in the forest and start a new life together. Doing this Equality 7-2521 shows that he is a complex character with character traits such as determination, curiosity, and

Throughout the novel, Equality 7-2521 grows farther and farther from the society in which he lived. With the discovery of the tunnel, he begins spending less time with his peers and more time alone making discoveries. After he is exiled, he grows even further apart by changing his name to Prometheus, who stole fire from the gods and gave it to humans, very similar to what Equality 7-2521 did to bring electricity the civilization. When Equality 7-2521 reads the books in the house and discovers the word “I”, he finally completely detaches himself from his past society, and begins living individually, not collectively with his brothers. From the beginning of the story Equality 7-2521 believes that he is evil and struggles to realize that he isn’t evil.

Equality believes that while concerning oneself, each person has their own choice of thought and will, and he believes in operating a new society based upon those morals. Written in Ayn Rand’s own words, the story says, “I guard my treasures: my thought, my will, my freedom. And the greatest if these is freedom” (Rand 95-96).This quote illustrates how the main character believes that the most cherished possession is autonomy. Despite the fact that Equality 7-2521 has been sheltered against the beliefs of independence, he still manages to find freedom regardless of the government’s continuous strains to prevent him from becoming himself.

During his time in the community, Equality 7-2521 continues to trust the beliefs he has been taught as a child, which shapes most of his character in the beginning of the story. Afterward, when Equality is introduced to the things of the Unmentionable Times, he goes against the rules he’s been taught and sneaks out to study the information from that period. During this time, Equality 7-2521 starts to question the beliefs of the community and strives to learn beyond what he’s been taught. Near the end of the novella, Equality moves to an isolated place away from the society, where he can openly learn without the restriction and false belief he’s been taught from a

Equality 7-2521 changes throughout the novel because of the harsh society he lives in and because of the philosophy of collectivinessive. They were all raised from birth to believe in living for their brothers as a whole and only doing things for their brothers instead of themselves. “We strive to be like all our brother men, for all men must be alike” (Rand 19). After he was assigned the job of street sweeping, and believing he deserved more he started to break the rules. Equality knew there were things not being told to them and they wanted to know more than what was being offered to him. The start of breaking the rules is what started the change of the character. His internal knowledge that he was blessed and born with led him to the invention

In the novel, The Stranger, by Albert Camus, Camus uses a variety of literary devices in order to create a moment of inward reflection from readers, in which we reflect on just how absurd our existence is. Camus expresses his critique through one major character, Meursault, and a few minor characters as well. Camus’s use of irony pushed readers to look beyond the surface, and come to the conclusion of where the irony was displayed. Camus also made use of ironic moments in order to contrast the expectations of society, to how Meursault differs from that, all to gradually expose the hypocrisy of mankind. Camus generally uses this literary device in order make us evaluate our own selves and more importantly to display the fact that we as people can be truly happy, only if we accept our fate, instead of fighting it. In a way, he’s suggesting we be more like Meursault. Examples of this would be the funeral caretaker insisting that Meursault view his mother's body, and Meursault continuously refusing. Camus does this to make people think: what exactly is wrong with Meursault not wanting to see his dead mother? Through this technique camus shows societal expectations of how people are supposed to mourn lost, and certain responses to lost are deemed abnormal. Thus Meursault’s lack of grief automatically made him an outsider. Other uses of irony can be shown through Meursault's interactions with the chaplain, and the authority involved in his criminal case played out later on in the

Flat characters play a significant role in all novels. For instance, the brother of Raymond’s mistress is a key flat character. The Arab never grows throughout the novel; rather, he remains a stalker, stalking his prey, tempting a fight. Without the role of the Arab, Meursault, would never have gone to prison, and never be tried for murder.

In the novel, The Stranger by Albert Camus, Meursault the protagonist, becomes drawn into a “senseless” murder that has to face the absurdity of life and because of his actions, Meursault is presented as a danger due to his lack of “morality” to society. Meursault who is not able to take control of his life but respond to what life offers him believes in the simplicity of life. He tries to understand the living through logic and objectivity, which ultimately turns futile, as he himself cannot maintain proper control over his thoughts and emotions. From the interactions between Marie, to the murder of the Arab, and the meeting with the Chaplain, Meursault overcomes his indifferent views to form an opinion about what life really means. The central theme presented by Camus is how the threat of mortality becomes a catalyst for understanding the significance of life.

In Albert Camus’ The Stranger, Meursault is seen as a very unique character, but not in a good way. Throughout the novel, he continually fails to show normal human emotions to things like his mother’s death, Marie’s love, and the man he killed. Most people in his town, along with the reader at first, are not able to reason out his actions but as the final events of the novel unfold, the reader begins to see Meursault in a different light.

Truth and honesty is the aspired driving force within one’s life but it can be as destructive as deceit and dishonesty. People always yell, “Tell the truth, be honest with me!” but when all things are said, their first reaction is to call out the lack of sympathy of the person. In the novel, The Stranger by Albert Camus, Meursault lives his life through truth and honesty but societal morals and values often bring him down in more ways than one.