Understanding Meursault's Nature

The critic begins with a nice summary of the plot and then moves on to the inconsistencies in the novel. An inconsistency he mentions is the apparent rapid development of the creature’s “habits” and “faculties” such

Meursault experiences a philosophical triumph as his execution dates nears, due to his acceptance of the absurd, which confirms his identity; much like the absurd world, he doesn’t acknowledge human experiences and relationships. He is content with this, and welcomes the crowd, confident that nothing can take away his satisfaction. This shows that while he gains philosophical peace, he still is unable to grapple with interpersonal relationships and the role he was intended to play in society. Meursault does not overcome society’s judgment, but rather revels in the hatred. Through his conversation with the chaplain, Meursault discovers happiness in the fact that the absurd world mirrors his own indifference. Meursault compares his beliefs about life to those the chaplain holds, and comes to some finality in his thought process. He settled on a firm stance, “sure about [himself], about everything, surer than [the chaplain] could ever be, sure of my life and sure of the death waiting for me” (Camus 108). Meursault becomes infatuated with the absurd world, rather than rejecting it in disgust or horror. He strongly identifies with the absurdity, “opening up to the gentle indifference of the world” (Camus

Meursault’s atypical view of the world is first seen when at his mother’s funeral when he does not cry, but rather, he worries more about the heat of the day than the burden of burying his mother. His absurd view of the world is also apparent when Marie asks Meursault to marry her. Meursault looks at marriage, a life changing decision, with indifference, which does not make Marie stop loving him, but she does not understand how the man she loves can be so emotionally detached from her. Marie’s character represents those who are ‘normal’ in society because she outwardly shows her love for Meursault, and looks towards the future. She, unlike Meursault, does not just live within the moment.

The major characteristics of the narrator and main character, Montresor, are anger, hatred, and revenge. In the story, he is angry with Fortunato because he believes that Fortunato has wronged and insulted him many

Siddhartha embarked on his own journey to reach his goal The prosecutor often refers to Meursault's behavior at his mother’s funeral. Since Meursault showed no sign of remorse at her funeral, it was used against him repeatedly in the case that would determine his fate. This court case put Meursault in such a difficult and lonely situation, “Everything was happening without my participation. My fate was being decided without anyone so much as asking my opinion...whatever interest you can get people to take in you doesn’t last long”(Camus 98). Prison is where Meursault begins and finds his enlightenment, he spends his time there mainly thinking about the life one can experience as a free man, in prison it's where Meursault's real character shows in the entire book. Due to this, it feels like Meursault is reborn to the readers. Prison and the court case bring out a side to Meursault that was never really shown in the book, he begins to defend himself against all, “What did other people’s deaths...What would it matter if he were accused of murder and then executed because he didn’t cry at his mother’s funeral”(Camus 121)? Both Siddhartha and Meursault go through solitude in different ways but end up revealing something about their character as if they are reborn, another step toward each of their enlightenments.

At the end of the novel, Meursault is able to understand the meaning of life. He was able to do so because he was approaching death, which is an existentialist principle, death is the one certainty of life. Before, when his mother died or when he killed the Arab, he did not have any feelings. When he thought about his own life and that he was about to die, he accepted it. He realizes that one can truly enjoy their lives when they approach and accept death. The understanding of this allowed Meursault to be at peace with himself. With this being said, this novel was an unusually good book, which made me think. A majority of the book made me feel like the rest of society, which was not accepting Meursault's behavior although analyzing gave me

People experience different emotions that can drastically change within seconds and, cannot remain controlled. During the course of “The Most Dangerous Game”, “Scarlet Ibis” and “The Use of Force”, the author demonstrates how a person can change from calm and collected to an assailant. Sickness comes in many forms, both physical and mental. Together both can affect emotions, actions which those two then lead into flaws and faults being revealed. All humans have flaws and the authors are attempting to aid the reader in understanding flaws and that can be embraced or overpower a person. The narrators and characters of these stories have many flaws these faults which are both extremely subtle and obvious.

In addition, he was jailed primarily because he was labelled a monster for his everyday actions, like his lack of emotion at Maman’s funeral, rather than the actual murder he committed. He lives out his purpose focused on the interactions around him and his self, which is significant because it shows how his satisfaction is found when his purpose is driven by his own motives, not a greater being. The courtroom and even the readers of the novel can label him as being “selfish,” but in reality, it is human nature and rational. This reveals how society looks down upon individual motives and personal choices if one does not conform for the “greater good.” Meursault responds to the Chaplain’s accusations, of how “he seemed so certain about everything...none of his certainties was worth one hair of a woman’s head. He wasn’t even sure he was alive, because he was living like a dead man” (120). The metaphor of comparing conforming to social constructs and “living like a dead man” shows how following these engrained customs does not allow one to live life with a fulfilled purpose, which Meursault

Part 1, Section 1: We are first introduced to Meursault, the novel’s narrator and protagonist, where he is presented with his mother’s death. He doesn’t know exactly when she died, but just knows that she has passed. This then leads to his journey there, from asking for the day off

The first theme which is going to be analysed is the value of self-knowledge and moral integrity. This theme is explored in both texts through the development of the protagonist from someone self-centred and borderline narcissistic, to a more self-aware

Life, By Its Nature, Has a 100% Death Rate Widely recognized for philosophical writings as a French essayist and playwright, Albert Camus is a major contributor to exploring the absurd in modern Western literature. Characterized by highlighting the human condition, Camus’ writing style focuses on the everyday lives and inner psyche of individuals in both ordinary and extraordinary circumstances. Such a character-driven writing style is most notably displayed in his 1946 work, The Stranger, a tale of an emotionally-detached man known as Meursault, who lives in French-colonized Algiers during the intermission of the two World Wars. Consisting of two parts—The Stranger first explores his daily life as a free man, and in the second, delves more into the character’s own philosophy as Meursault contemplates during his remaining time in jail. At its core, the story explores the relationships and interactions of the odd Meursault through the character’s inner monologue and dialogue with those around him. The story itself is very ambiguous in its’ nature, and the idea of contemplating the meaning of life and purpose is prevalent throughout The Stranger. Evidently, Camus writes Meursault as a man who believes that life has no meaning, and therefore people are free to do as they please. To supplement the protagonist’s view, the author also presents Meursault alongside various personalities of key supporting characters, each with their own unique personality, and differing outlooks on life. Doing so thus enables Camus to get readers to contemplate about meaning through multiple perspectives. Stylistically, through many devices that emphasize diction, imagery, and story themes. Ultimately, The Stranger is a way for Camus to convey that there are multiple ways to perceive the meaning of life, using Meursault to directly project a different view than what readers are used to. Surely, with the intent of crafting a protagonist so strange, that Meursault becomes comparable to other characters; less so as a reflection of what the author personally believes the meaning of life is, but more of what such exploration of the idea could be.

Awakening Narrator observes the development and thoughts of Sarty, who struggles with the loyalty to his father and the justice from his nature. Which sound should this ten-year-old boy listen to? This question makes him suffering. Later on, he gradually feels tired of his family, frequent

The author, Camus, makes it clear to the reader that just like all people, Meursault was born, will die, and will have no further importance. I portrayed this view on the meaning of life, in my collage, with a picture of an instructor teaching her class. Through a diagram on the board, she shows her class that there is birth and death and what happens in between is just “stuff” that is not even important enough to

This evidence portrays that the main character's traits support´s, the theme through these quotes from the book..In a way their character traits resembles on all the other characters mostly whenever they are together since, together they are stronger.

The simple sentences in The Stranger reveal Meursault’s emotional detachment from society, while the more complex sentences are assigned to objects with authority. Throughout the entire novel, Meursault’s simplicity and disinterest in the world can be identified with the incorporation of his simple statements. Especially in this particular passage, Meursault finds it unimportant to challenge himself in a way that makes sense. Although Meursault recognizes the sensibility of walking