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Albert camus and existentialism

Existentialism is the individual freedom of choice; in other words man is a

conscious subject, rather than a thing. Of the many existentialistic themes,Camus strongly believed in absurdity.

Camus opinion is that absurdity lies in the basic discord in the relationship

between the human being and the universe. Thus, the human being discovers the

absurdity of existence when he correctly perceives the universe.

The absurdity of the human being is in its insecurity, rejections, agony, and alsoits disappointments. In most of Camus works the recognition of the absurdity

of the human existence is a main theme. For Camus, the absurd is not a negative

thing, but a real state of existence. Accepting the perspective that life is absurd isto embrace a true view of life.

The Stranger, is the first work of Camus dealing with absurdity. It portrays themain character as an honest, atheist, who lives life as best as he knows how. In

the beginning of the novel, the main character Mersaults mother dies. Hismothers death has no effect on him because he feels death is the end, there is no

God in his mind, and because the two were not close.

At the funeral people view him as strange for not crying, not wishing to have anopen casket, and sleeping. They believe he is void of any feelings for his own

mother. While he really just wasnt that close with her, the people later show up

to testify against Mersault saying exactly what they saw at the funeral.

A day later Mersault runs into a woman he used to work with by the name of

Marie. Marie and Mersault go on a date and spend the night together. They

continue to do so throughout the novel.

When she asked him if he wishes to marry her he agrees, only because he seesno real reason to refuse. When she asks if another women were to ask him the

same thing he replies I would have no real reason not too. Confused by this

Marie just accepts it.

Similar with his answer to Maries question, Mersault helps a neighbor Ray witha letter to trap Rays Arab girlfriend into going to Rays apartment. Ray goes to

bed with her then proceeds to spit on her and beat her. The cops show up and

Mersault defends Ray, again stating he had no real reason not to.

For fear of the girls brother, Ray asks Mersault if he would like to go to hisfriends house with Marie. At the house the brother shows up and Ray fights

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with him.

A while later, confused Mersault goes to the beach with Rays gun. Upon seeing the brother and

his blade and the sun beating down on his head he shoots him four times.

Mersault murdering Rays girlfriends brother, with no real reason to murder him then changes

the easy-going plot. He never shows the slightest bit of remorse for the Arab man during his

trial.

During his trial the prosecutor uses the people from his mothers old age home as his defense,

explaining how Mersault did not cry or show sadness at his mothers funeral.

The trial then proceeds to focus on the fact that Mersault did not properly mourn his mother, not

the fact that he killed the Arab, which given the times is not very unlikely. The Arabs were at

war with the French over their independence, as stated in Algeria 1958.

Mersault begins to be viewed as an extremely emotionless person because he does not believe in

God, which seems to be strange in their society. Clearly, Camus was reflecting a piece of

himself in the novel because he also does not believe there is a god.

When Mersaults attorney asks him to embellish the truth, he cannot because he sees nothing

wrong with blatant honesty. As expected he is condemned to death. Besides the murder, his

other crime seemed to be his honesty.

Mersaults only real objective was not to escape the consequences of which he is, but to accept

them with willingness. A priest confronts him 3 times and 3 times Mersault told him I dont

wish to be forgiven because I dont believe in absolution or life after death. He faces reality for

the first time; he is condemned for thinking life and death are meaningless.

Sitting in his cell Mersault comes to believe that life and death is just a human cycle and in the

end he would wish to be greeted with cries of hatred.

When asked about The Stranger, Camus described it as a novel about what happens to a man

who refuses to play the game refuses, that is, to pretend to be something he is not. However,

in the end is Mersault's execution, his absurdity.