"The Stranger‚" and "The Myth of Sisyphus‚" are two greatest writings of Albert Camus where he opens the existentialistic parts of philosophy to his readers. Actually‚ in his works‚ the existentialism forms the main characters and determines how they will react to the world around them. Moreover‚ "The Myth of Sisyphus" can be interpreted as an attempt to explain the world outlook presented in "The Stranger"‚ while "The Stranger" with its protagonist can be viewed as an illustration of the absurd
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December 11 2013 Symbolism in The Stranger Authors tend to use symbolism to address a profound meaning to what is written. In literature‚ symbolism is the use of symbols to signify ideas and qualities by giving them illustrative meaning that are different from their literal meaning. In the novel‚ Camus is effective in utilizing many symbols and motifs to symbolize certain aspects of Meursault’s life. This essay will explain the reasons as to how does Albert Camus depict society’s tendencies through
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Meursault is characterized as a detached and emotionless character‚ which reflects the idea of existentialism in The Stranger by Albert Camus. Existentialism is a philosophy that emphasizes freedom to choose‚ and make choices without outside influences. This can be shown throughout the novel‚ as Meursault makes choices in his everyday life. An existentialist must accept the consequences to their decisions. Meursault is an example of an existentialist. He has a fervor for truth‚ because of this he
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The Stranger by Albert Camus In the novel The Stranger‚ Albert Camus give his expression to his philosophy of the absurd. A first person account on the life of Meursault from the death of his mother to his execution for the murder of an arab. The central theme of the novel is that the significance of human life is understood only in light of mortality‚ or the fact of death. Showing Meursault’s consciousness change through the course of events‚ camus shows how facing the possibility of death does not
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Discussion Questions for The Stranger (1946); translated by Matthew Ward‚ 1988. Part One Chapter 1. 1. How does Camus set up Meursault’s personality -- how does Meursault respond to others’ conversation‚ to ordinary social situations‚ and to the death of his mother? 2. On page 10‚ Meursault says that at the viewing of his mother‚ he felt as if the elderly people there were judging him. Offer a conjecture about why he might have had that feeling. (It is worth paying attention to such references to
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the implacable ritual‚ a wild run for it that would give whatever chance for hope there was” (109). He is reaching existential freedom because he will soon accept it all and find freedom in his state of mind instead of state of physically being. Meursault reaches existential freedom when he says‚ “As if that blind rage had washed me clean‚ rid me of hope; for the first time‚ in that night alive with signs and stars‚ I opened myself to the gentle indifference of the world. Finding it so much like myself—so
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responsible for crushing that individual’s essence. Those who refuse to conform to such a society are judged negatively and consequently‚ feel alienated. Both Keating and Meursault are strangers in a society that wants to dictate their expected behaviour and actions. Society seeks to imprison their individual freedom. Meursault is indifferent and passive to this conventional life that is not worth living. He refuses to be anything but himself‚ regardless of the price he must pay. In contrast‚
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In the novel The Stranger by Albert Camus‚ the protagonist Meursault is a man who is indifferent to major events in his life which would deserve a "proper" reaction according to society. Also‚ the decisions he makes in his life are done carelessly and without a second thought about whether what he is doing is good or bad. As a result‚ Meursault is a stranger to society because of how differently his view on life is based on how he approaches certain aspects of life. Eventually‚ death is what connects
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1) How does Meursault explain to the lawyer how his “physical needs” relate to his “feelings”? How is this significant to our understanding of Meursault? Throughout the entire novel‚ Meursault constantly suppresses his emotions by directing his focus towards his physical annoyances‚ whether he is tired‚ has a headache‚ or is irritated by someone else. He explained to the lawyer that‚ “[his] physical needs often got in the way of [his] emotions”. For example‚ Meursault justifies his absence of sadness
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purpose through his meaningless. That is being the absurd hero accepting the world as it is‚ meaningless and still finding happiness through that. Meursault‚ the protagonist of The Stranger written by Albert Camus is the epitome of the absurd hero. The absurd hero is defined as a person that has knowledge of decay‚ fulfillment of happiness‚ and rebuke
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