Perception Of Meursault's Character In The Stranger By Albert Camus

Society’s Perception of Meursault’s Character
In “The Stranger”
By Albert Camus

Everybody’s life is shaped by their reputation. This is why people try to look good in the eyes of others, so they will have a good opinion. The main character in The Stranger astonishes others because he simply does not care about his reputation and what the society thinks of him. Meursault lives his life in a non-complex environment, not worrying about the events happening around him. However, this plays a trick on him in a way that people don’t understand him and conclude that he is different in a monstrous way. His reaction to his mother’s death, his decision on not marrying and incapability of believing in God stuns the public, which starts questioning
When it comes to marriage he says, “That evening Marie came by to see me and asked me if I wanted to marry her. I said it didn’t make any difference to me and that we could if she wanted to. Then she wanted to know if I loved her. I answered the same way I had the last time that it didn’t mean anything but that I probably didn’t love her” (Camus 41). The words “didn’t mean anything”, “same” and “didn’t make any difference” all have similar meanings and are repeated numerous times which suggests that the narrator feels apathetic towards the idea of marriage and love. The sentence structure is once again simple and short which proves that there is no emotion in his tone. This way Meursault can become even more of a stranger in the eyes of others. He seems just as unconcerned about his work when he says, “Then he asked me if I wasn’t interested in a change of life. I said that people never change their lives, that in any case one life was as good as another and that I wasn’t dissatisfied with mine here at all. He looked upset and told me that I never gave him a straight answer, that I had no ambition…” (Camus 41). There is thought when he speaks, but not even a spark of emotion. There is no ambition in the narrator to live a life filled with adventures and opportunities. The society cannot understand how somebody with
As he is having a conversation with his lawyer he gets aggravated, “But he cut me off and urged me one last time, drawing himself up to his full height and asking me if I believed in God. I said no. He sat down indignantly. He said it was impossible; all men believed in God, even those who turn their back on him…He simply asked me in that same weird tone if I was sorry for what I had done. I thought about it for a minute and said that more than sorry I felt kind of annoyed. I got the impression he didn’t understand” (Camus 69). The society which Meursault is a part of can recognize right from wrong, black from white and dark from light. But when it comes to believers, especially in God, there are no non-believers and because the narrator does not even want to believe in this greater force, the citizens come to a conclusion that he is different- that he is an unleashed monster in the real world. All of his answers are straight, but incomprehensible, all of his sentences are simple but inexplicable and all of his desires are unknown to the public because he does not let anybody recognize his extraordinary complexity. Every allegation that has been made against Meursault’s character spins his inner thoughts and buried senses. By the end of the book he exclaims, “What did other people’s death or a mother’s