The Stranger By Albert Camus Critical Analysis - 971 Words

The Stranger, by Albert Camus tells the story of a man named Meursault who is consumed with the pleasures that life has to offer. In an unusual ending, Meursault’s fate is ultimately decided based on his actions he has made throughout his life, in which he blatantly ignores the 1940’s social norms of the French colony, Algiers. The story is told from an Absurdist point-of-view, which ultimately affects the meaning of the novel. This is present when unknowingly to Meursault, Absurdist philosophy dictates and controls his actions and character development throughout the novel. Through the inconsiderate actions Meursault constantly makes throughout the first half of the novel, the shift that slowly occurs as he becomes conscious, and finally†¦show more content†¦Later on, Raymond asks Meursault to write a letter as a witness to his crime, however, the letter would be in Raymond’s defense. Despite knowing this letter was harmful, Meursault indifferently agre es, and â€Å"[tries] [his] best to please Raymond†(32). Through all of these events, it is apparent Meursault gives no conscious thought to his decision-making in the first part of the book. However, the unconscious Meursault depicted in the majority of part one drastically changes when he murders an Arab man, separates himself from the the universe and its indifference, and transitions into full consciousness of his actions. This switch begins to take place when Meursault first shoots the man and blames it on the gun, explaining â€Å"the trigger gave† (59). However, he then is able to recognize his decisions as he feels â€Å"the smooth underside of the butt,†(59) thus acknowledging that he was the one who had felt the gun and shot it; ultimately taking accountability for his murder. Furthermore, as â€Å"the sun was the same as it had been the day [he] buried Maman,† it can be inferred that Camus uses the indifferent universe as a parallel to Meursaul t’s indifferent attitude that was so prominent throughout part one of the novel (55). In doing this, Camus makes it clear that Meursault, by choosing to â€Å"[shake] off the sweat and sun† cognizantly separates himself from the universe, and is no longer indifferent to his actions (59). TheShow MoreRelated Essay on Camus’ The Stranger (The Outsider): Reader Response Criticism2226 Words   |  9 PagesReader Response Criticism to Camus’ The Stranger (The Outsider)  Ã‚        Ã‚  Ã‚   In The Stranger (The Outsider), Albert Camus anticipates an active reader that will react to his text. He wants the reader to form a changing, dynamic opinion of Meursault. The reader can create a consciousness for Meursault from the facts that Meursault reports. 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