sentence, one can presume that this book entails a very complex character. The fact that Meursault cannot even recall the very date of his own mother’s death shows that he is
quite the odd character. The telegram that was sent to Meursault means nothing to him, which is highly abnormal because it states that his mother has died, this further reassures the reader that Mersault is not emotionally stable. It is generally accepted that having to bury the woman who is responsible for one’s life is a very difficult thing to do, one that causes great mourning and sorrow in one’s heart; “You only have one mother.”, as Celeste states on page 3. However, Mersault seems unshaken by this news, for it “doesn’t mean anything” to him. It is later revealed that Meursault’s relationship with his mother is rather estranged in that he does not even know how old his mother was. Nonetheless the way he proceeds with her death is very perplexing.
Another defining moment in Meursault’s personality is his rather care-free attitude; especially following the death of his mother. Throughout the first chapter he frequently sleeps, as though there is little to no concern about how his mother has died or even her death in general. He falls asleep comfortably while keeping vigil over her before her funeral. While keeping vigil, Meursault baffles the reader by not wanting to see his mother in her coffin, he wants the coffin closed. This may confuse the reader in that one doesn’t know if he is too sorrowful to see it or if it is just another one of his idiosyncrasies.
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One can see a new characteristic of Meursault emerge while he is riding the bus to Marengo on page 4: irritability. He falls asleep on the bus and wakes up to find himself
slumped against a soldier, the soldier asks if he had been traveling long to which Meursault responds, “Yes”. The soldier is undoubtedly being kind by allowing him to sleep on him and greeting him with a smile but despite his kindness, Meursault lets his irritability prevail by adding that he just said “yes” only so that he wouldn’t have to say anything else. Mersault also shows that he lacks manners by not adding “Thank you”, explaining himself to the soldier as to why he has been slumping on him, or elaborating upon his question.
At the funeral procession for Meursault’s mother, many of the mother’s friends show up from the nursing home in which she spent her last years. At this point one can conclude that Meursault is an irritable person. One of Meursault’s mother’s friends begins to weep silently, which is a normal occurrence at most funerals. This however annoys Meursault, he states,“I wished I didn’t have to listen to her anymore”, “I thought she’d never stop”(Camus, 10). Even after learning of the woman’s intimate friendship with his mother, Meursault still seems bothered by her silent weeping; in a cold manner he says “Then finally she shut up” (Camus, 11), his irritability was the cause of this bitter remark and his acerbic choice of words (notice that he says “shut up” instead of simply saying “silenced herself” or a remark of that nature).
Meursault further establishes his absurd character by showing that he also does not care about his love life and relationships with women. The reader is once again is
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brought down the tunnel of confusion as Meursault becomes less and less human-like as Meursault and Marie attempt to understand one another. Normally, a man would have
some fondness concerning matrimony; however this is not the case for Meursault. Meursault obviously has no real thoughts and intense feelings towards Marie and seems willing to abide by however things turn out between the two of them. This attitude becomes significantly apparent when Meursault says, “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." (Camus, 41) This passage is very frustrating to the reader; it really makes one question how truly damaged a person’s psychological mind can be and to what extent is Meursault human. To be married is a life long commitment, one that requires devotion, submission and an overall change in lifestyle, but once again Meursault can care less about such things, for some reason he cannot process such ideas.
Later on in the story, the reader is finally relieved of some frustration to learn that Meursault is at least capable of harboring humanistic emotions, and on two separate occasions. The first of which occurs while Meursault, Marie and Raymond are on the beach. He is able to connect with Marie on an emotional level and actually feel happy about it, which is unheard of considering his usual behavior. He states on the bottom of page 50, “Together again, Marie and I swam out ways, and we felt a closeness as we
moved in unison and were happy." This release of emotion foreshadows his assimilation into the sentimental ways of man, though it would be short-lived.
In a tragic twist of events, Meursault kills an Arab while on the beach; he shoots him five times. What makes his crime so heinous is that he kills the Arab for no apparent
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reason, and he even pauses between the first shot and the last four; there was no reason to shoot after the first shot because the Arab was already motionless after the first. This is a shocking event and much unexpected, but in a sense it is not a surprise given Meursault’s overall character. Time seemed to have stood still as the reality of what Meursault has done begins to sink in, this is known through his following statement, “And it was like knocking four quick times on the door of unhappiness.” (Camus, 59)
Meursault is sentenced to death while in prison. Only now does he begin to realize the value of life. With only few things to do in prison he invariably reflects on his life. He eventually comes to terms with his situation and accepts it. He knows that he is going to die and thus the world begins to open up to him through emotions, "I felt as if I understood why at the end of her life…for the first time, in that night alive with signs and stars, I opened myself to the gentle indifference of the world." (Camus, 122). One may feel sorry for Meursault in that only upon the brink of death does he realize the true meaning of life and its value, if he had only known such principles and accepted them into his heart sooner maybe he would not be in this very predicament. These last fluctuations of emotion allow the reader to abandon the question of whether or not he is a human being or not, for he clearly shows that he is a human being and not simply a robot.
Meursault is a complex character. In the beginning, we see him as an emotionless being, one who has no tendency to care about others and process advanced emotions and thoughts. He frustrates the reader by his carelessness and lack of emotions but gives the
reader hope as he connects with Marie at the beach. He then upsets the reader again by placing him/her on an emotional rollercoaster; first he/she feels happy that he is finally
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coming to his senses but that happiness is short lived, for he kills the Arab heartlessly, making the reader face the same question: “Is he or is he not human?” This finally all diminishes as he opens up to the world in prison and so the reader is happy for him again, but the reader then must realize that his “new” mindset will be short lived because death is quickly approaching. Meursault leaves the reader both hopeless and glad at the same time in that he finally reached a heightened sensitivity to human affairs but will soon die. The reader feels sorry for him but at the same time knows that he must die due to the actions of his “old” mindset.
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Works Cited
1. Camus, Albert. The Stranger. New York: A Division of Random House, 1989.
“The Stranger”: The Relationship between Meursalt and the Reader
Zephaniah Hopper
IB World Literature 2
Zephaniah Hopper
11/30/2009
Word Count: 1600
