Meursault as The Stranger

A detailed Summary of Meursault as The Stranger

Meursault as “The Stranger”

The way a person reacts to ordinary situations determines the opinions of others based on their behavior. Yet, when this behavior is abnormal or different from the rest of society, it causes society to form an opinion based totally on a person’s behavior not their true personality. In Meursault’s case, his strange opinions and unexpected remarks put him in this position, without ever really giving him an opportunity to be truly understood. However, Meursault cannot change his actions and behaviors from the past, therefore making him responsible in the society he freely chooses to live in. Meursault’s complete indifference to society and human relationships causes him to appear as the actual “stranger” with those he encounters, which eventually leads to his incarceration and inevitable date with the guillotine.

Meursault is definitely a man who is set in his ways. He has his own opinions and outlooks on life and because of that fact he is constantly reminded of his inadequacies within society. His refusal to look at his mother one last time after she had passed away seemed pointless to Meursault a

Camus, Albert The Stranger. New York: Random, 1988

Sartre, Jean-Paul. An Explication of The Stranger Prentice Hall, Inc., 1962

Meursault’s final interaction with the chaplain showed how Meursault was unable to connect with and understand other’s perspectives. Meursault did enjoy their meetings, but only because he had no other contact with the outside world; he only wanted to be entertained instead of sharing any sort of friendship. The difference between Meursault and the rest of society, courtesy of the chaplain, became blatantly clear when he and the chaplain discussed their views of after life and religion. Meursault never thought that the way in which he was living was wrong or even sinful and that is what set him apart from every other human being. His lack of awareness and ignorance for social values appeared in chapter five, when the chaplain said: “More could be asked of you. And it may be asked. And what’s that? You could be asked to see. See what?” (Camus 118) The chaplain was only asking Meursault to try and understand where he was coming from and what he believed in. Religion never played a role in Meursault’s life and he was too stubborn to try and be open-minded about it. His stubborn attitude and close-mindedness never permitted him to even understand where others were coming form, he didn’t have to accept it but he could have at least given others beliefs a chance. You could even say Meursault was blind in a sense that he never opened up so that he could get along with others. He always saw life in a totally different perspective than everyone else and could never be rationed with. The obvious difference between Meursault and others became clear when the chaplain explained to Meursault that the stones on the walls in his cell appeared as the face of God and salvation. Meursault responded by saying:

The chaplain’s perspective of the stone walls in Meursault’s cell was totally different from what Meursault perceived them as, and within those lines it symbolized Meursault’s and society’s conflicting views. The cell represented society and the stones represented the people within Meursault’s life. He lived his entire life around those stones and had never seen any faces like the chaplain had. The only face he was looking for was Marie’s, or, in actuality, lust. He lived his life pursuing his desires and it eventually led him to the cell. But how Meursault didn’t see the faces represented him as a total stranger to society because society was the faces, symbolically speaking. Meursault’s own perception of his life and society is only half of the evidence that proved him to be the stranger. Society too had their perceptions of him and it also left us with the same conclusion, that Meursault was the stranger.

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Approximate Word count = 3781
Approximate Pages = 15 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: Novels