Existentialism in The Stranger by Albert Camus

Albert Camus’ story, The Stranger, is an existential work which attempts to show the futility of being obsessed with roles that have been set by society; it shows that human beings should exist in their own terms. In The Stranger, the chief character is indifferent to all the things that go on around him and is instead interested only in his own self, essentially endorsing existentialism. Throughout the story, Meursault seems to be an incredibly selfish man who is only interested in himself and does not in the least care for the happenings taking place around him. This creates a situation which helps in the development of the plot of the story, since there is an exploration of the indifference as well as the existential way of life that is displayed by Meursault.

One of the aspects of existentialism that is shown in this story is that of individuals choosing to remain indifferent to others and only be concerned with what concerns them. This is especially the case in the funeral of Meursault mother’s and the man’s obvious indifference to the funeral symbolize his detachment from the world, which he believes to be a place full of nothing but conflict and agony as well as his optimism when it comes to death. In the story, Meursault shows a lack of care towards the diverse events that take place, even the ones that society might consider as being necessary for all of its members, and is thus looked down upon by other individuals who have attended the funeral. His mother’s funeral symbolizes existentialist joy that can be found in death, the liberation from all of the complications, conflicts, and miseries that are often experienced in life as a result of societal expectations.

Initially, Meursault is troubled when he hears of the death of his mother but when he goes to the funeral, he ends up being unaffected, believing his mother is in a better place. With reference to his mother’s death, he states that “Mother died today or maybe yesterday; I can't be sure”, showing that despite his mother’s death, he is at peace with it and he does not feel any sort of sadness or loss. This shows a possibility of Meursault’s belief that the day that his mother died is not important and that she is perhaps better off in this state. Thus, he chooses not to concentrate on the funeral service, and instead chooses to focus on the people who have attended the funeral. He does not display any of the regret or happiness that members of society would have expected him to express towards the people who have come to support him in his time of need, since he has just lost his mother.

When he is deplored by society and incarcerated for killing a man, his freedom is taken away from him, and any values or desires that he was once able to act upon would not be able to be acted upon anymore. This essentially interferes with his existential way of life because he is no longer able to act upon those impulses which were a basic part of his life. Meuersault seems to have lost all interest in life as a result of his incarceration and this creates a situation where he finds all accusations made against him irrelevant. When questioned repeatedly about his indifference towards his mother’s funeral while he is incarcerated, Meursault becomes upset and impatient. He finds it ridiculous and redundant the way society is condemning him for his beliefs and not for the crime he committed. When a priest questions Meursault, he ends up sharing his thoughts and beliefs, revealing that his mother’s funeral was a moment of joy and not of grief. He states that his indifference towards his mother’s funeral is as a result of his love for her and his wish that she rest in peace free from the problems of the world. The funeral, therefore, ends up being a symbol of hope for Meursault, that he can be free from the world and free from the expectations of society on him.

In conclusion, The Stranger is a story that endorses existentialism as seen through the manner that Meuersault considers the world. It is revealed that because of the societal restrictions, this character is highly pessimistic about life and he does not seem to derive joy from it. This is a man who does not consider death with fear or sadness; he looks upon it as a means of salvation from the problems that plague individuals in the world.

The Stranger by Albert Camus - Analysis

In “The Stranger”, Meurstault’s mother’s funeral and Meursault’s obvious indifference to the funeral symbolize his detachment from the world, a place full of nothing but conflict and agony in his eyes, and his optimistic attitude regarding death. In the text, Meursault shows a lack of care towards many events and circumstances, even the ones that might be considered essential for the average person, and is thus looked down upon by members of society. His mother’s funeral symbolizes the ironic joy that can be found in death, the liberation of all life’s complications, conflicts, and miseries. Initially, Meursault is perturbed upon discovering his mother’s death. However, upon going to his mother’s funeral, he is unaffected, believing his mother is in a better place. Of his mother’s death, he says, “Mother died today. Or maybe yesterday; I can't be sure.” This shows that despite the fact that his mother is dead, he does not feel any sort of sadness or loss, and it is possible that he considers when she died not to be important.

Instead of concentrating on the funeral service, as normal people would, Meursault instead focuses on the people who have attended the funeral. He does not display any of the regret or happiness that people have come to support him in his time of need, when he has just lost his mother.

Some other memories of the funeral have stuck in my mind. The old boy’s face, for instance, when he caught up with us for the last time, just outside the village. His eyes were streaming with tears, of exhaustion or distress, or both together. But because of the wrinkles they couldn’t flow down. They spread out, crisscrossed, and formed a smooth gloss on the old, worn face.

Meursault is detached from most things in the world and shows a lack of care towards most occurrences. However, when Meursault is free to bond with Marie, a girl he likes, he enjoys life, even if for brief moments. But even towards Marie, he seems to be indifferent because of his belief that the happiness which he is feeling is only momentary and that it will come to an end soon. When Marie asks him whether he loves her, he states that it does not mean anything, and this shows that he has no intention of taking his relationship with her further than it already is a carnal one. Meursault states, “She was wearing a pair of my pajamas with the sleeves rolled up. When she laughed I wanted her again. A minute later she asked me if I loved her. I told her it didn’t mean anything but that I didn’t think so. She looked sad.”

When he is deplored by society and incarcerated for killing a man, his freedom is essentially confiscated from him, and any values or desires that he was once able to act upon would not be able to be acted upon anymore. In addition, any appreciation he had for life and the world in which he lived is vanquished. Meursault’s trial is not focused on his assassination of the Arab man, but on his “indifference” and his “lack of emotion”, both which should be irrelevant. When questioned repeatedly about his indifference towards his mother’s funeral while he’s incarcerated, Meursault becomes upset and impatient. He finds it ridiculous and redundant the way society is condemning him for his beliefs and not for the crime he committed. Meursault is subject to execution and, at this point, is almost entirely detached from the world. He remembers his mother had told him stories of his father going to executions. Meursault believes that if he would be freed from jail, visiting executions would be joyful for him. This is due to the fact that Meursault finds joy in people being freed from their pain, their troubles, and the world itself. When a priest questions Meursault, Meursault begins divulging all his thoughts, revealing how his mother’s funeral was a moment of joy and not of grief. He was “indifferent” to his mother’s funeral because he loved her and wanted her to rest in peace and be free from the world’s complexities. Meursault’s mother’s funeral is the symbol of hope for Meursault, the symbol that he can find absolute interest in something that will last forever, and the symbol that he can be free from the world and free from society’s expectations.

When Meursault kills the Arab man, it reveals his indifference to the world and to all those who are around him. He does not experience any guilt when he is confronted for this action, he does not display any of the remorse that would be expected. He instead refers to the killing as an act which was inspired by the glare of the sun and the heat. He does not account for the reason why he shot the Arab four more times despite the fact that he was dead. One would surmise that Meursault was not only indifferent, but that he actually took a perverse pleasure in hurting other people. He realizes that his actions will land his in trouble yet he goes ahead and does them anyway. It is as if he finds satisfaction in the act of taking the Arab’s life, despite the fact that there was no real antagonism between them. Meursault gives a vivid description of how he ends up murdering the Arab in cold blood:

The trigger gave; I felt the smooth underside of the butt; and there, in that noise, sharp and deafening at the same time, is where it all started. I shook off the sweat and the sun. I knew that I had shattered the harmony of the day, the exceptional silence of a beach where I'd been happy. Then I fired four more times at the motionless body where the bullets lodged without leaving a trace. And it was like knocking four quick times on the door of unhappiness.

This may have been the reason why he agreed to help his friend, Raymond, take revenge on the latter’s Arab lover because of her perceived unfaithfulness. His incarceration is a time for reflection for Meursault and it helps him to solidify his belief of being indifferent to the world around him. He does not spend his time regretting his actions as one would expect, and instead, he spends most of his time attempting to catalogue all the things he owned in his apartment. He even becomes indifferent to the fact that Marie, his girlfriend, does not come to visit him in prison, contemplating that it was human nature to forget and that it was very likely that he would also be forgotten once he was dead as he states “maybe she had become tired of being the girlfriend of a condemned man. It also occurred to me that maybe she was sick, or dead. These things happen. Anyway, after that, remembering Marie meant nothing to me. That seemed perfectly normal to me, since I understood very well that people would forget me when I was dead.”

When Meursault is approaching the end of his life since the court is likely to sentence him to death, he is visited by a priest in an attempt to save his soul. Meursault remains adamant in his atheistic beliefs, stating that God is a waste of time and that he has no interest in Him. The priest does his best to persuade this strange man, “...he said firmly, "God can help you. All the men I’ve seen in your position turned to Him in their time of trouble." Obviously, I replied, they were at liberty to do so, if they felt like it. I, however, didn’t want to be helped, and I hadn’t time to work up interest for something that didn’t interest me.” The lack of interest displayed by Meursault is an indication of his belief that there is no God and that even if His existence were true, then his soul was already condemned. It shows his lack of faith in anything or anyone in the world, because priests, in many circumstances, tend to be a symbol of hope and salvation since they have the power to grant forgiveness for sins.

In conclusion, it can be said that the main theme of this book is that of indifference because of how the main character behaves towards the world. This indifference seems to be born out of pessimism towards life as Meursault does not seem to derive joy from it. Instead of looking upon death with fear or sadness, he looks upon it as a means of salvation from the troubles of the world. It is possible that when Camus was writing this book, he was contemplating on the meaninglessness of the physical world, since it is a place of pain and suffering, and the escape from it through death.