Loss Of Innocence Character Analysis

Matt Sturgis
Francev 1A
Francev MW 7:30
Essay #3
Clamence’s Absence of Morals in The Fall In Albert Camus’ novel, The Fall, he portrays the character of Jean-Baptiste Clamence as a depressed, narcissistic recluse who, in his “past-life,” had a noble career at one point, but due to his complete nonexistence of any morals, lost it all and ended up in the shadiest section of Amsterdam: a part of town that shortly became his own personal hell. In the regards to human life and the value of humans, Clamence simply does not feel the necessity to care for anyone or anything more than himself. Despite the way he presents himself to his listener (or the reader), he leads an absurdist lifestyle, only caring for his day to day needs and giving no
Yet, he is aware of his judging and the judging of others, and almost finds comfort in it. He states “People hasten to judge in order not to be judged themselves” (80) to his “companion” as a sort of justification for the judgment that he and the rest of the world pass on to others. Clamence’s occupation as an ex-lawyer judge-penitent makes it easier for him to be judgmental towards any and all persons simply because it is his occupation to do so. He may describe it as noble, charitable defense of the defenseless, but it is simply an excuse for it to be easier for him to judge others both inside and out of the
A person with even the slightest amount of morals, or even with a general idea of the difference between good and bad, would be able to foresee the possible chastising that may come from living out of selfishness and mindless self indulgence. Had any morals been present, Clamence may have been able to make decisions earlier in his life that would have had a less amount of debauchery and in leading a better, more human lifestyle he would have not endorsed the use of said