The Stranger, By Albert Camus

In his Novel The Stranger, Albert Camus tells the story of a man, Meursault, a character who shows almost no emotions, even though he lives an ordinary life. He has a job, a girl who loves him, and a life full or purpose, yet he still acts as a stranger in his work life, social life, and love life. From the first line of the story Meursault was strange, “Mother died today. Or, maybe, yesterday; I can’t be sure.” The telegram from the Home says: “Your mother passed away. Funeral tomorrow. Deep sympathy. Which leaves the matter doubtful; it could have been yesterday.” Meursault just received news that his own mother had suddenly passed away, yet he shows no sense of sadness, depression, anxiety or any other relatable senses that would come
across one's body when losing a parent.

Meursault had always been a hard worker. However, when his boss calls him into his office a sense of uneasiness swept through him only because he thought he might get in trouble for chatting on the phone with his friends during work hours. But, this was nothing he could not control along with his other emotions, or lack thereof. However, Meursault could not have been farther off on his expectations: “You’re a young man, he said, and I’m pretty sure you’d enjoy living in Paris. And, of course, you could travel about France for some months in the year. I told him I was quite prepared to go; but really I didn’t care much one way or the other.” (Camus 28)

This quote by Albert Camus, in The Stranger shows the main character, Meursault who receives an offer from his boss to move to Paris in an effort to start a new branch of the company. His response is what is really quite strange. Meursault simply does not care if he moves out of the country, which to anyone else would be a drastic change. If someone were to give me an opportunity like that I would be so ecstatic and thankful. He shows acts of selfishness, laziness, and apathy all at once in a situation where others would feel grateful, excited, and blessed. In a world so full of poverty and misfortune, how could one simply take so many things for granted?

The day after his mother’s “tragic death,” Meursault saw a women whom used to be a typist, he explains that he used to be physically attracted to her, as he expected the same towards him. The next line of the story reads: “While I was helping her to climb onto a raft, I let my hand stray over her breasts. Then she lay flat on the raft, while I trod water. After a moment she turned and looked at me.” Mind you that this is the day after his mother had passed away, it would be ideal for someone to spend that time in sorrow, recovery, or perhaps solitude. You would not expect however, someone to be fondling a girl in which he barely knows in the middle of the water. Meursault's strange behavior continues to disgust me as this unusual, yet surprisingly intriguing book proceeds.

As time went on, Meursault and Maria’s relationship grew stronger, at least in Maria’s eyes.
Meursault on the other hand, basically saw Maria as a way to relieve himself of his often sexual tensions. “Marie came that evening and asked me if I’d marry her. I said I didn’t mind; if she was keen on it, we’d get married. Then she asked me again if I loved her. I replied, much as before, that her question meant nothing or next to nothing—but I supposed I didn’t. “If that’s how you feel,” she said, “why marry me?” (Camus 28) Let us get this straight, a girl loves this man so much that she decides to bring up the topic of marriage. Maria basically proposes to Meursault but he responds with “I don’t mind.” If this were any other girl or guy for that matter, he or she would have more than likely walked right out of their life. But, for some strange reason Maria still agrees that they should get married. At this point of the story I am beginning to actually applaud their decision of marriage because now, they are both pretty strange and disgusting as far as I see. Also, they probably are not going to find anyone else to put up with each
other. By know we all know that Meursault is a very unique, strange man. Personally, I did not think he could be any more odd. Boy was I wrong, Meursault still continued to make me sick in his attitudes and life decisions. Meursault has just killed a man on the beach, some would argue that it was self-defense because the man drew a knife on him as he kept approaching the man. However, it is not the event itself that nauseates me. After Meursault was in custody his lawyer explained that the only way he had a chance of getting out of the death sentence was to obey and answer any questions the lawyer asks. The first question that the lawyer asks is if Meursault felt any grief during the
“sad occasion” of his mother’s passing.
The response reads: “Of recent years, I’d rather lost the habit of noting my feelings, and hardly knew what to answer. I could truthfully say I’d been quite fond of Mother— but really that didn’t mean much. All normal people, I added on as afterthought, had more or less desired the death of those they loved, at some time or another.” (Camus 41) At this point in the story Meursault finally comes to realize that he really does not have any sense of emotion or feelings. But, the strange part is that he does not see anything wrong with it. In fact, Meursault has not felt any emotion his entire life until he is about to receive the death
penalty. From the first line of the story to the very last Meursault has been a very strange man. However, one thing changes in the end. “To feel it so like myself, indeed, so brotherly, made me realize that I’d been happy, and that I was happy still.” (Camus 76) It is not until the very last line of the story that Meursault truly feels emotion. His work life, social life, and love life all suffer because of his lack of emotion. It is sad to see that the only time Meursault finds meaning in life is when he realizes that he is going to die. Which is why the title of this book The Stranger, by Albert Camus is so fitting and complex.