Social Norms In The Stranger, By Albert Camus

A society contained to a set of principles punishes the non-conformers this is what sociology calls social control; when conformity is rewarded, and non-conformity is punished. This is represented in Albert Camus ' The Stranger aptly named as Meursault the main character doesn 't abide by general societal norms and rather than getting convicted for the murder he did commit he feels he is sentenced because of not loving his mother as society expects and, in a way, he is. Through Meursault 's actions of killing the unnamed Arab, helping Raymond, not grieving his mother, and having no true wants but basic primal necessities the reader can consider him immoral or evil from his violence; however, with the full presentation of his character which the reader experiences, as Meursault is the narrator, when he is imprisoned the reader reacts more sympathetically than they would if they had been one of the jury members.

In part two of Albert Camus “The Stranger,” the main character is met with the reality of the judicial system and the reality that Meursault has strayed away from. In this position, Meursault is able to see the morality that exist within God’s fate. Being an atheist becomes a setback for Meursault when he realizes the reality that God is a part of the morality that Meursault believes everyone is destined too. Unlike other times, Meursault is faced with this absurd reality he has gotten himself into and can not control his fate due to the judges social constructs and god’s law which now hold superior power than him. Meursault is awakened in this hour of consciousness, revealing the newfangledness of life and what is accepted as God’s moral sense and sees things in a perspective he has never experienced before.

The author uses his words economically in “The Tell - Tale Heart” yet he manages to provide an insight into mental deterioration. “It is impossible to say how first the idea entered my brain; but once conceived, it haunted me day and night.”

Jane Goodall was known to have said that “The greatest danger to our future was apathy”. Society has many negative perspectives on apathy, and on people with apathy. However, people often don’t consider the flaws in themselves, that can be considered as a detriment in modern society, which can be seen as extremely hypocritical. Apathy can regard to many aspects in society such as religion, relationships with others, or even not having the societally approved reactions to certain events in one’s life, such as death, anniversaries, and accomplishments. An analysis of literary elements and techniques present in Albert Camus’ novel, The Stranger, displays the idea that an individual’s indifference to religious norms often cause society to have a judgemental view on that person.

Absurdism is the belief in that all human beings exist in a purposeless, riotous universe. Inside The Stranger, by Albert Camus, Camus centers to a great extent around persuading his readers of the idea of absurdism. The novel is depicted in the first person of the character Meursault from the time his mom dies to his trial for killing an Arab man. These occasions portray how human life must be comprehended by tolerating the reality of death. Camus effectively persuades his readers on his thoughts of absurdism and shows how understanding/confronting death influences one's view of life.

In The Stranger by Albert Camus, the main character, Meursault, struggles to conform to the societal norms that are expected of him due to him being an absurdist. Absurdism is based on the idea that the universe has no order or meaning and that humanity’s search for meaning to the universe is fundamentally futile. As an absurdist, Meursault views society’s standards and rules as unnecessary and pointless and because of this belief, he does not grieve after losing his mother because he feels it to be unnecessary. His lack of grief, however, contrasts with his neighbor, Salamano’s, intense grief after losing his dog on the street despite having a poor and relationship with his dog. Salamano’s grief represents the societal norms of grieving, and

The social convention to accept religion becomes a determining factor in Meursault’s case. David Carroll’s article, “Failure of the Word: Guilt by ‘Race:’ Injustice in Camus’s The Stranger,” suggests that when Meursault rejects Christianity, he is really rejecting his “French identity” and “closing off the possibility of being assimilated (back) into French society” (1). Furthermore, if Meursault had lied and accepted religion, he would have been found not guilty, even though he confesses to murder. Society teaches us to be honest and not lie, but when Meursault tells the truth society turns on him. The justice system casts as an outsider, because he fails to comply with the same ideologies and

In Albert Camus’s “The Stranger,” Camus presents his existentialistic absurdist views in multiple ways throughout the novel; however, in one instance Camus uses imagery dealing with the sun and sky to articulate his philosophy further. Moreover, if such detail were left out, the reader would be faced with a seemingly incomplete philosophy and a futile understanding of Camus’s thinking, thus, leaving “The Stranger,” thematically flat.

What should matter to me? If this question was asked in a survey, there would be many different possible answers because a person’s response to this question depends on their personal experiences, beliefs, and much more. Many would respond that family, friends, jobs, and happiness matters to them. However, if Meursault in The Stranger by Albert Camus, was asked this question his answer would be simple: nothing really matters. Meursault is an emotionally detached member of society and for this reason people see him as an outcast. Meursault goes through many events such as; a death of a loved one, marriage, and killing someone; that would have an impact on the typical member of society. However, these events have no effect on him. He continues on with his daily day-to-day routine as if nothing happened which reveals that nothing really matters to him.

Existentialism became a well-known philosophical movement by the works of two French writers, Jean-Paul Sartre and Albert Camus. Soren Kierkegaard is universally considered to be the first existentialist philosopher but the movement became prominent due to the efforts of two French writers Jean-Paul Sartre and Albert Camus. Jean-Paul Sartre (1905-1980), a French existential philosopher, a prominent novelist and playwright is considered to be the father of Existentialist philosophy. His trilogy No Exit, Nausea, and the Roads to Freedom contribute greatly to the philosophy of existentialism. The central theme of existentialism is freedom of the individual. It emphasizes that Man is ultimately responsible for his own actions. Sartre’s notions

Albert Camus’ The Stranger embodies 1940s French Algeria as it depicts the result of existentialism within a French Christian society. Literature often highlights the values of a culture or society by using a character who is alienated because of creed. The protagonist, Meursault, is an existentialist judged as a pariah and detached from society due to his beliefs. Existentialists have no real meaning in their life and believe that they are free to make whatever decisions they want. Christians believe in God and that their life has a purpose which contrasts to existentialism. The disparity between Christianity and existentialism often leaves existentialists alienated from a Christian society such as Algiers, Algeria. Algiers’ moral values

Albert Camus, though denying the tag of existentialism, was and still is a great name amongst French existentialist authors who helped sculpt and define the movement in literature. His works deals extensively with the philosophy of existentialism and existential questions, often resulting in the only answer provided by him, and that is of absurdism. His characters, settings, and situations are dipped in a “tender indifference”, as quoted by him in his magnum opus L’Étranger or The Outsider as translated in English, which was published in 1942. Camus presents his characters amidst different stages of life, whether they are dealing with a moral fall, an epidemic, or a death sentence, and shows the reaction of these protagonist embracing the meaninglessness of life, whilst continually trying to reach an end and also being unfazed by that end at the same time. This paper will be analysing The Outsider, The Plague, and The Fall by Albert Camus and will aim at finding the instances of the idea of existence, the phenomenon of indifference, and the factor of absurdity towards humanity as presented by him in his works, proving him to truly be a writer of the Absurd.

Existentialism is ubiquitous, it is not just a school thought. Existentialism is a philosophy that enhances the way people envision their own views of reality, the choices humans make, and the results of what they have done. As humanity evolved, various authors dove deep into the pool of literature and composed various novels that opened the eyes of various readers and taught them that their is more to life than what they already know. Existentialism had themes that shattered the glass of readers who thought the world was wonderful and perfect, and opened their eyes to how people are alienated by appearance or actions, witnessed how a certain problem clouded the main character’s mind with fear and anxiety, and the free will of making a choice

The idea of existence, or existentialism, to use the proper term, usually is related to the factor that deals with a human being’s life and their freedom. The reason this idea is studied is the same reason that defines the difference between a living thing and a non-living thing: human beings can function according to their own will and have freedom, ideas, and identity of their own, unlike non-living things. Human beings have the power to define a non-living thing but the vice versa cannot be true. Human beings, in fact, define themselves, hence giving them the power to decide their own freedom and existence. Existentialism, as a concept,

Throughout Camus’ famous novel, The Outsider revolves around the main character, Meursault, who is very distant and quite uninterested in common elements of life like work, love, or friendship. Furthermore, he is a man that sees the hypocrisy of life and has trouble accepting the common explanations for our daily social lives. From the looks of it, Meursault seems to suffer from anomie, which is a French translation for normlessness. A term coined initially by Emile Durkheim, anomie is a condition that affects individuals or societies that creates instability, which results from a dismantling of values and standards or from a lack of ideals or purpose. However, regardless of this, The Outsider is considered by many to be one of Camus’ best