What messages does Camus have for the readers and why do we think the book was popular with the people of his generation? Albert Camus was a man of many great potential prospects. In his books he captures the absurdity of living and “the idea that human life has no redeeming meaning of its purpose” and that no matter life threats you there is one certainty and that is death. Camus wrote his famous book “the outsider” during the 1940’s, it became an instant well-liked book by the teenagers. In this essay I will try to explore Camus’ explanation of life and obstacles that one must face before death.
Meursaults mother had previously passed away and yet he shows no pain upon this sorrowful occasion, “mama died today or yesterday maybe, I don’t know”. This indicates to us that Meursault paid little attention to his mothers needs and therefore upon receiving the news of her death he should no heartache. The “I don’t know” suggest to me that he didn’t care and really couldn’t be bothered to receive any more of her news. This was being portrayed even further in the book when he said “that doesn’t mean anything, maybe it was yesterday.
This gives us the impression that Meursault is in fact a naked man with no emotions what so ever. This was one of the events that lead him to his final destination toward the end of the book. Soon enough Meursault rose from his supposing grief over his mother and decides to go to the beach. While there he encountered a meeting with one of his old crush Marie Cardona, “I fancied her at that time” shows us that even though he was not distress with his mothers death he still has a soft side towards women “I brushed against her breast”.
Mersault shows no inevitability in life and that the world around him makes no sense to him and that he’d rather live by his own rules and for this, some people refer to him as a “reject” in his own ways. Later when things become strong between them, she soon told him about her adorable feelings for him. “Marry me then” but in return Meursault expresses his indifference towards love and marriage, “I told her it didn’t mean anything but that I didn’t think so” by this Maria was crushed but still wanted to be married to him anyway, gives us the impression that she still wanted to be with him.
Camus’s absurdity philosophy plays a big part in their love life. This is because Maria stayed a loyal and truthful fianci?? while Meursault was awaiting his trial in jail. “Marie’s loyalty represents a mixed blessing” and by this I mean that her feelings are of hope, faith and trust and from that it prevents here from “understanding that Meursault attains at the end of the novel”. Maria is said to be less enlightened than Meursault, this is because she see’s the world in a beautiful way and the absurdity in that is that her fianci??
has a totally different explanation in the meaning of life. Tensions embarks when Meursault collided with one of his neighbor Raymond Sintes, he is said to “live of women”. Raymond leads Meursalut into his final destination later on in the book by simply convincing him to join his plan in bringing his so called unfaithful mistress back just so he can beat her up even more. “He’d beaten her till she bled” this gives us the impression that Raymond was an awful man and the illogical thing is that Meursault was still willing to help him.
“He didn’t have any reason but to” this shows us that he does not make a difference between what is good at bad. To this extent it proves to us that “he does not place any value judgment on his act, and writes the letter mainly because he has the time and the ability to do so”. Raymond, in a sense, causes Meursaults downfall because if it wasn’t for him Meursault would have never killed the Arab and it was with Raymond’s gun that he did this unholy thing by.
Normally in life white people always gets more benefits than Arabs but the fact that Meursault did not show any grief at his mothers funeral is mainly the reason he got sent to be hanged “in our society any man who doesn’t cry at his mother’s funeral is liable to be condemned to death” this indicates to us that the fact that the community treats him as an outsider for not being emotionally attached to situations like his mothers death is the reason why he got sent to his end.
The absurdity in Meursault death is that he is happy and awaits his hanging day which I find really bazaar because for someone who is about to die they would be totally depressed yet Meursault “I’d been happy, and that I was still happy (p117)” this makes us wonder if Meursault knew that in life there will always be death and that no matter how you try to dodge it, it will always come back to you and that she should greet it with joy rather than to be miserable about it.
In this sense I think that was one of the main messages Camus was trying to tell us. Through conclusion I think that Meursault is a straightforward man and does not like to lie, he’d rather be honest by not flaking false tears at his mother’s funeral just because everybody else is. He’d rather tell Marie his real feelings than to fake it and leave her shattered in tears later on.
The absurdity of life is drawn through these aspects as the man known as the “reject” is actually the man that makes sense most of all. The outsiders should in fact be the people that enjoy life as if it’s never going to end. Camus has presented us with reality and told us that there is no meaning of life and that you just live life day by day and whether you accept it or not, you will die sooner or later.
Its just we humans love to look at the fantasy side of life whereas Camus presented Meursaults character as a person that simply does not make the distinction between good and bad in his own mind. Personally I think that this book would have made teenagers relies that life is not all wonderful and sooner you will have responsibilities and consequences for your action, just like Meursault and of course no matter how rich or poor, healthy or not, death is a certain thing and there is no escaping it.
