APIB English Literature and Composition
Major Works Data Sheet Works Cited
Title: THE STRANGER Author: Albert Camus Date of Publication: 1942 Genre: Absurdist Fiction
"The Stranger." Schmoop. Schmoop University, Inc., 2011. Web. 26 Apr. 2011. . "The Stranger." SparkNotes. SparkNotes LLC, 2011. Web. 26 Apr. 2011. .
Historical information about the period of publication: (If not significant, explain why in detail.) Albert Camus was born in French colonial Algiers. His father was killed in WWI, and he, his brother, mother, grandmother, and paralyzed uncle all shared a two bedroom apartment. Despite his impoverished upbringing, he attended the University of Algiers, but was forced to drop out due to tuberculosis. In addition to other journalistic and literary pursuits, he edited the underground newspaper Combat. During wartime in Paris, he developed his philosophy of absurdism. In the same year as the publication of The Stranger, he also published his best known essay, also dealing with the Absurd, The Myth of Sisyphus.
Characteristics of the genre: Often, literature of the absurd will contain elements that make no rational sense, such as meaningless dialogue, mundane repetition, circular or pointless plots, situations that are confusing and purposeless, and characters, plots, or any other element that lacks logical order or reason.
Plot summary: Save opening and closing scenes for sections below. The protagonist is a young man named Meursault. Right before the beginning of the book, he receives a telegram informing him that his mother has died. He gets on a bus and goes to her funeral. After the funeral, he returns to Algiers. He meanders around for a while, and meets an attractive ex-co-worker named Marie. They go to see a movie together, and then she comes home with him. In the morning he awakes to find her gone. In one of his frequent spells of apathy, he sits in his room all day and watches people out his window in the evening. The next day, he returns to work. Afterwards, he comes home and meets Salamano, a man who is always abusing his wretch of a dog. A man named Raymond (who is rumored to be a pimp) invites him over to dinner and asks Meursault to write a threatening letter to a woman of his who left him and disrespected him. Later, Marie visits him. She asks whether Meursault loves her or not. He replies that it didn’t mean anything, but “probably not.” They hear a commotion, and they look down the hall to see Raymond being dragged out of his apartment for beating his woman. Raymond asks Meursault to be a witness for him in court, and Meursault agrees. That same night, Salamano informs him that his dog has run away. Next time they meet, Marie asks Meursault if he wants to marry her. He says he doesn’t care, but that they can get married if she wants, so they get engaged. Next week, they go to visit a friend named Masson who lives on the beach. They swim, and they are made slightly nervous by a couple of Arabs they see. After lunch, Meursault and Masson go walking on the beach, and Meursault kills two Arabs in cold blood. He is arrested and put in prison. Everyone who meets him seems disgusted by his apathy and lack of remorse. The magistrate who examines him urges him to put his faith in Christ, but Meursault refuses, saying that he doesn’t believe in God. The former refuses to accept his lack of belief, and dubs him “Monsieur Antichrist.” Meursault goes into withdrawal from women, cigarettes, and nature, but soon adjusts and stops noticing their absence. In his trial, the conversation shifts from his actions to a general discussion of his character, particularly whether he cried at his mother’s funeral. He is found guilty and is sentenced to death by beheading. As he awaits the execution of his sentence, he comes to terms with the absurdity of the world when he is visited by a chaplain against his wishes. The chaplain, like the magistrate, is unable to accept that Meursault doesn’t want to be saved. Meursault is stirred into a great anger, and declares that he believes only in a meaningless, physical world. He accepts that there is no hope or meaning, and is moved by “the gentle indifference of the world.” Then, he achieves happiness.
Major Works Data Sheet
Page 2
Describe the author’s style, incl narrator/point of view, metaphors/similes:
Examples that demonstrate the style (you need more than one example):
Camus’ writing is not wasteful; it is to the point and simple. However, his descriptions are very precise and sometimes long-winded. The dialogue tends to be short, but that doesn’t keep the text from achieving moments of profundity and expressiveness.
“Maman died today. Or yesterday maybe, I don’t know. I got a telegram from the home: "Mother deceased. Funeral tomorrow. Faithfully yours." That doesn’t mean anything. Maybe it was yesterday.” “There was the same dazzling red glare. The sea gasped for air with each shallow, stifled little wave that broke on the sand. I was walking slowly toward the rocks and I could feel my forehead swelling under the sun. All that heat was pressing down on me and making it hard for me to go on. And every time I felt a blast of its hot breath strike my face, I gritted my teeth, clenched my fists in my trouser pockets, and strained every nerve in order to overcome the sun and the thick drunkenness it was spilling over me. With every blade of light that flashed off the sand, from a bleached shell or a piece of broken glass, my jaws tightened.”
Memorable Quotes 5 Quote
Significance
That evening Marie came by to see me and asked me if I wanted to marry her. I said it didn’t make any difference to me and that we could if she wanted to. Then she wanted to know if I loved her. I answered the same way I had the last time, that it didn’t mean anything but that I probably didn’t love her. "So why marry me, then?" she said. I explained to her that it didn’t really matter and that if she wanted to, we could get married. […] Then she pointed out that marriage was a serious thing. I said, "No."
This quote demonstrates Meursault’s feelings of isolation and apathy. He is so far lost in his own little world that even a marriage proposal from a beautiful woman doesn’t interest him. Indeed, it doesn’t mean anything at all to him. He is perfectly content to just let the world wash over him like a wave on a beach, letting his life fade in and out…
It occurred to me that anyway one more Sunday was over that Maman was buried now, that I was going back to work, and that, really, nothing had changed.
Meursault demonstrates his remorseless side. It is quite remarkable how apathetic he is. He almost defends his lack of grief: nothing has changed, what is there to feel sad about?
I couldn’t understand why they had taken [the cigarettes] away when they didn’t hurt anybody. Later on I realized that that too was part of the punishment. But by then I had gotten used to not smoking and it wasn’t a punishment anymore.
It is very difficult to reprimand someone like Meursault. He is stubborn (though in a passive way) and is content to be just about anywhere. He gets used to anything, and since he comes to peace with the world and his death, his execution is not really a punishment either.
She said, "If you go slowly, you risk getting sunstroke. But if you go too fast, you work up a sweat and then catch a chill inside the church." She was right. There was no way out. I tried my best to please Raymond because I didn’t have any reason not to please him.
This statement is symbolic of the human condition. Just like the sun, death is inescapable. The only way out (of the possible misery the thought brings) is to accept it.
A commentary on Meursault’s apathy. “Why not?” seems to be the answer to every other question life sends his way.
Major Works Data Sheet of Significant Characters Name
Role in the story
Characters Significance
Page 3 Adjectives
Meursault
Protagonist
He is Camus’ champion of absurdity. Over the course of the book, he realizes that the world is absurd, and there’s nothing he can do but accept it.
Indifferent; Apathetic; Introspective; Deliberate, yet not so.
Marie Cardona
Supporting Character
She is a contrast and a foil to Meursault’s character, a light and virtually carefree individual.
Simple; Undemanding; Sexual; Guileless.
Salamano (and his dog)
Minor Characters
Salamano and his dog are the only characters that are in a genuine relationship. Furthermore, they serve to remind us of death.
Wretched; Cranky; Miserable; Old.
Raymond Sintes
Supporting Character
Raymond serves to create much of the action that occurs in The Stranger. He asks Meursault to write a letter to his girlfriend for him, hands him the gun the former uses to shoot the Arabs, and finally, on the witness stand, blurts out that Meursault is innocent.
Dirty; Sneaky; Chauvinistic; Violent; Insecure; Tough Guy.
The Chaplain
Minor Character
The Chaplain’s role is to prod Meursault until he bursts out in his declaration of enlightenment about the world.
Insistent; WellMeaning.
Major Works Data Sheet
Page 4 Setting
Significance of the opening scene
The Stranger takes place in 1940s Algiers, part of the French colony of Algeria. The colony was made up of both Frenchmen and Arabs, though the French were considered superior citizens. Meursault works as a shipping clerk for a company there. Most of the action takes place in the city, but he does leave to go see his mother’s funeral in a town about an hour away.
The opening scene shows several striking examples of Meursault’s apathy. He smokes at his mother’s funeral and refuses to shed a tear. Most of the time is passed in dull, thoughtless, reverie. The very next day, he meets a girl, hits on her, and goes to a comedy flick.
Significance of the ending/closing scene Symbols The Sun/Weather: These forces represent Meursault’s nature, and his behavior tends to be dictated by physical needs and desires. Color: Green seems to symbolize happiness, as it is in scenes where Meursault is content. Red seems to be equated with violence and/or sex. The Courtroom: The courtroom represents society’s attempts to rationalize an irrational and meaningless world, and the forced morality thereof. Laughter and Swimming: These elements remind us that Meursault is human. He is strangely attracted to laughter, and loves to swim. These thoroughly mundane pursuits keep him on an understandable plane.
On what is presumably the day before his execution, Meursault wakes up and “smells the taffy.” He realizes that he reckon with his impending death, and empties himself of all expectation and hope. In doing this, he frees himself of worry and accepts his death with gentle peace.
Possible Themes – Support is optional. Passivity/The Absurd/Mortality/Isolation 1. Mortality- “She said, "If you go slowly, you risk getting sunstroke. But if you go too fast, you work up a sweat and then catch a chill inside the church." She was right. There was no way out.” (Camus, 16) 2.
Isolation- “On their way out, and much to my surprise, they all shook my hand – as if that night during which we hadn’t exchanged as much as a single word had somehow brought us closer together.” (Camus, 11)
3.
Sadness-I told her Maman had died. She wanted to know how long ago, so I said, "Yesterday." She gave a little start but didn’t say anything. I felt like telling her it wasn’t my fault, but I stopped myself because I remembered that I’d already said that to my boss. It didn’t mean anything. Besides, you always feel a little guilty. (Camus, 19)
