As humans, we are innately apt to ask ourselves, who we are, and what we are doing on this earth and why. Why, why why. We are obsessed with this question. Yet, when others seem to have it figured out, we look down upon it. In Albert Camus', "The Stranger," the main character, Mersault, is a stranger to society, yet completely at peace with himself. He acts the way he does because it is truthful, honest and the only way he sees fit to live. (Kady)
[...] that point being life and the universe is meaningless. (Taylor) The evening of the final court session, he began to realize that life was about to dramatically change. I think he suddenly understood that the greatest change in life is death and what is death to a man who has yet to live his life. With precious little time left to make up for a lost life, I think a flood of pent up emotion got the better of Meursault. [...]
[...] (Amalia) A huge part of who Mersault is comes from the existentialist views that he inadvertently expresses throughout his story. To be existentialist is to make things equal in your mind. Everything matters and nothing matters. (Kady) In Meursault's story, there is a constant fight. The conflict is not him against other people, but more of the fight other people have with him in order to understand his ways. Even as his court hearings, he still is just as grounded as ever. [...]
[...] He had no regrets. He realized that no one should feel sorry for him. He didn't want people to think he hasn't lived. He realized he had. He didn't want to leave this world with any thoughts of if he only had more time. He realized that no one could understand him, understand why he did not cry for his mother, why he killed the Arab, or anything else. He only wanted people to stop thinking about reasons like he had. [...]
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