Alienation can be defined as “a condition of being estranged from someone or something”. In contemporary society, there is a definite stigma towards those who are perceived to be alienated, and these individuals are often demonized by society. This demonization of the alienated individual from society is well seen in the work of existentialist philosopher Albert Camus. In The Stranger, the main character, Meursault, has the characteristics of being alienated in the sense that he is detached from society, is an existentialist character, and is absurd. These three factors are what make Meursault a prominent or even extreme example of an alienated individual in a existentialist universe. However, it is not Camus’ intention to portray Meursault as a unusual being, rather he seeks to compare Meursault to the common man. Camus’ comparison of Meursault to everyman ultimately raises the question of are we all, in a sense, alienated from society and its norms? We are all alienated from society and its norms in the sense that we possess the same characteristics that Meursault possess, absurdity and detachment. While Meursault serves as a extreme example of absurdity and detachment, we as individuals are somewhat absurd and somewhat detached, dependent on the issue.
Meursault is quite an unusual character in the sense that he is obviously detached from society. Throughout the novel, he is detached from several things including his mother’s death, the idea of a funeral, and the fact that he has killed someone. He acknowledges all of these events. His mother’s death is acknowledged in the first line of the novel when he states “Maman died today. Or yesterday I don’t remember” (Camus, 1942, 1). This famous first line displays obvious detachment. Contemporary society views death as a event where one should mourn the deceased (add source here), and those who do not mourn death are seen as strange or absurd. At his mother’s funeral, Meursault’s attention is not on the solemn event that is happening before him, but rather on his physical surroundings. He states “The sky was already filled with light. The sun was beginning to bear down on the earth and it was getting hotter by the minute. I don’t know why we waited so long before getting underway. I was hot in my dark clothes… it was inhumane and oppressive” (add chicago citation here). The fact that he is focusing on little matters that affect him further displays his estrangement from an event that society deems as solemn. (add chicago citation)
The funeral itself also represents the portrayal of Meursault as an existential character, along with detachment. Existentialism is defined as an focus “on human existence and it is believed that the individual is forced to choose and to be responsible without the help or the intervention of any superior power” (add chicago citation) Meursault can be classified as existentialist, because he is acting on his free will and is determining that his physical surroundings are impacting him more than a funeral, which he is unable to grasp the point of, and rather views it as meaningless. (add citation here). Through his actions, Meursault is breaking away from the societal norm that has been put in place for funerals, and is rather creating his own morale through his free will, a major concept of existentialism. One could argue that this lack of grief he felt for his mother’s death may be attributed to the fact that she may have caused him intense trauma, or was cruel to him. However, further evidence in the book leads readers to think otherwise. He does not draw upon or recall previous terrible experiences that give him a base to not grieve the death of his mother, rather he feels separated from the conventional way of mourning, as is seen in his visit to the funeral home where he does not view the body, and at work, where he refuses time off just because his mother died, and finds it pretentious that his boss would even think of doing so. He obviously does not believe in societal norms, such as mourning, and as seen later, killing.
127 our experts are availableright now
Meursault’s killing of the Arab on the beach is also a good example of how he focuses on his physical surroundings rather than what he really should be focused on, or what society thinks he should be focused on. When he sees the Arab, his focus is primarily on the weather and how hot he is. Right before he kills the Arab he states “It was this burning, which I couldn’t stand anymore, that made me move forward. I knew it was stupid, that I wouldn’t get the sun of off me by stepping forward” (add chicago citation). His killing of the Arab serves to further represent his alienation from society, as society deems it strange that one would murder an individual because the sun was in their eyes, as Meursault states at his trial (add chicago citation). His statement right before he kills the Arab, and at the court trial are enough to classify Meursault as being absurd, which is “the belief that human beings act in a purposeless, chaotic, universe” (add chicago citation).
These three examples of how Meursault can be classified as absurd, existentialist, and detachment also contribute to his view of society and how he perceives society to be meaningless. His perception of the universe as being meaningless is best seen through the quote “since we’re all going to die, it’s obvious that when and how don’t matter” (add chicago citation here) As death is something that is going to occur to everyone, then none of us matter, and therefore life is meaningless. Therefore, since our lives don’t have purpose, then there is no reason to go along with society’s norms. His perception of a meaningless universe can be better understood when later on in the novel he provides some valid insight into one of the reasons why he was so detached from society stating “I had no place in a society whose most fundamental rules I ignored, nor could I make an appeal to the heart when I knew nothing of the most basic human reactions” (add chicago citaion here)
Meursault might be an extreme example of an alienated individual, however it was not the intention of Albert Camus to depict him as a highly unusual being, instead he wanted to portray the similarities we all have to Meursault. Meursault sees hypocrisy in the world, that through creating norms, society has ultimately led to its own downfall. His character is quite similar to the basic individual, however Meursault is portrayed as alienated and absurd due to the fact that society is threatened by his ideas, as he may overthrow or replace the norms that have already been set into place, the very thing society does not want as they profit from it (add chicago citation). Albert Camus’s reasoning for drawing Meursault as an alienated individual is because Meursault tackles the problems and norms in society that we are actively conscious of, but don’t unnecessarily address. Too often, we want to address the problems, create revolutions, and institute reform, however we do not always steep to the root of the problem to see how we can fix the issue.
