“The Stranger” written by Albert Camus is one of the most interesting and strange books that I have ever read. The book is all about the main character and his personality Meursault, an Algerian. His personality is really strange because he is not sociable, doesn’t want to talk much and the things that was surrounded with doesn’t have a special meaning to him. He is lazy when it comes to speak with others and all what we does is going to work, sleeping and smoking. The story begins with Meursault being told about his mother’s death. In the beginning he had that impression that people at funeral came to judge him. This is maybe because he was not living with his mother and didn’t take care of her for years. Maybe he was feeling a little bit guilty. He goes to attend the funeral and shows no emotions and rather than show emotions he is concentrated about other people around him. He felt that disconnection among himself and mother’s friends. When undertaker’s man asked him during the funeral: “What was her age?” He said: “Well, she was getting on.” He didn’t know how old has her mother. This explains to the reader that he was never able to feel any personal emotions for any of his actions or things he has in his life. He really does not show any emotions about all these events. And when he goes back to his apartment he noticed that nothing important has changed. One day he met an ex-colleague and did not tell her about the death of his mother. Later on he gets back to his normal life and start working as usual. He was committed to his job, but living a lonely life and a feeling of alienation. Meursault helped his neighbor Reymond to write a letter to his ex-girlfriend which was beaten by Reymond very hard. They planned a scenario together to bring her back. In this case Meursault did not show any emotions about Reymond ex-girlfriend.
Therefore, that letter was well written and worked out, therefore, he beats his ex-girlfriend. Therefore, Raymond was send to the court but Meursault helped him with some arguments and Raymond was released. After that he has been followed by some Arabs and his girlfriend’s brother. One day while Raymond was walking on the beach we met these Arabs and start fighting, where he ends up injuring him with knife. Later, Raymond start walking on the beach but Meursault accompanied him because doesn’t like to let him alone where they had got the gun kept by Meursault . While they were walking they met again with Arabs. Arabs again they pull over the knife and start attacking Raymond and Meursault. At this moment the author describes how the impact of the sun’s light, heat and previous memories of his mother where he had interesting emotions, Meursault pulled his gun and shot once and killed one of the Arabs. What is more interesting he shot four more times after little break at the dead body of the Arab. This means that he had time to think so this was conscious reaction. The following chapters explain the Meursault arrest and his life in jail. He passes time sleeping 16 hours or more per day and daydreaming, about the things that he no longer can do, from sexual relations till the places and he can’t visit anymore. He started to think for every detail he had in his apartment, for every single detail. He did this most probably to pass the time, because he had a large portion of invaluable free time. The court was trying to lighten the truth of why he murdered the Arab but they never understood the Meursault explanations, because he doesn’t feel any special emotions about anything he has made in life. Thus, the court rated that crime as a capital crime and punished him with death penalty and will be decapitated publicly.
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