In The Stranger by Albert Camus, Meursault forms relationships with Marie, Raymond and the prosecutor. The nature of these relationships depends on the similarities and differences about what each character values in their life.
The relationship between Meursault and Marie is a very difficult relationship to understand because of the personalities of both people. The difference between Meursault and Marie rely in how they see the state of their relationship. Although we do not know when Marie and Meursault started seeing each other, we do know that they are pretty fair into their relationship because the topic of marriage continues to come up. Marie has been pushing marriage for a long time. She continues to question Meursault love and commitment to her. Meursault said, “A minute later she asked if I loved her. I told her it didn’t mean anything but that I didn’t think so. She looked sad” (35). Marie sees this relationship of one of love, passion, and commitment. These are the kind of traits that define Marie as a person. Meursault, on the other hand, see …show more content…
One thing that is different between Raymond and Meursault is if they care about what society thinks of them. Raymond was with a female and tension started to brew. This led to a fight where Raymond punched the girl many different times. The police later came and questioned Raymond. After the cops left, Raymond and Meursault talked privately. Meursault remembered, “He added that he knew all about cops and how to handle them. Then he asked me if I’d expected him to hit the cop back. I said I wasn’t expecting anything, and besides I didn’t like cops. Raymond seemed pretty happy” (37). At this point, Raymond is wanting to know what Meursault thinks of his actions. He cares about Meursault 's opinions and wants to know how Meursault would have handled the situation. He cares about how other people see and respond to his actions. Meursault, on the other hand, does not seem to care at all about what society thinks of him. This is mostly because of his laid back style of life where he really only cares about himself. Meursault was offered a great new promotion for his job where he would be moving, but holding a higher position and getting a raise. Meursault was very hesitant, even though many other people would jump at the opportunity. He told his boss, “Then he asked me if I wasn’t interested in a change of life. I said