H.P. Lovecraft once said,“The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown”. The unknown can be seen as the outsiders of society. Albert Camus, a French-Algerian writer writes the story of Meursault, a man detached emotionally from society in French-Algeria during the 1940s. In the novel, Camus explores the philosophy of the Absurd in which expresses a fundamental disharmony; a confrontation between our human desire for order or meaning in life and the blank indifference (Simpson). Camus' novel, The Stranger, utilizes character and plot development to complement each other and therefore illustrate the philosophical notion of the Absurd.
In Part One of The Stranger, Camus …show more content…
To epitomize Meursault's indifference to the world around as related to plot development, later on Marie asks him if he would like to marry her; he responds with, “I said it didn't make any difference to me”(Camus 41). Then she asks if he loves her; his response, “...that it didn’t mean anything but that I probably didn’t love her”(Camus 41). More questions arise from Marie until the last one in which she asks if he would marry any other women that he had similar involvement with. He said, “Sure”(Camus 42). The apathetic development that Camus illustrates with Meursault becomes more coherent as the novel develops. He does not feel on a sentimental nor subconscious level as most do. This portrays him as a callous individual in society, almost as if he were an outcast or outsider. Part One of the novel ends with the voluntary manslaughter of an Arab. Throughout Part One of The Stranger, Camus interconnects character and plot development to paint the picture of Meursault’s persona and the events that led to the killing.
In Part Two of The Stranger the continuation of character development in relation to plot development used as a literary device is present throughout. Part Two begins with Meursault in the investigation room after the murder. He is asked questions regarding the case
In Part One of The Stranger, Camus …show more content…
To epitomize Meursault's indifference to the world around as related to plot development, later on Marie asks him if he would like to marry her; he responds with, “I said it didn't make any difference to me”(Camus 41). Then she asks if he loves her; his response, “...that it didn’t mean anything but that I probably didn’t love her”(Camus 41). More questions arise from Marie until the last one in which she asks if he would marry any other women that he had similar involvement with. He said, “Sure”(Camus 42). The apathetic development that Camus illustrates with Meursault becomes more coherent as the novel develops. He does not feel on a sentimental nor subconscious level as most do. This portrays him as a callous individual in society, almost as if he were an outcast or outsider. Part One of the novel ends with the voluntary manslaughter of an Arab. Throughout Part One of The Stranger, Camus interconnects character and plot development to paint the picture of Meursault’s persona and the events that led to the killing.
In Part Two of The Stranger the continuation of character development in relation to plot development used as a literary device is present throughout. Part Two begins with Meursault in the investigation room after the murder. He is asked questions regarding the case