The Idea Of Punishment In The Stranger By Albert Camus

The idea of a trial is for a victim to get justice and for a criminal to be punished for his or her crime. The way that the punishment is decided depends on the jury and on the judges chosen to listen to the case. The novel The Stranger by Albert Camus is based on a man who is charged with premeditated murder and sentenced to death by guillotine. The book starts off with the death of the central character, Meursault’s, mother. In the very beginning of the book we are introduced to Meursault’s peculiar behavior. During his trial his nonchalant behavior after Maman’s death becomes the courts main focus and the basis determination of whether he is guilty or innocent. By using Fletcher I will explore the context of the idea of being guilty and by using Foucault I will explain the idea following the act of punishment.
The way Meursault intermingles with society and who he interacts with is the reason behind the court’s guilty verdict. According to the jury, Meursault appeared guilty because he is a person that is detached from his emotions and the prosecutor made a compelling case by linking him to his friend’s (Raymond) crime. Fletcher states, “The criminal law should punish only the guilty. If the "guilty" were those who could fairly be morally blamed for wrongdoing, then the principle of punishing the guilty, …show more content…
The prosecutor purposely bases the majority of Meursault’s trial on his mother’s death, which infuriates Meursault’s lawyer so he addresses the court by saying “Come now, is my client being on trial for burying his mother or for killing a man” (Camus, 96). Although Meursault’s lawyer had a point the prosecution on the other hand eruditely persuaded the jury to view Meursault as a cold-hearted