Absurdism

The following is an epilogue to Albert Camus’s The Stranger, an existentialist novel where the main character, Meursault, comes face to face with the reality of the Absurd. Being sentenced to death, not because of the murder he committed but because of his radical worldview, Meursault remains true to his belief that there is no God, no meaning, and no hope to the life he lives. Meursault, at the end of the novel, shares his last wish; that at his death, he would have one last bit of…

Albert Camus wrote The Plague using several literary devices to further the novel. It is often said that an author inserts their own character traits and beliefs into the characters of their novels. Camus is no different in this aspect, especially when it comes to his protagonist Dr. Rieux. The event of the plague which is the main focus of the novel is a catalyst that shapes and changes the characters, some for the better and others for the worse. With the rest of this essay Dr. Rieux, Cottard,…

“Meursault is a body without a soul. His pleasures and discomforts are purely tactile and sensory, with no admixture of emotion or spiritual awareness.” Meursault is the narrator and main character of Albert Camus’s novel The Stranger. Looking into the title of the novel deeper, one can refer to “the stranger” as Meursault. Referring to Meursault as a body without a soul is a very accurate description of him. He does not show any emotion to the people around him and his feelings are very…

The journey of life is full of hardships and tribulations, which is a fact in our world that we have to live with. Since birth, we are faced with challenges that test our capacity to survive. As such, it is inevitable that many would doubt the often troublesome effort we place in maintaining our existence, which is only exacerbated when one considers all the factors that come into play that are beyond our control. Such pondering culminates in the question of whether our presence in this world…

Absurdity Wears a Raincoat Name two key distinctions (religion vs. rationality) Both have a notion of the absurd: Camus 's notion of the absurd rests upon the understanding that there is a futility in life yet we continue to live on, despite knowing full well that ultimately life is not a game that may ever be won. Part of what makes this even more of an absurd notion is that introspective man will more or less realize that ultimately never get anything from it other than being able to…

"Texas Forever" is a mantra Tim Riggins, the main character in the television series, Friday Night Lights, lives by. The premise of the show is how an entire town base their dreams on the game of football and we learn those dreams do not come without compromise. It is easy to identify with the characters in Friday Night Lights because their lives and their situations are believable. When we base our life upon a dream or the person we believe we deserve to be, it can be a tragedy or it can be…

Albee uses foreshadowing to describe how the people who are alienated and isolated from the world are living. This is represented through Jerry's long speech and talk about his life at the rooming house, and his story with the dog. Zimbardo believes that Jerry's long speech about the dog and the foreshadowing used by Jerry shows the "pseudo-crisis" (120) that is used to explore Albee's preoccupation with man's failure to establish a relationship with other people and his anger of being isolated…

Fyodor Dostoyevsky created the novel, Notes From Underground, holding insightful thoughts on the purpose and meaning of life. Within the novel, Dostoyevsky creates the character, the Underground Man. He laments human’s inconsistencies and their inability to grasp the meaninglessness of existence; while they work tirelessly to exert control over their uncontrollable environments. Human desire for power is epitomized in their attempts to rebel against the physiological laws of nature that govern…

Aimless Love Lost in the repition of life, surrounded by the unknowing, unsure, no way-out concept of life. Surrounded by crowds of people, all going somewhere but no one is really going anywhere. Were the streets are crowded with people, faces no one recognizes, but nothing can be heard but silence. People often times wonder why they are even there to begin with, why should they keep trying when everyone else has just given up. Lost and disconnected from the world there is silence, but the…

The Hell of No Exit Existentialism has always been a new way to view life. To live – to exist – without context, without labels, without definitions given by everyone else is a notion that is relieving for some and distressing for others. Written by Jean-Paul Sartre in 1944, the French play No Exit, paints a vivid and imaginative picture of an existentialist’s hell. By trapping one’s greatest fears in a room for eternity, Sartre’s intricately woven depiction of modern Hell introduces a new…