In philosophy, the absurd describes the inability to find a meaning in life, and all people who try to find purpose in their lives will eventually fail. Life itself is not absurd, but when people are faced with existential questions, they inevitably face absurdity. In response, they can commit suicide, turn to religion for answers, or accept life and its absurdity as it is. Albert Camus claims suicide and recovery are the methods of dealing with the absurd once existential questions cause people to encounter it (“The myth of Sisyphus and other essays” 12).
Other philosophers also agree with Camus when it comes to accepting absurdism. For example, Nagel states that situations and life themselves are not absurd unless people perceive them as absurd (272). Therefore, there should be no reason to attempt and escape the absurd or resent it.
When faced with the absurd, the best response is to accept it and live life as offered, so Camus depicted a character called Meursault according to his belief that absurdity is created when the human need for meaning interacts with the meaningless world (Roth 556). As a character who started as a passive and distanced observer of the meaningless events in his life, Meursault eventually changes and makes peace with the notion that existence is meaningless, but he still finds happiness after that realization.
It is possible to notice that the story relates to three distinct phases of his dealing with the absurd. In the first phase of the book, Meursault is a passive character who does not get involved in his own life. In the second part, after killing an Arab, Meursault begins to express his emotions. Eventually, at the end of the novel, Meursault experiences a rush of emotions that enables him to accept the world around him. Throughout his evolution in the novel, suicide is never mentioned while religion is brought up as a potential solution that is not suitable for dealing with the absurd. Instead, Meursault’s own experience and confrontation with his emotions enable him to accept life as meaningless and beautiful.
Suicide as a solution is never brought up by Camus in “The Stranger” because he never appreciated it as a suitable solution when faced with the absurd (Camus “The myth of Sisyphus and other essays” 3). However, Meursault does pass through a phase in which he reveals his hopes in the afterlife, but eventually turns down religion as his response to the absurd. Instead, the novel ends with Meursault’s acceptance of the absurd, which is the only acceptable solution after experiencing the absurd.
In the first part of the book, Meursault displays a passive attitude towards people and events he faces because of his views that life is meaningless. That becomes apparent immediately because the novel starts with his mother’s death. “Mother died today. Or, maybe, yesterday; I can’t be sure” (Camus “The Stranger” 4). Even though the death of a parent is one of the most tragic events in life, Meursault remains distant and continues to express his dissent with the need for unnecessary formalities during the funeral. Meursault also wants to continue working without taking a leave because he does not need the time to grieve for his mother. As far as he is concerned, life goes on and his mother’s death is already in the past.
The same approach to life is also present in his relationship with Marie. “Then she asked me again if I loved her. I replied, much as before, that her question meant nothing or next to nothing—but I supposed I didn’t” (Camus “The Stranger” 28). In their relationship, she was the one doing the decision-making because he did not care about his emotions toward her or any activities they may engage in together, including marriage.
However, despite his attitude, Meursault is not emotionless, and Camus introduces his feelings of fear and anger during his confrontation with an Arab. After several paragraphs describing the tension in Meursault’s emotions rising, Meursault eventually gives into his fear and kills the man. “Every nerve in my body was a steel spring, and my grip closed on the revolver. The trigger gave, and the smooth underbelly of the butt jogged my palm” (Camus “The Stranger” 39).
Meursault apparently remains unchanged by the event, but as his trial for the murder proceeds, his ability to interact with people significantly increases as he begins to talk about his emotions. For example, Meursault does reveal his hopes that there is an afterlife and his fear while he is talking to the chaplain. However, Meursault never turns to religion in the novel, even when faced with the death penalty.
When faced with the absurd, people will most likely turn to religion if they do not choose suicide as their response. Although religion does free a certain burden felt when people experience the absurd, Camus does not approve of religion as a suitable solution because it deals with hope and belief when people need to know and experience the truth instead (“The myth of Sisyphus and other essays” 138). Meursault acts in compliance with this belief. Instead of accepting the chaplain and repenting for his sins, his anger breaks out and he expresses all emotions that were hidden regarding the events that had occurred in his life.
Camus (“The Stranger” 75-76) describes his experience as a rush of anger, which caused his heart to open to the world around him and helped him accept life as meaningless. For the first time, Meursault was able to realize that he had been happy and that he still is happy. The ending reflects the ideal response to the absurd. Instead of resorting to suicide or turning to religion, Meursault accepted the absurd, which is the only suitable solution for people.
Because most people who face the absurd are not capable of believing in reality or living life as it is offered to them (qtd in Francev 39), Camus depicts a character that has the same problem and eventually overcomes it by the end of the novel. The main point of “The Stranger” is to depict the absurd as an essential aspect of human life and its acceptance as the only productive solution.
Nagel argues that humans are the only beings that are able to experience the absurd because we are advanced enough to question are own existence, and rather than avoiding the topic, humans should accept their ability to confront the meaningless aspect of life and come to terms with it (725). Albert Camus agrees that existential questions, which result in discovering absurdity, can be raised only by humans, and that only shows how our self-awareness is advanced enough to allow us to face the absurd and accept it (Camus “The myth of Sisyphus and other essays” 52).
In his novel “The Stranger,” Camus was able to create a character that lives with the notion that life is meaningless and create a series of events that eventually gives him the ability to confront the absurd and choose to accept it. Consistent with Camus’ beliefs, Meursault avoids suicide and religion as responses to the absurd. Instead he finds acceptance and happiness in the meaningless world, despite being unable to find the purpose of life.
Works Cited
Camus, Albert. The stranger. Trans. Stuart Gilbert. New York, NY: Vintage Books, 1942. Print.
Camus, Albert. The myth of Sisyphus and other essays. Trans. Justin O'Brien. New York, NY: Vintage International, 1942. Print.
Francev, Peter. “Camus and the Absurd Cycle.” Journal of the Albert Camus Society. Ed. Peter Francev. 2010. 29 – 42. Web.
Nagel, Thomas. "The absurd." The Journal of Philosophy 68.20 (1971): 716-727. Print.
Roth, John K. “Albert Camus.” Great Thinkers of the Western World. Ed. Ian McGreal. 1999 Edition. New York: HarperCollins Publishing. 556. Print.
