The Stranger is a novel by Albert Camus. The main character in this novel is Meursault who is also the narrator. The title “The Stranger” helps to explain various strange happenings in the novel. Meursault is involved in various instances which show his emotional detachment with his surrounding environment (Albert, pp 12). Although much has been explained about this novel, little has been done about the interpretation of the title “The Stranger”. This paper will thus focus on the interpretation of the title of the novel “The Stranger”.
In this novel, the stranger is Meursault, the narrator of the novel. Meursault is estranged from the world, himself, his closest friends and family members. One of the instances that show that Meursault is estranged is his reception of his mother’s death. When he got a telegram informing him about his mother’s death, he does not mourn as he is expected to do by the society (Albert, pp 18). Meursault fails to show any emotions to indicate that his mother is dead. When he travelled to the old person’s home where his mother had been living before she died, he declined the offer given by the caretaker of opening his mother’s coffin for him to view the body (Albert, pp 22). In addition, he is also displeased with the caretaker’s offer to stay with him as he keeps vigil over his mother’s body. Strangely, Meursault drinks and smokes as he takes care of his mother’s body. When they were going for his mother’s funeral, he showed little concern for Thomas Perez, the old man who fainted as a result of too much heat (Albert, pp 29). The day after his mother’s burial, Meursault goes for a date and watches a comedic movie with Marie. This lack of grief for his mother’s death shows that Meursault is estranged from his family members.
He also demonstrates emotional detachment from his surroundings when he fails to show emotions for Marie’s love for him (Albert, pp 40). After spending a night with Marie, Meursault has the confidence to say that it didn’t mean anything. In addition, he also responds indifferently when Marie enquires when he wants to marry her. Instead of responding well, Meursault tells Marie that they can marry if she wants to and therefore they became engaged (Albert, pp 52). Moreover, He is also estranged from the world because he did not show emotions when he had killed an Arab. He had advised Raymond not to shoot the two Arabs in the beach one of whom is a brother to Raymond’s mistress. However, Meursault later shoots one of the Arabs without a good reason.
When Meursault is arrested and put behind bars, he is not remorseful about his crime and this hurts his lawyer (Albert, pp 62). The examining magistrate is also unable to understand Meursault due to his strange actions. In addition, Meursault behaves strangely because he says that he does not believe in God. He is estranged from himself because he cannot believe that he will be sentenced to death. Meursault remains a stranger throughout this novel because he is psychologically detached from the world around him. He does not show emotions for significant matters such as the death of his mother and his marriage proposal to Marie. However, he is honest enough not to cheat of any emotions in any of these instances. At long last, he learns that he does not differentiate between the good and the bad things in his own mind (Albert, pp 79). He is also not able to place value judgment to his actions. For example, he accepts to write a letter to torment Raymond’s mistress. As he waits for his death sentence, Meursault learns that the world in completely indifferent to human life. He also says that the lives of people have no striking importance and their actions have no effect on the universe. This makes him to accept the gentle indifference of the world (Albert, pp 81). It is his indifference to the society which shows that Meursault is a stranger to the world. The interpretation of the title “The Stranger” is essential because it helps people to have a better understanding of the novel “The Stranger”.
Reference:
Albert C. The Stranger. 1989. New York. Vintage Publishers
