The Stranger Essay
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Throughout Albert Camus, L'etranger, the main character Meursault loses his life, due to his unusual behavior depicted in his relationships with his mother, the Arab, and his indifference to his own death according to society.
Meursault is an abnormal in society. He cannot relate to others because he does not live as they do. Meursault is simplistic even detached; he speaks of his mothers death without regret for her loss, merely stating: " Mama died today, or yesterday maybe, I don't know" (3). He goes on to mention that perhaps it was yesterday- he is not sure which. He cannot abide by the same moral confines as the rest of the world because he doesn't grasp them. He is largely indifferent to events occuring around him. Schoffer argues that Meursaults entire being is unemotional. "According to societies conventions death should be followed by its natural effect, grieving, and on a deeper level, Meursault inability to grieve indicates that he has no heart, thus explaining his crime" (130). He draws a certain level of pressure from eating and drinking, smoking cigarettes sitting on his balcony to watch passers by...