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Title: The Stranger by ALBERT CAMUS ISBN: 0-679-72020-0 Publisher: Vintage Pub. Date: 13 March, 1989 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $9.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.21 (373 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: Hello
Comment: The Stranger was the first novel of Camus' labeled "absurd," and it defines Camus for most Americans. The plot is quite simple, with none of the diversions common in popular literature. The main character is not a hero, has no "true" love affair and the pursuit of money and power never enters the story. The Stranger is an honest atheist, waiting for life to happen.
The title l'Etranger, has been poorly translated. The U.S. title, The Stranger, implies that the main character, Meursault, has been viewed as a "strange" or "odd" person for some time. The other possible meaning is that no one knows him. Meursault is a stranger even to those who think they know him. These definitions do not seem adequate. The U.K. title, The Outsider, only serves to confuse readers even more.
Meursault is the archetype of a middle-class man. He works as a clerk, rents an apartment and draws no attention to himself. He is, if anything, very ordinary. Meusault might even be boring. He lacks deep convictions and passion. If he is estranged from any aspect of French society, it is religion--he does not believe in the symbols and the rituals of faith.
Estranged? "Cela m'est égal."
Along with the title, Camus took care in naming the main character. Meursault's name is symbolic of the Mediteranean sea. Mer mean "sea" and soliel is French for "sun." The sea and the sun meet at the beach, where Meursault's defining actions occur.
Meusault is an anti-hero. His only redeeming quality is his honesty, no matter how absurd. In existential terms, he is "authentic" to himself. Meusault does not believe in God, but he cannot lie because he is true to himself. This inability to falsify empathy ultimately condemns him. Meursault has faith only in what he, himself, can see or experience with his other senses. He is not a philosopher, a theologian or a deep thinker. Meursault exists as he is, not trying to be anything more or less than himself.
Why did Camus' readers recognize Meursault as a plausible character? After two World Wars and much suffering, many people came to live life much as Meursault does. Or at least they tried to do so. These people lost the will to do more than exist. There was no hope and no desire. The only goal for many people was simple survival. Even then, the survival seemed empty and hollow. We learn how empty Meursault's existence is through his relationships. He is not close to his mother; we learn he does not cry at her funeral. He does not seem close to his lover, Marie Cardona. Of her, Meursault states, "To me, she was only Marie." There is no passion is Meursault's words or in his life.
What sets Camus apart from many existentialists and modern philosophers in general is his acceptance of contradiction. Yes, Camus wrote, life is absurd and death renders life meaningless--for the individual. But mankind and its societies are larger than any one individual person.
Rating: 5
Summary: Hero
Comment: I think that The Stranger is a great book. Not only is this book an excellent departure from typical modern writing, it is also interesting in its own right. Meursault is one of the most interesting and well-fleshed-out characters I've ever read, and the book stays succinct, never becoming overlong or drawn-out. I actually felt Meursault's agitation on the beach, in the heat, with the light shining in his eyes; his annoyance in the cell with the chaplain. This book represents, to me, what can be done with a character if he's handled correctly, and even only as far as that this book is worth a lot. But it's interesting, too, which is definitely a plus. Overall, this book, short though it may be, is a welcome and worthy addition to my bookshelf.
Textually, l'Etranger is quite a strange novel. It defies many typical writing standards, while putting exceptional emphasis on others. The novel is truly a character study, with the only world-building included solely to enhance the character. As such, the book probably won't be a favorite of the general populace any time soon, with the need of most people for description, details and heroes, characters that can be cheered for. Meusault, in any event, is certainly not much of a hero to root for.
Reading The Stranger, I found myself wondering what kind of person Albert Camus is (was?). I haven't read any of his other stuff, but I find it unlikely that he is much like Meursault in attitude, or the novel would never have been written. On the other hand, how did Camus delve so deeply into the mind of such a man if he's never experienced a similar mindset? Is Meursault an embodiment of Camus' fears for the human race, what with his passivity and easy acceptance of everything, or is he an embodiment of the author's hopes, in his simple honesty and naïveté? It would be interesting to find out where Camus got the idea for this particular personage.
In closing, I would just like to point out a couple of things. First, I do know that this is regarded as an existentialist, modernist classic piece and whatnot, but I decided to judge it against other contemporary fiction because I don't really know much about that other stuff. And finally, this is definitely a book worth reading even if you don't end up liking it.
Rating: 5
Summary: A masterpiece.
Comment: The main character of this book is the definition of an antihero and seems to not care about anything. But thats what makes him so likeable and the book such a gem!
I cant really explain this book without spoiling it but if you want a terrific and engrossing read then look no further. This book is the thing you seek.
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Title: The Plague by Albert Camus ISBN: 0679720219 Publisher: Vintage Pub. Date: 07 May, 1991 List Price(USD): $12.00 |
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Title: The Fall by Albert Camus ISBN: 0679720227 Publisher: Vintage Pub. Date: 07 May, 1991 List Price(USD): $10.00 |
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Title: The Myth of Sisyphus : And Other Essays by Albert Camus ISBN: 0679733736 Publisher: Vintage Pub. Date: 07 May, 1991 List Price(USD): $12.00 |
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Title: No Exit and Three Other Plays by Jean-Paul Sartre ISBN: 0679725164 Publisher: Vintage Pub. Date: 23 October, 1989 List Price(USD): $12.00 |
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Title: The Metamorphosis by FRANZ KAFKA ISBN: 0553213695 Publisher: Bantam Pub. Date: 01 February, 1972 List Price(USD): $5.95 |
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