THE STRANGER #1

    Existentialism by meaning, is mainly the big question of what matters? Does anything really matter? This is something that I personally would answer like everything matters. I am one of those people that believe that there are no coincidences and that everything is happening to a person for a meaning. Camus on the other hand, writes this novel creating a character that disagrees completely with me. His character is a complete existentialist and it is proved almost in every page I have read so far. Although Camus claimed many times that he was not an existentialist, he did portray a big share of it in this novel, and what I’ve come to understand, most of his work. The main character in this novel has been showing us readers what a simple life he lives, and what argument he has for not caring about things like love or death, among other elements. When I say love, I mean marriage. He expresses the fact that he doesn’t care about getting married, even though he is sexually attracted to Marie, which in this case, is more than what he feels for any other person in his life. And by death, I mean that he did not reflect anything more that supposing he loved his mom, weeks after she died, and because somebody had to push him to admit it. There are a couple of quotes that demonstrate exactly what I mean by stating this.   
“It occurred to me that anyway, one more Sunday was over, that Maman was buried now, that I was going back to work, and that, really, nothing had changed.” Pg. 24   
 In this small piece of evidence, Meursault shows exactly what I mean. He takes in his life like a non-stopping train stuck on a railroad track. He still works, eats, sleeps, goes for walks, like a normal life, but when things happen to him, for instance his mother passing away, he just stares out the window. He doesn’t take things in, even though he is involved in them. The quote has something very moving about it, that’s the last part. When Meursault says that ‘really, nothing has changed’, he demonstrates to the readers multiple things, like the fact that he has been living a dull life without his mother for a while now, and the fact that she is dead changes nothing about it. He shows that he feels that death is something that happens to everyone, and somehow, the fact that even though he cries and mourns for her, she is not going to come back, and he is fine with or without her in his life. So there was really no point in being sad. That is existentialism. Not caring. When Meursault asks himself the famous question of ‘Does anything really matter?’ he simple answers no. nothing does. And therefore, why would I cry over something as pathetic as my mom dying, if it is in fact, something that every human being is going to go through.

    “That evening Marie came by to see me and asked me if I wanted to marry her. I said it didn’t make any difference to me and that we could if she wanted to. Then she wanted to know if I loved her. I answered the same way I had the last time, that it didn’t mean anything but that I probably didn’t love her.” Pg. 41

    This piece of evidence must be taken in by parts. ‘I said it didn’t make any difference to me…’ existentialism is clear in this part of the quote. Meursault doesn’t love Marie; he is just sexually attracted to her. He practically asks himself our golden question every day, and answers it every day with the same word, No. when he is presented with the opportunity of love, marriage, a family, etc. he just thinks of how meaningless everything in life is, and how pointless it is to work hard at a relationship, when either way, it’s going to end up with death, and pain. The second part of the quote, (‘Then she wanted to know if I loved her. I answered the same way I had the last time, that it didn’t mean anything…’) shows pretty much the same attitude. He is turning his back on love, and the fact that someone other than his mother might be willing to share her life with him, but he just sees no point in it because there is no point in life, nothing really matters, and nothing ever will, because nothing lasts. And that’s the way Meursault thinks about life.