Essay Database

Testing the Boundaries of Algerian Conventional Society In this essay, I am going to explore Albert Camus’ use of Meursault’s murder trial in The Stranger to note the absurdity of the defined social behavior in Algeria while forcing the reader to evaluate his or her own morality. Camus asks the reader to form a mental and emotional relationship with Meursault through the descriptive and, in the end, destructively honest narrative. He then asks the …

…of self-awareness based not on what society has taught us, but on what Camus teaches us through Meursault’s situation. Through this self-awareness, Camus is able to provide a valid argument against the absurdity of what society calls “appropriate behavior”. We see that there is no such thing as appropriate behavior because in the end, society condemns us all. The reader becomes Meursault’s source of strength, Camus source of truth, and society’s judges.