Character analysis

Character analysis

Meursault - The stranger allows us to follow the thoughts of the main character, Meursault, as he undergoes events that eventually led up to his imprisonment, and the thoughts he has before his execution. Many of us have certain morals we follow such as how we view people, how we handle certain situations, and so on; but, unlike many of us, Meursault doesn’t have what society would deem as “normal”. From the very first page of the book, we know that he shows no remorse over his mother’s death and he doesn’t find that, along with little details about her, as important as today’s date for example. He is amoral because he lacks a moral sense and isn’t concerned with making the distinction between right and wrong. Moreover, he lacks any feeling at all when Marie confronts him with the question whether he loved her; to which he responded again “that it didn’t mean anything” but he “probably didn’t” [19]. His responses to Marie, and to everyone as a whole, reveal his honesty and his ignorance. He is unaware that in saying these statements he would only emotionally hurt her, and hurt his chances at his trial. However, his actions can be justified because he lacks many of those emotions, therefore, he cannot possibly know if he’d hurt anyone by just telling them what he truly has to say. Despite his response to Marie, he was still willing to get married; Meursault doesn’t seem to grasp the importance of personal relationships or the mentality that tells him why he shouldn’t allow himself to be this way. Meursault, throughout the book, has this idea of death, along with life, being of no importance at all and sees it as a normal everyday thing that everyone will go through eventually; he starts to fully grasp that idea the final minutes before his execution. At first he was afraid of the idea of dying, which was the first time he reveals emotion, but in his final moments, as he opened up “to the gentle indifference in the world” [122], he finds peace and gains an understanding of not only his mother, but the world around him. The Stranger demonstrates how society sets up this moral structure that you “have” to follow. Anyone who doesn’t follow this structure, or share the same ideas as one another, is condemned immoral and inhumane. Albert Camus, through Meursault, demonstrates just how illogical society can be to one who does not fit their standards. He even describes this situation as a man “faced with the absurd”, society.

Raymond Sintes - In the novel, the stranger, when Raymond is introduced to the story, unfavorable traits immediately become present: he is a woman beater, short tempered, vengeful, a liar, and, in a way, manipulative. Through these traits, some can say that Raymond serves as Meursault’s “foil”; Raymond is immoral, whereas Meursault is amoral. Meursault lacks a moral sense and isn’t concerned with making the distinction between right and wrong, while Raymond can just be defined as one who doesn’t conform with society’s standards of morality. He beats his mistress for “cheating” on him, while Meursault would of just remained passive and calm in the situation; Raymond initiates action, Meursault ignores it. Moreover, Raymond uses Meursault for his advantage, revenge. He tries justifying his cruel acts to Meursault as a way to get Meursault to view him as a generally good person; one you can trust. In doing so, if Meursault cared, he is giving Meursault a reason to help him; he is manipulating Meursault into thinking that he is a “good” person. Although, towards the end of the story we discover that there is more to Raymond other than what his traits are telling us; he presents loyalty by standing by Meursault’s side and claiming his innocence. Perhaps Raymond initially wanted to use Meursault to his benefit, but he ended up developing a friendship with him and even defended him during the trial. Raymond doesn’t fit the mold of what his initial traits set out for him. it seems as if he saw Meursault as someone who listened, cared, and one he can trust; thus, developing a friendship and contradicting his initial character traits, with loyalty. Then again, Raymond wouldn’t have to prove his loyalty had he not been the catalyst in the story and set off a chain reaction which led up to Meursault murdering someone in cold blood.

Marie Cardona - Marie Cardona, Meursault’s girlfriend, seems to be doing something within every chapter of the book that can be seen as ironic; she is supporting Meursault and remaining loyal to him, though he doesn’t feel the same type of affection as she feels for him. To him, it all doesn’t matter; for her, she truly loves him. Though he admitted that he may not have loved her, she still loves him. While he was confined to a prison cell after killing an Arab, she is anxious and worried for him as she sits down at his court hearings. While he is paying her no attention, or giving her any thought at all; he is all that is on her mind. Marie remains persistent, determined, and hopeful while under the face of adversity.  However, Albert Camus wouldn’t describe this as a good thing. As Meursault opened himself to the gentle indifference of the world, he became enlightened and gained an understanding of the world around him; he abandoned all hope. Marie wouldn’t be categorized as “enlightened” because she doesn’t open herself to the indifference of the world and grasp a concept that Albert Camus tries to convey with this novel; lose all hope in trying to avoid death.