Albert Camus uses the setting of the beach in The Stranger to represent freedom from societal expectations. Meursault's unorthodox actions at the beach illustrate how individuals require a catalyst in order to transcend societal norms.
In Albert Camus' The Stranger, the soothing setting of the beach, a location where Meursault feels safe from society's judgment*, is used to symbolize freedom from societal expectations. Meursault's unorthodox actions at the beach illustrate how individuals require a catalyst in order to transcend societal norms.
* replaceable with - Meursault's escape from societal judgment
it's supposed to be an interrupting clause but it seems to make the thesis more confusing.
In Albert Camus' The Stranger, the setting of the beach symbolizes a safe haven for Meursault to be free from societal expectations. Meursault's unorthodox actions at the beach illustrate how individuals require a catalyst in order to transcend societal norms.
So I've tried working on the connection between the setting of the beach and its representation of freedom but I'm not exactly sure how to make the leap of faith a lot shorter. I like the last thesis, but I'm not sure if it closes the gap enough. Thoughts?
Monday, March 14, 2011
Journal #18
The first time I read The Stranger, I felt like Meursault was an interesting character to follow. I didn't care that he held different values/beliefs. He was a type of person that I had never been in contact with. After reading The Stranger for a second time, I still believe that the story has significant literary value. I don't exactly know why high school students read this novel over other philosophical novels, but I believe that Camus does a good job expressing existential concepts. Without The Stranger, I don't think existentialism could have been explained as well even through the original philosopher's writings. However, after reading it twice, I would like to say that I understand how Camus doesn't express the story from a true existentialist's viewpoint.What makes this novel unique is how Camus creates a protagonist that you just can't root for. Meursault kills the Arab without remorse, and acts cold-hearted/indifferent towards basically everyone yet the reader is still able to relate and ultimately agree with Meursault's outlook on life. Camus' The Stranger should be considered a great piece of literature because of how well it instigates thought from its reader.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Journal #17
I plan on focusing on the setting of the beach or the symbolic-ness (?) of the water and the effect it has on Meursault. My fallback will probably be Salamano, his dog and Meursault if this ends up being a bad idea.
Tentative Thesis: Albert Camus uses the setting of the beach in The Stranger to represent freedom from societal expectations. Meursault's unorthodox actions at the beach illustrate how individuals require a catalyst in order to transcend societal norms. (uh. I need help with Camus' message about the human experience)
1) "I even said, 'It's not my fault.' He didn't say anything. Then I thought I shouldn't have said that. After all, I didn't have anything to apologize for. He's the one who should have offered his condolences" (3).
2) "I wanted to hang up right away because I know the boss doesn't like people calling us from town" (40).
3) I had a hard time getting up, because I was tired from the day before. [...] I decided to go for a swim. I caught the streetcar to go to the public beach down at the harbor" (19).
4) "I had a hard time waking up on Sunday, and Marie had to call me and shake me. We didn't eat anythiing because we wanted to get to the beach early" (47).
Meursault put aside his physical desire for food to go to the beach.
5) "Masson, Raymond, and I talked about spending August together at the beach, sharing expenses" (52).
6) "When [Raymond] said he was going down to the beach, I asked him where he was going. [...] Masson and I said we'd go with him. But that made him angry and he swore at us. Masson said not to argue with him. I followed him anyway" (55).
7) "'Should I let him have it?' I thought that if I said no he'd get himself all worked up and shoot for sure. All I said was, 'He hasn't said anything yet. It'd be pretty lousy to shoot him like that. [...] But if he doesn't draw his knife, you can't shoot. [...] [T]ake him on man to man and give me your gun'" (56).
8) "I could see the small, dark mass of rock surrounded by a blinding halo of light and sea spray. I was thinking of the cool spring behind the rock. I wanted to hear the murmur of its water again, to escape the sun and the strain and the women's tears, and to find shade and rest again at least. But as I got closer, I saw that Raymond's man had come back" (57).
9) "It occurred to me that all I had to do was turn around and that would be the end of it. But the whole beach, throbbing in the sun, was pressing on my back" (58).
10) "I was about to say that that was precisely because they were criminals. But then I realized that I was one too. It was an idea I couldn't get used to" (69-70)
11) "I would suddenly have the urge to be on a beach and to walk down to the water. As I imagined the sound of the first waves under my feet, my body entering the water and the sense of relief it would give me, all of a sudden I would feel just how closed in I was by the walls of my cell" (76).
12) "'[T]hat's exactly why you're in prison. [...] They've taken away your freedom.' I'd never thought about that. I agreed. 'It's true,' I said. 'Otherwise, what would be the punishment?' (78).
13) "I moved closer to the window, and in the last light of day I gazed at my reflection one more time" (81).
14) "Since we're all going to die, it's obvious that when and how don't matter. Therefore (and the difficult thing was not to lose sight of all the reasoning that went into this 'therefore'), I had to accept the rejection of my appeal" (114).
15) "So close to death, Maman must have felt free then and ready to live it all again. Nobody, nobody had the right to cry over her. And I felt ready to live it all again too. [...] [F]or the first time, in that night alive with signs and stars, I opened to the gentle indifference of the world" (122).
If this is a bad idea, what if I went along the lines of "Meursault and Salamano are the same in regards to their acts of violence but they are judged differently by society because of their emotions."
Tentative Thesis: Albert Camus uses the setting of the beach in The Stranger to represent freedom from societal expectations. Meursault's unorthodox actions at the beach illustrate how individuals require a catalyst in order to transcend societal norms. (uh. I need help with Camus' message about the human experience)
1) "I even said, 'It's not my fault.' He didn't say anything. Then I thought I shouldn't have said that. After all, I didn't have anything to apologize for. He's the one who should have offered his condolences" (3).
2) "I wanted to hang up right away because I know the boss doesn't like people calling us from town" (40).
3) I had a hard time getting up, because I was tired from the day before. [...] I decided to go for a swim. I caught the streetcar to go to the public beach down at the harbor" (19).
4) "I had a hard time waking up on Sunday, and Marie had to call me and shake me. We didn't eat anythiing because we wanted to get to the beach early" (47).
Meursault put aside his physical desire for food to go to the beach.
5) "Masson, Raymond, and I talked about spending August together at the beach, sharing expenses" (52).
6) "When [Raymond] said he was going down to the beach, I asked him where he was going. [...] Masson and I said we'd go with him. But that made him angry and he swore at us. Masson said not to argue with him. I followed him anyway" (55).
7) "'Should I let him have it?' I thought that if I said no he'd get himself all worked up and shoot for sure. All I said was, 'He hasn't said anything yet. It'd be pretty lousy to shoot him like that. [...] But if he doesn't draw his knife, you can't shoot. [...] [T]ake him on man to man and give me your gun'" (56).
8) "I could see the small, dark mass of rock surrounded by a blinding halo of light and sea spray. I was thinking of the cool spring behind the rock. I wanted to hear the murmur of its water again, to escape the sun and the strain and the women's tears, and to find shade and rest again at least. But as I got closer, I saw that Raymond's man had come back" (57).
9) "It occurred to me that all I had to do was turn around and that would be the end of it. But the whole beach, throbbing in the sun, was pressing on my back" (58).
10) "I was about to say that that was precisely because they were criminals. But then I realized that I was one too. It was an idea I couldn't get used to" (69-70)
11) "I would suddenly have the urge to be on a beach and to walk down to the water. As I imagined the sound of the first waves under my feet, my body entering the water and the sense of relief it would give me, all of a sudden I would feel just how closed in I was by the walls of my cell" (76).
12) "'[T]hat's exactly why you're in prison. [...] They've taken away your freedom.' I'd never thought about that. I agreed. 'It's true,' I said. 'Otherwise, what would be the punishment?' (78).
13) "I moved closer to the window, and in the last light of day I gazed at my reflection one more time" (81).
14) "Since we're all going to die, it's obvious that when and how don't matter. Therefore (and the difficult thing was not to lose sight of all the reasoning that went into this 'therefore'), I had to accept the rejection of my appeal" (114).
15) "So close to death, Maman must have felt free then and ready to live it all again. Nobody, nobody had the right to cry over her. And I felt ready to live it all again too. [...] [F]or the first time, in that night alive with signs and stars, I opened to the gentle indifference of the world" (122).
If this is a bad idea, what if I went along the lines of "Meursault and Salamano are the same in regards to their acts of violence but they are judged differently by society because of their emotions."
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Journal #16
Thought provoking questions:
1) Is Camus racist through his descriptions of the "Arabs" at the beach?
2) What significance does Raymond have in regards to the theme Camus attempts to illustrate?
3) Does the robotic lady signify a more extreme Meursault? (43). If not, what does she signify?
4) What led to Meursault's view on life? How did his experience in school change his past perspective? (41).
5) Why does Camus have Meursault call his mother "Maman" and an Arab prisoner do the same? (76).
6) What significance does the article about the Czechoslovakian have in regards to the theme?
Replies:
Andy Luu #5 - Camus utilizes the "robotic lady" in order to provide a contrast to Meursault. Camus attempts to distinguish the difference between Meursault's indifference and voluntary routine and the robotic lady's involuntary and programmed life.
Anthony Nguyen #2 - Camus utilizes the indifference of the character, Meursault, in order to examine the "absurd." His "irrational" priority of physical impulses ultimately free him from the symbolic imprisonment of society.
Ivan Kallevig #2 - Through the structure of two parts, Camus follows the same philosophy by having Meursault awkwardly operate within society's boundaries in part one. The second part is used to demonstrate how Meursault ultimately transcends society's symbolic imprisonment.
Isabel Harger #5 - Meursault utilizes the absurdity of the trial, society's way of judging Meursault, as a method to show Meursault's transcendence from society's symbolic imprisonment.
Shannon Graham #1 - Camus describes the Arabs with little detail to illustrate the French society's racist perceptions of Arabs at the same.
1) Is Camus racist through his descriptions of the "Arabs" at the beach?
2) What significance does Raymond have in regards to the theme Camus attempts to illustrate?
3) Does the robotic lady signify a more extreme Meursault? (43). If not, what does she signify?
4) What led to Meursault's view on life? How did his experience in school change his past perspective? (41).
5) Why does Camus have Meursault call his mother "Maman" and an Arab prisoner do the same? (76).
6) What significance does the article about the Czechoslovakian have in regards to the theme?
Replies:
Andy Luu #5 - Camus utilizes the "robotic lady" in order to provide a contrast to Meursault. Camus attempts to distinguish the difference between Meursault's indifference and voluntary routine and the robotic lady's involuntary and programmed life.
Anthony Nguyen #2 - Camus utilizes the indifference of the character, Meursault, in order to examine the "absurd." His "irrational" priority of physical impulses ultimately free him from the symbolic imprisonment of society.
Ivan Kallevig #2 - Through the structure of two parts, Camus follows the same philosophy by having Meursault awkwardly operate within society's boundaries in part one. The second part is used to demonstrate how Meursault ultimately transcends society's symbolic imprisonment.
Isabel Harger #5 - Meursault utilizes the absurdity of the trial, society's way of judging Meursault, as a method to show Meursault's transcendence from society's symbolic imprisonment.
Shannon Graham #1 - Camus describes the Arabs with little detail to illustrate the French society's racist perceptions of Arabs at the same.
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Journal #15
Camus decides to split The Stranger into two parts because he wanted to identify the two significant "modes" of Meursault's life. In Part One, Meursault is honest to himself, indifferent, and nonjudgmental. In Part Two, these characteristics are not dependent on him or his nature. He's the object and it's society's turn to judge him in the form of the trial.
I believe that Camus also parallels these two parts by illustrating the similarities in Meursault's life pre and post-murder. Meursault's strange attraction to patterns and repetition is shown in Part One when he describes how "[t]here was a stack of freight invoices that had piled up on my desk, and I had to go through them all. Before leaving the office to go to lunch, I washed my hands. I don't really like doing this at lunchtime" (25). Meursault expresses this cycle of actions he goes through and although he doesn't like doing it, he still follows his pattern. Likewise, in Part Two, Meursault's time in jail leads to his life becoming "the same unending day that was unfolding in [his] cell" (Camus 80). Meursault's pattern of his recreational walks and thinking time in his cell and other things show how even within his cell, Meursault is still following a repetitious lifestyle. Camus illustrates this parallel in order to show how Meursault is still the same character.
Another parallel that occurs between the two parts is the continuation of Meursault's priority of physical needs over his personal feelings. An example of this in Part One, when Meursault's physical need of sleep overpowers his desire to stay awake. This is evident when "the smell of gasoline, the glare of the bumpy road" cause Meursault to "doze off" (4). Meursault's experiences with Marie also demonstrate how he disregards his personal feelings for the sexual thrill he feels with Marie. This is significant in Part Two as Meursault tells the reader exactly what they've been suspecting for half of the book. He says that "[his] nature was such that [his] physical needs often got in the way of [his] feelings" (65). He understands how to play society's game, but he still allows physical discomfort to guide his actions as the magistrate questions him. He realizes that he must answer intelligently, but ultimately tells the magistrate that "[he] felt kind of annoyed" in order to escape from the heat (70).
Sidenote - On page 76, an Arab says, "Goodbye, Maman." Does this mean that Meursault DID love his mother? Maman wasn't the name of his mother, but an affectionate Arab term for "mother". Maybe Camus was either showing how Meursault was similar to the Arabs or how race wasn't the reason for the other Arab's death. Cool beans.
I believe that Camus also parallels these two parts by illustrating the similarities in Meursault's life pre and post-murder. Meursault's strange attraction to patterns and repetition is shown in Part One when he describes how "[t]here was a stack of freight invoices that had piled up on my desk, and I had to go through them all. Before leaving the office to go to lunch, I washed my hands. I don't really like doing this at lunchtime" (25). Meursault expresses this cycle of actions he goes through and although he doesn't like doing it, he still follows his pattern. Likewise, in Part Two, Meursault's time in jail leads to his life becoming "the same unending day that was unfolding in [his] cell" (Camus 80). Meursault's pattern of his recreational walks and thinking time in his cell and other things show how even within his cell, Meursault is still following a repetitious lifestyle. Camus illustrates this parallel in order to show how Meursault is still the same character.
Another parallel that occurs between the two parts is the continuation of Meursault's priority of physical needs over his personal feelings. An example of this in Part One, when Meursault's physical need of sleep overpowers his desire to stay awake. This is evident when "the smell of gasoline, the glare of the bumpy road" cause Meursault to "doze off" (4). Meursault's experiences with Marie also demonstrate how he disregards his personal feelings for the sexual thrill he feels with Marie. This is significant in Part Two as Meursault tells the reader exactly what they've been suspecting for half of the book. He says that "[his] nature was such that [his] physical needs often got in the way of [his] feelings" (65). He understands how to play society's game, but he still allows physical discomfort to guide his actions as the magistrate questions him. He realizes that he must answer intelligently, but ultimately tells the magistrate that "[he] felt kind of annoyed" in order to escape from the heat (70).
Sidenote - On page 76, an Arab says, "Goodbye, Maman." Does this mean that Meursault DID love his mother? Maman wasn't the name of his mother, but an affectionate Arab term for "mother". Maybe Camus was either showing how Meursault was similar to the Arabs or how race wasn't the reason for the other Arab's death. Cool beans.
Monday, March 7, 2011
Journal #14
6 insightful questions about Chapter 6:
1) Does Camus's representation of Arabs peg him as racist?
2) Why does Camus go through the effort of describing Masson?
3) Does Raymond play the role of Camus?
4) Why does the glare of the sun bother Meursault, but not the sun itself?
5) Why does Meursault shoot the Arab multiple times?
6) Why does Meursault's head throb during "important" moments? (mother's funeral/shooting of the Arab)
1) Does Camus's representation of Arabs peg him as racist?
2) Why does Camus go through the effort of describing Masson?
3) Does Raymond play the role of Camus?
4) Why does the glare of the sun bother Meursault, but not the sun itself?
5) Why does Meursault shoot the Arab multiple times?
6) Why does Meursault's head throb during "important" moments? (mother's funeral/shooting of the Arab)
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Journal #13
Separationism
Separationism is a philosophy of life. The broad interpretation of this is isolation for success. The point of life is to be happy. This is defined by a person's perception of the idea. The idea of separationism creates a path for individuals to be happy. Individuals, in order to be happy, must be able to achieve success independently and without the help of others. The path is gloomy and depressing, but the philosopher who created it believes it is just a realistic way to look at things.
Separationism is a philosophy of life. The broad interpretation of this is isolation for success. The point of life is to be happy. This is defined by a person's perception of the idea. The idea of separationism creates a path for individuals to be happy. Individuals, in order to be happy, must be able to achieve success independently and without the help of others. The path is gloomy and depressing, but the philosopher who created it believes it is just a realistic way to look at things.
Guiding principles
- Do not rely on anyone else other than yourself.
- Help others to help others. There is no ulterior motive.
- Always aim higher than what is to be expected.
- Fear of failure should not act as a deterrence for anything.
- Make yourself positively unique.
- When possible, work smarter, not harder.
- Never quit. Someone is always working longer and harder.
- Everything's relative, including success and happiness.
Thursday, March 3, 2011
Journal #12
Part one: According to your work today in class, which translator would you argue has the most literary value and why? What elements of the text are you valuing by the decision you made?
I believe that it is reasonable to defend that Ward's translation retains the most literary value because I believe that Gilbert's translation is just too bogged down with descriptions. Based the classroom activity, Gilbert's translation does not seem to encompass the message that Camus was trying to send. The element in the text that I value based on my decision is the characterization of Meursault. By having more "fluffy" language in Gilbert's translation, the reader is not able to see the world through Meursault's eyes like I believe Camus wants us to. Camus MIGHT HAVE wanted the reader to see the world a lot more descriptively, but from what I have read, this is not the case. I believe that The Stranger is a very concise novel, and Ward captures this goal the best.
I believe that it is reasonable to defend that Ward's translation retains the most literary value because I believe that Gilbert's translation is just too bogged down with descriptions. Based the classroom activity, Gilbert's translation does not seem to encompass the message that Camus was trying to send. The element in the text that I value based on my decision is the characterization of Meursault. By having more "fluffy" language in Gilbert's translation, the reader is not able to see the world through Meursault's eyes like I believe Camus wants us to. Camus MIGHT HAVE wanted the reader to see the world a lot more descriptively, but from what I have read, this is not the case. I believe that The Stranger is a very concise novel, and Ward captures this goal the best.
Part two: According to the above meanings for the work "e'tranger", what title would you assign the English translation of the text and why. Go as far as to cite specific examples from the book that support your decision.
I believe that "The Stranger" is a good translation of the text for a plethora of reasons. First, I think that both the translators put a lot of thought into translating the novel into English and although they differ in some situations, the agree upon "The Stranger." These translators are more qualified than I am to question their work, but I will anyway (to an extent). I actually agree with the translated title, but I also have come up with an alternative. I believe that "The Outsider" would work as a title to the story just as well, but I believe that "The Stranger" encompasses a stronger connotation with its readers while subsuming the effects of "The Outsider." I believe both of these names work because in the story Meursault shares that "[he] had the ridiculous feeling that they were there to judge [him]" while he is at his mother's funeral (Camus 10). He also shares that "[he] could feel how much all these people hated [him]" at the trial (Camus 90). Both of these examples show how he feels isolated compared to everyone else, like an outsider. However, a stranger also has no connection to a group of people/things, which also mean that the word "stranger" should mean outsider. The connotation with the word "stranger" is one of difference and uniqueness, something that "outsider" does not provide. This creates a perception where the reader goes into the story expecting something weird. However, I don't think that the title should have great significance because you should never judge a book by its cover.
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