The Stranger by Albert Camus Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of The Stranger
Book Review: 5+
Summary: 5 Stars
The Stranger is a surprisingly deep novel where nihilism, existentialism, death, life, accepted values, personal values, irrationality of nature, and common tendency to search for purpose in life are all interlaced. Through Meursault [indifferent, not hedonistic or emotionless, but responsive to physical pleasures], Camus shows how intolerant society is to alien points of view, and how it tries to intergrate the unknown into its rational system of values. By showing that life is purposeless and everyone will die at some point, Camus suggests that the "evilness" or "goodness" of an action are all the same. The ultimate triumph is the realization : "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."; in two words- Amor Fati. [Love of Fate]Many will unhesitatingly place this novel in the top ten books in human writing history- it doesn't all have to be Shakespeare.
Book Review: A Disquieting little Masterpiece
Summary: 5 Stars
Albert Camus' debut novel is brief, skimpy on plot, and written in the simplest and most direct manner possible, but this is as effective a piece of literature as any because of the brilliant mind behind it. Camus was a great philisophical and literary mind, and his books were always infused with a profound concern for the desperate, desolate human condition. The power of such a little volume as "The Stranger" lies in the very uncomfortable truths that it manages to uncover - truths which reverberate through the reader because of the spare prose that they are presented in.
'The Stranger' is deeply depressing, and for paradoxical reasons: it is depressing because we are able to identify with the protagonist, Monsieur Meursault, and empathize with his misery, even though he is barely capable of emotion and murders a man for no real reason, remaining remorseless to the end. The story of Meursault's meaningless life and the pointless crime that inevitably leads to his downfall will leave readers distraught because Camus is not simply writing about a sick man; he perceives Meursault's emptiness and nihilism as the mindset of any man who comes to understand the indifference of the rest of the world to his plight, and in turn becomes indifferent to everything he once found pleasurable; a romantic relationship, a good meal, a social outing, a swim in the ocean, and eventually life itself.
What hope is there for Meursault in the last days before his execution? He knows that there is no afterlife and he has no interest in reliving his experiences in his mind or pondering them, so what will he do with the little time he has left? Will he count cracks in the walls of his cell for a few hours of the day and sleep for the rest, or will he look for something else? "The Stranger" ends inconclusively, allowing us to ponder the question, and leaves us sick to our stomachs at the possibility that Meursault has reached a dead end (and I was literally nauseous at the end of the book).
Camus calls on all of his readers to use what imagination they have to make their lives bearable, and I think that this is what ultimately makes "The Stranger" so powerful. It's an important book to read in our high schools as well, especially for a generation of youth that indulges itself in the vacuous entertainments of the television and music worlds that do nothing to improve their minds or characters. It's not a morality tale, but a provoker of thought; it asks us: how close are we to being Meursault?
Book Review: A Fabulous and Disciplined Novella
Summary: 5 Stars
Camus primarily explores two issues in THE STRANGER. These are the "gentle indifference of the world" and the element of the absurd--that is, A could occur and your life would move of this path; or B could occur and your life would be completely different.
These issues are embodied in the experience of the Meursault, the narrator of this two-part novella. In Part I, Meursault appears oddly detached from life. He is distant and unemotional at the wake and burial of his mother, does not mourn her death, and has superficial social interactions. Then, when walking with two men who he barely knows, he participates in a brief brawl, where one of his acquaintances is knifed. Meursault and his acquaintances leave. But he returns to the scene of the fight where he, perhaps inadvertently, encounters the perp with the knife. For a moment, anything might happen. But then, the immediate contents of his life--the death of his mother, his anger at the fight, his need to defend himself, and the bright and brutal sun of North Africa where he lives--explode in his act of murder, which is sensationalized in the newspapers.
In Part II, Camus explores what has happened. Is the murder the action of a detached psychopath, as the prosecutor contends. Or, is this the act of an ordinary man, who in an emotional outburst kills someone. As Meursault's lawyer retorts as the prosecutor builds the case against his client, "...everything is true and nothing is true."
Meanwhile, Meursault's acquaintances testify on his behalf, credibly attributing the murder to chance or bad luck. And, Meursault, alone in his jail cell, begins to reveal a sensibility that, while apparently detached from life, also richly values the commonplace qualities of mundane experience. He is a lover and poet of the ordinary, who like the world, is "gently indifferent."
The final chapter of THE STRANGER is absolutely great, with Meursault affirming his commitment to life's beauty and gentle indifference, not capitulating to pressure to endorse Christian dogma to lessen his ordeal.
Not a thought out of place and highly recommended.
Book Review: A Great Character Study About Alienation From Society.
Summary: 5 Stars
A great novel about a normal man that is imposed upon difficult situations that one would never be able to prepare for. The lathargic caring that he has for his mother's death and for his own show that even though he was placed in a stressful situation he didn't change. That is what was so great about Mersault, he didn't change. He was different thn others in society. He wouldn't turn to god at any point in the novel showing an inteligent stubborness. A great novel that should be read by everyone to give them insight on what some people might be thinking.Book Review: A Life-Altering Read
Summary: 5 Stars
All I can say is that this book is simply fantastic. Despite its brevity and spareness... the essence of it, and all the concerns that it addressed remain deeply relevant today. It changed and challenged many of my views and perceptions on life, God and redemption. It was one of the best books I've read so far.