Absurdity

In The Stranger, Albert Camus creates a character named Monsieur Mersault who is living an absurd lifestyle. Although many would confuse Meursalt with Camus, Camus’s purpose is not to represent himself through Meursault's character but to use Meursault’s nature and actions in the book to help back up his own beliefs on the absurdity of life. Throughout the book, Camus does not directly state Meursalt as an absurd character, but in certain passages of the books, the key beliefs of absurdity are touched upon.
Absurdity is the philosophy that states people who try to find meaning to the universe will ultimately fail because the world is irrational and has no meaning. Trying to rationalize things in ways such as religion is henceforth a downfall in human nature. “Speaking very quickly and passionately he told me that be believed in God, that it was his conviction that no man was guilty that God would not forgive him but in order to do so he must repent…he was waving his crucifix over my head. To tell the truth, I found it very hard to find his reasoning, first because it was hot…also because he was scaring me…from across the table he had already thrust the crucifix in my face and was screaming irrationally, ‘I am a Christian’…I was almost surprised that I had ever enjoyed anything other than those moments when the judge would slap me on the shoulder and say to me cordially ’that’s all today Monsieur Antichrist” (69-71.) In this passage, Camus reflects ideas of absurdity through the character interaction between the priest and Meursalt. He also brings up the idea that religion is an opposition of absurdity just as the priest is an opposition to Meursault.
Camus uses the adjectives “quickly" and "passionately” when describing the way the priest speaks about God. Those adjectives help to further understand the priest’s belief in God and how it is a strong belief because he is so passionate about it. The priest tries to explain to Meursalt how God works and how he will forgive those who repent and therefore trying to manipulate or push the religion onto Meursault. Camus sets the priest as a character that has opposite beliefs of Meursalt, which is in turn setting up the conflicts between religion and the absurd. The crucifix is a symbol of Christianity and used as a symbol of opposition of Meursault’s absurd way of thinking. Since the philosophy of absurdity is overall saying that if humans try to find a meaning to life that is pointless and meaningless, believing in God to try to rationalize the world is ludicrous and a very irrational thing to do. When the priest was “screaming irrationally that he was Christian,” it further showed that Christianity or any attempt to explain the meaning of life is irrational in means of the absurd.
As the priest is speaking to Meursalt, Meursalt states that he has trouble paying attention. He is only taking notice to the physical aspects of the situation, such as how the atmosphere around him is hot. The hotness is used as a symbolism of the intensity of the situation. As a character that only takes notice to nature and the physical parts of life, Meursault is characterized as a heartless and uncaring person because he is so indifferent. Camus’s plan is to set up such an odd character to bother the readers. Meursalt and the thought of absurdity is opposite of what most people expect. Meursalt lacks remorse for his mother’s death and has such negativity toward the thought of trying to make sense of the world. Camus achieves giving the readers a taste of the absurd by introducing the character interaction between the priest and Meursalt who is referred to as “Monsieur Antichrist” towards the end of the passage. In the courtroom, Camus demonstrates both looks on life. The irrational way: looking to God, and the rational way: looking to nature and physical things and living through experience and taking things as they come.
Camus also uses his beliefs in the absurd in many other instances in the book. Although Meursalt does not represent Camus but rather represents absurdity, the thought of the absurd is brought into the way Meursault’s character was created. Rationality versus irrationality is constantly in conflict throughout the book. “He was expressing his certainty that my appeal would be granted, but I was carrying the burden of a sin from which I had to free myself... I told him that I did not know what sin was. All they had told me was that I was guilty. I was guilty and I was paying for it and nothing more could be asked of me…’you are wrong my son more could be asked of you and it may be asked…every stone here sweats with suffering I know that....’ I said I had been looking at the stones in these walls for months. There wasn’t anything or anyone in the world I knew better... I’d never seen anything emerge from any sweating stones... what did other peoples deaths or a mothers love matter to me; what did his God or the lives people choose of the fate they think they elect matter to me when we’re all elected the same fate.” (118-121). The irrationality of religion is brought in conflict with rationality of Meursault’s view toward life.
The chaplain is put into the conflict as Meursault’s character tries to push religion onto Meursault just as the priest did in the courtroom. The chaplain tries to tell Meursault that he can be free of his sin but Meursalt does not even understand what sin is. The inability of Meursault’s absurd character to understand the concept of sin shows that he does not give meaning to life and that he does not believe that by sinning he will live an unhappy afterlife. The chaplain gets frustrated with Meursault’s incapability to seek for God in his current situation saying that “he has seen suffering in the sweating stones” and how “a face emerges from the stones”. Camus’s uses personification by saying that the stones sweat. The personification of the stones and how a face emerges is a representation of God and religion. The chaplain tries to show Meursalt and teach him that in prison many people suffer and in the end realize of God’s presence and turn to him. Meursault’s absurd way of thinking enables him to not care about where his life is leading him to and he has an inability to care about consequences of his actions. All that Meursalt knows is that he committed a crime and that he was paying for that. He didn’t turn to God. In prison, Meursalt says there is nothing he knew better than the stones and he didn’t try to rationalize the irriational pathway of life “I’d never seen any face emerge from any sweating stones.” (119) in this passage Meursault’s thoughts are clearer. He states that the death of others, the love of his mother does not matter to him and that there is no point in trying to turn to God for a different fate because in the end there is only death. Death can not be escaped because no matter if death comes early or late, death will always come. So since death is binding and can not be escaped all lives are meaningless because in the end it will all result in the same fate which is death.
Camus uses character interaction between the main characters Meursalt to help readers understand the idea of the absurd. Oppositions to absurdity and existentialism would be anything that tries to rationalize the irriational way of life such as religion and any belief in Gods. The only rational thing about life is nature, which is brought up many times in the book along with other physical aspects of life. The society that Meursalt lives in is constantly trying to rationalize life and find meaning to it. In the courtroom and in the prison cell with the priest and the chaplain are characters that represent irrationality. Although in Meursault’s case, the prosecutors try to execute him based on logical reasons of why he killed, the fact that Meursalt did not have a reason is just to show the irrationality of the world. Meursalt refuses to fall into any belief that society offers to create rational order in life. Camus’s purpose of writing The Stranger is to open ideas of irrationality and absurdity in the world.