Extract
[...] This shows the death sentence of all men, although they are not necessarily aware of it. There is a law of nature that no one will escape regardless of acceptance in society: death. Hence, Meursault accepts his own death in a deep lucidity. Moreover, for Meursault, when men die, they draw closer to religion, although they did not believe in God during their lifetime. He takes his mother as an example, who wanted a religious burial, close to death: 'Maman, without being an atheist, had never thought of religion during her lifetime'. [...]
[...] First of all, in The Stranger In Albert Camus' The Stranger, we can witness an ambiguous justice. Indeed, during Meursault's first meeting with his lawyer, everything does not unfold as planned. The lawyer is supposed to be his ally in the judicial prism, but this character, as well as the others during the trial, try to condition him. From then on, Meursault is granted an impossibility of verbalizing his truth, since at page 149, he says: 'Everything was unfolding without my intervention.' We must understand here that others speak on his behalf, without leaving him the trouble of explaining his actions. [...]
[...] He therefore becomes a stranger to the world since it is imposed on him. So he can't find his place there and plunges into alienation since he suffers the events and becomes a simple observer. Then, when Meursault confesses to the chaplain that he does not believe in God, the chaplain takes a theatrical posture: he has 'leaned back and leaned against the wall'. For the religious man, it is inconceivable that one does not believe in God, especially at the approach of death. [...]
[...] The role of the lawyer will then be to bring him back to his humanity. Justice is therefore perceived here ironically by Meursault who does not find this justice credible. Finally, justice is revealed as hypocritical and unjust in this work, given that Meursault dies for having refused to lie. This can call into question the justice since the lawyer pushes him to lie by wanting to evoke during the trial that Meursault had 'dominated his natural feelings', to which he will respond 'No because it's false'. [...]
[...] It is therefore at the approach of death that his life takes on meaning. Finally, the absurdity of human existence is also achieved through its interrogations during its condemnation to death. Indeed, Meursault evokes this: 'Others would condemn them one day'. This highlights the fact that from the moment it is born, man will inevitably be condemned to death, like others, so there is no hope for anyone. Therefore, we can ask ourselves what is the point of living if we know that our final destination will be death. [...]
