World Literature II
Dr. Ramirez

The Stranger
Overview of the life and work of Albert Camus
Born in 1913 in Algieria, died in 1960.
Raised in Algeria, which was originally known as Icosium to Romans.
Won Nobel Prize for literature in 1957 (like Marquez and Kawabata)
Camus's father was a wine distributor; family originates in Southern France.
His Mother was Catherine Sintes Camus (1882-1960) and had Spanish ancestry.
Mother was illiterate and had to raise Albert and his brother after the father left them; she became a cleaning woman and lived in a working class district in Algiers (Belcourt).
Camus was a scholarship boy and was given a good education at the Grand Lycee. He studied, among other things, philosophy at the University of Algiers.
Before and during WWII, he pursued a career as journalist and aspiring writer.
Edited Combat, France's leading Daily in the post WWII period.
Novels include The Stranger and The Plague
Considered by many the conscience of his nation--Rejected accepted ideologies and nurtured ambiguity

Camus's representation of Meursault's discomfort or alienation in The Stranger.
Alienation based on age--during the vigil he feels alone and out of place
He sits on one side and they sit on another side.  He also falls asleep
Feels judged by others--especially his mother
Doesn't want to be interrogated by others
Uncomfortable with boss-reluctant to have time off; made nervous by authority
(police; boss; director of nursing home)
Uncomfortable with the idea of death, perhaps the finality
Too much light, too much of a glare--seeks refuge in the dark
Uncomfortable being alone; uncomfortable with others.
Separated from his mother--doesn't know her exact age.
Uncomfortable in apartment--too big
Uncomfortable with idea of commitment
Guilty about his responsibility as a son (sending his mother to a nursing home)
Keeps some distance in his apartment
Physical needs take priority over emotional ones.
Issue of freedom important

Physical details establish setting, mood and character