the ideas of existentialism as revealed through the main
TRANSCRIPT
The Ideas of Existentialism as Revealed through the Main Character in Albert Camus’ The Stranger
AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Sarjana Sastra
in English Letters
By
YOHANA RETNO TIARA DEWI
Student Number: 034214059
ENGLISH LETTERS STUDY PROGRAMME DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LETTERS
FACULTY OF LETTERS SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY
YOGYAKARTA 2008
The Ideas of Existentialism as Revealed through the Main Character in Albert Camus’ The Stranger
AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Sarjana Sastra
in English Letters
By
YOHANA RETNO TIARA DEWI
Student Number: 034214059
ENGLISH LETTERS STUDY PROGRAMME DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LETTERS
FACULTY OF LETTERS SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY
YOGYAKARTA 2008
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LEMBAR PERNYATAAN PERSETUJUAN PUBLIKASI KARYA ILMIAH UNTUK KEPENTINGAN AKADEMIS
Yang bertanda tangan di bawah ini, saya mahasiswa Universitas Sanata Dharma: Nama : Yohana Retno Tiara Dewi Nomor Mahasiswa : 034214059 Demi pengembangan ilmu pengetahuan, saya memberikan kepada Perpustakaan Universitas Sanata Dharma karya ilmiah saya yang berjudul : The Ideas of Existentialism as Revealed through the Main Character in Albert Camus’ The Stranger Beserta perangkat yang diperlukan (bila ada). Dengan demikian saya memberikan kepada Perpustakaan Universitas Sanata Dharma hak untuk menyimpan, mengalihkan dalam bentuk media lain, mengelolanya dalam bentuk pangkalan data, mendistribusikan secara terbatas, dan mempublikasikannya di internet atau media lain untuk kepentingan akademis tanpa perlu meminta ijin dari saya maupun memberikan royakti kepada saya selama tetap mencantumkan nama saya sebagai penulis. Demikian pernyataan ini yang saya buat dengan sebenarnya. Dibuat di Yogyakarta Pada tanggal : 31 maret 2008 Yang menyatakan (Yohana Retno Tiara Dewi)
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Life is a Matter of Choice
Even
Not to Choose is also a Choice
(Jean Paul Sartre)
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This undergraduate thesis is dedicated to My beloved parents
My amazing brothers and sisters My wonderful friends
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The most beautiful song in the world is never enough to express how wonderful
You are. The most amazing friend I ever had, who never leave me in every single step I
take. Thank you Jesus for giving me so many miracles in my life. Thank you for your
guidance in every phase of life, especially during the process of making this
undergraduate thesis. I do believe that without Your guidance I will not be able to finish
this undergraduate thesis on time.
I would like to express my best gratitude to my amazing advisor, Mrs. Ni Luh
Putu Rosiandani, S.S, M.Hum. for her attention, precious suggestions and also for the
lunch. I realize that without her encouragement, this thesis will not be completed. Thank
you Mrs. Putu for your never-ending support, it really means a lot. Special thanks to my
co-advisor, Mr. Paulus Sarwoto, S.S., M.A. for the corrections and suggestions that make
this undergraduate thesis better. My gratefulness goes to Romo Harry for the discussion. I
do believe that without him I cannot understand this novel well.
My best gratitude is for my incredible family, the best father ever, Ag. Mudyo
Hartono, to give me his extraordinary patience and my unbelievable mother ever,
Elizabeth Sri Rahayu, for the struggle and for her never lasting prayer. To my lovely
brothers, Mas Hardi, Mas Agus, Mas Edi, Mas Heri, Mas Darsono, Mas Sigit, Mas
Agung, Mas Wawan, and Mas Viki, and sisters, Mbak Retno, Mbak Tutik, Mbak Wiwin,
Mbak Rini, Mbak Erni, Mbak Oni and Mbak Dewi thanks for endless support and love.
To my nieces and nephews for the laughter, it is really inspiring. I do love you all. Thank
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you also for Pak Nardi’s family for the prayers and for being another family for me. And
for lovely my aunt’s family, thank you for the love.
Thank you for my wonderful friends, Danik, Stella, Danang and Tika for sharing
a lot of things, for the laughter, love and tears. To my lovely friends, Sari, Meme, Alice,
Dwi, Poppy, Nilla, Sari, Novi, Wayan, Anita, Nitnot, Susi, Bayang, Dodi, Wedhus,
Mbendol, Tio, Budi, Makwik, Yabes and all ’03 English Letters Students. For Tartuffe
family (Frida, Tyas, Ocha, Lusi, Poppy, Yabes, Jony, Danang, Deon, Danik, Mas Dika,
Mas Jody, Galang, Sunu, Mas Dito and Mas Teguh), thanks for helping me learning how
to work as a team. Thanks to Ginting, Wahmuji, Mando and Kethek for the support and
suggestion. Thanks to Dewi and Lolin who lent their computer. Thanks to ERROR crew,
especially Reta, Desy and Darti for the fantastic moments we have spent. For Magis ’08
community, thanks for the sharing, support and friendship. Special thanks goes to FCJ
sisters for their guidance, love and prayer. For my wonderful CAS CIS, thanks for the
beautiful voices. All of you are truly angels.
Much thanks to my new sisters, Cindy, Mei and De’ Ari. Thanks for being true
friends for me. I learn a lot how to be a friend and to be a loveable person. The three of
you already change my view about friendship and thanks for always beside me in my
happiness and sadness. I love you. Thanks to my boarding house friends, Mbak Nina,
Lolin and Meta, for the laughter and silly things you have shared.
Thank you for Nino who gives me the insight to see the world differently, thanks
for everything.
Last but not least, thanks for a miracle happens in my life.
Yohana Retno Tiara Dewi
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
TITLE PAGE ........................................................................................................ i APPROVAL PAGE .............................................................................................. ii ACCEPTANCE PAGE ......................................................................................... iii LEMBAR PENGESAHAN ...................................................................................iv MOTTO PAGE ..................................................................................................... v DEDICATION PAGE .......................................................................................... vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS ..................................................................................... ix ABSTRACT .......................................................................................................... xi ABSTRAK ............................................................................................................. xii CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION ........................................................................ 1
A. Background of the Study ........................................................................ 1 B. Problem Formulation ............................................................................ 4 C. Objectives of the Study ......................................................................... 4 D. Definition of Terms ............................................................................... 5
CHAPTER II: THEORETICAL REVIEW ...................................................... 6
A. Review of Related Studies .................................................................... 6 B. Review of Related Theories ................................................................... 10
1. Theories of Character ................................................................... 10 2. Theories of Characterization ........................................................ 12 3. Theory of Existentialism .............................................................. 14
3.1. Existentialism View and Existentialist Literature ............ 14 3.2. Nietzsche’s Theory on Existentialism .............................. 17 3.3. Sartre’s Theory on Existentialism ..................................... 18 3.4. Camus’ Theory on Existentialism ..................................... 19
4. Literature and Existentialism ........................................................ 21 C. Theoretical Framework .......................................................................... 22
CHAPTER III: METHODOLOGY .................................................................... 24
A. Object of the Study ................................................................................ 24 B. Approach of the Study .......................................................................... 25 C. Method of the Study .............................................................................. 26
CHAPTER IV: ANALYSIS ................................................................................. 28
A. The Characterization of the Main Character .......................................... 28 B. The Ideas of Existentialism Revealed through in the Main Character ... 39
1. Mersault’s view towards God ....................................................... 40
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2. Mersault’s view towards love ....................................................... 44 3. Mersault’s view towards death ..................................................... 48 4. Mersault’s view towards freedom ................................................ 52
CHAPTER V: CONCLUSION ........................................................................... 57 BIBLIOGRAPHY ................................................................................................... 60
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ABSTRACT
YOHANA RETNO TIARA DEWI. The Ideas of Existentialism as Revealed through the Main Character in Albert Camus’ The Stranger. Yogyakarta: Departement of English Letters, Faculty of Letters, Sanata Dharma University, 2008. The Stranger is one of Albert Camus’s novels. The novel tells about an absurd live lived by the main character. Meursault as the main character in the story differently sees life as the other characters do. He has his own value and belief. Through his attitudes, speeches and other’s point of view about him, it is obvious that Meursault’s characteristics confirm some principles of existentialism. In this sense, Camus delivers his ideas on existentialism through the main character. The main character is used as Camus’ means to deliver his thought. There are two problem formulations formulated in this undergraduate thesis; (1) How is the main character, Meursault, characterized in the story?, (2) What are the ideas of existentialism revealed through the main character in the novel?. The objectives of this undergraduate thesis are; first, to find out how the main character in the novel is characterized, second, to find out the ideas of existentialism as revealed through the main character in the novel.
Since this study focused on literary work, the writer used library research. The writer took all the references from the library to support the analysis. To strengthen the analysis a moral-philosophical approach is employed.
Through the analysis, it is found that the main character’s characterization has a significant role in revealing the ideas of existentialism. The way the main character, Meursault, sees the life and the events in his surrounding becomes the evidence that Camus employs the main character as his means to deliver his ideas on existentialism.
By paying a great attention on Meursault’s characteristics, the writer finds some principles of existentialism portrayed in Meursault’s characteristics. In this sense, existentialism is described as an existence that requires a total freedom. A total freedom can be gained when people live entirely apart from God. Though a man should have an absolute freedom, a total responsibility is required. Love should be avoided since it is a forgetfulness of the self. Furthermore, everything people do in their life will be ended by death. Death is natural and normal thing to happen as a cycle of life. However, suicide is not the best solution to end a life, but to struggle is the thing that people should do to face the absurd world. This belief leads people to behave absurdly. In other word, absurdity becomes the essential characteristic of existentialism.
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ABSTRAK YOHANA RETNO TIARA DEWI. The ideas of Existentialism as Revealed through the Main Character in Albert Camus’ The Stranger. Yogyakarta: Fakultas Sastra, Jurusan Sastra Inggris, Universitas Sanata Dharma, 2008.
The Stranger adalah salah satu novel karangan Albert Camus. Novel ini bercerita tentang kehidupan absurd tokoh utamanya. Meursault sebagai tokoh utama memandang hidup secara berbeda dari tokoh-tokoh lainnya. Dia mempunyai nilai-nilai dan kepercayaan sendiri. Melalui tingkah laku, perkataan dan penilaian tokoh lain terhadapnya, jelas terlihat bahwa penokohan Meursault mengusung prinsip-prinsip existensialisme. Dalam hal ini, Camus menyampaikan gagasan-gagasan existensialismenya melalui tokoh utamanya. Tokoh utama digunakan sebagai alat Camus untuk menyampaikan pemikirannya.
Ada dua pokok permasalahan yang dirumuskan dalam studi ini; (1) Bagaimana tokoh utama, Meursault, digambarkan dalam cerita ini? (2) Gagasan-gagasan existensialisme apa saja yang diungkapkan melalui tokoh utama dalam novel ini? Tujuan dari studi ini adalah; pertama, untuk menemukan bagaimana tokoh utama digambarkan, kedua, untuk menemukan gagasan-gagasan existensialisme yang diungkapkan melalui tokoh utama dalam novel ini.
Karena studi ini menitikberatkan pada karya sastra, penulis menggunakan studi pustaka. Penulis menggunakan sumber pustaka untuk analisis. Untuk memperkuat analisis, pedekatan filsafat moral digunakan.
Melalui bagian analisis, ditemukan bahwa penokohan tokoh utama mempunyai peran penting dalam mengungkapkan gagasan-gagasan existensialisme. Cara pandang tokoh utama terhadap hidup dan kejadian-kejadian di sekitarnya menjadi bukti bahwa Camus menggunakan tokoh utama untuk menyampaikan gagasan-gagasan existensialismenya.
Dengan memberikan perhatian penuh pada penokohan Meursault, penulis menemukan prinsip-prinsip existensialisme yang tergambar dalam penokohan Meursault. Dalam hal ini, existensialisme dideskripsikan sebagai sebuah eksistensi yang bersyarat kebesasan penuh. Kebebesan penuh dapat dicapai saat seseorang hidup terlepas dari Tuhan. Walaupun seseorang harus memiliki kebebasan penuh, tanggungjawab yang penuhpun diwajibkan. Cinta harus dicegah karena cinta adalah peninggalan diri sendiri. Selain itu, apapun yang dilakukan manusia akan dihentikan oleh kematian. Kematian adalah kejadian alami yang terjadi sebagai bagian dari rantai kehidupan. Walaupun demikian, bunuh diri bukan cara terbaik untuk mengakhiri hidup, tetapi berjuang adalah hal yang harus dilakukan untuk menghadapi hidup yang absurd. Kepercayaan ini membawa seseorang untuk bertindak absurd. Ini berarti bahwa, absurditas adalah ciri penting dari existensialisme.
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CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
A. Background of The Study
Existentialism as part of philosophy is interesting to be discussed. One thing
that makes it interesting is that existentialism focuses on human being. In
existentialism, human being becomes the central of everything. The other thing is
that it concerns about the way people think. Each person in the world is different
from one and another, especially in the way he or she thinks. As the result of
people’s different way of thinking, there are various concepts of existentialism.
One of the most famous existentialism concepts is ‘existence’ precedes
‘essence’. This concept means that existence is prior than essence (Horton and
Edward, 1967:457). According to Barrett, man does not have a fixed essence that
is given to him ready-made, but he makes his own nature out of his freedom and
his historical condition where he lives (1962:102).
It is obvious that existentialism focuses on human beings. Human beings have
a freedom to create themselves, to be what they want to be. Their personality is
not given naturally but it is created by the freedom they have, the choices they
make and the condition where they live.
There are some philosophers who interpret the existence of human beings such
as Jean Paul Sartre, Heidegger, Jaspers, Soren Kiekegaard, Friedrich Nietzsche,
and also Albert Camus. Each philosopher has his or her own concept of
existentialism. Some of them belong to theistic existentialist and the others are
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atheistic existentialists. Though they have different concepts and ways of
thinking, they argue the same issue that is the existence of human beings.
In this undergraduate thesis, the writer will focus on the concept of
existentialism proposed by Camus. Camus’ works are mostly associated with
existentialism. Different from Soren Kiekegaard’s existentialism, which teaches
people to depend their life on God and choose to live as a Christian, Camus’
existentialism does not believe in God’s existence. Like Sartre and Nietzsche,
Camus is considered as an atheistic existentialist (Kaufman, 1956:289). Fairly
similar with Sartre, Camus focuses on individualism. They argue that men should
find integrity within themselves. Meaning that each man has to be independent
and does not depend his or her life on others (Kaufman, 1956: 47).
Friedrich Nietzsche and Jean Paul Sartre take an important role in Camus’
philosophical thought. Seeing that Nietzsche has a big influence in existentialism,
many existentialists, including Albert Camus, are influenced by his way of
thinking. It is not surprising anymore that Nietzsche’s concept of existentialism
often appears in Camus’ work. While Sartre also influences Camus’
philosophical thought, Sartre is Camus’ companion. They became close to each
other when Camus worked in Combat. Sartre’s influence can also be seen in
Camus’ work.
Based on an online source entitled Albert Camus, it is stated that Camus often
brings philosophical issues in his work. His work, The Rebel, covers a
philosophical analysis of rebellion and revolution as the rejection towards
communism. The Myth of Sisyphus is a philosophical essay about absurdity. This
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philosophical essay carries the idea of absurdity. His novel entitled The Stranger,
tells about a man who lives an absurd life. The novel brings the feeling of
absurdity as the main atmosphere of the story. The atmosphere of absurdity can be
felt through the main character’s attitude that is unusual. There are still many
other works Camus wrote such as Caligula, The Misunderstanding, and The
Plague.
The Stranger is the main source to be discussed in this undergraduate thesis.
As stated above, The Stranger is a story about man who lives an absurd life. In
this novel, Camus brought the ideas of existentialism. The absurd way of living
chosen by Meursault becomes the manifestation of his existentialism. The novel is
divided into two parts. The first part deals with Meursault and his environment,
how he responds to the custom in the society where he lives and how he responds
to other people’s behavior. Here, his attitude towards others and his environment
represents his existentialism. While the second part, when Meursault comes to the
moment when he killed an Arab without certain motive, strengthens his ideas of
existentialism.
The Stranger is chosen as the source of this undergraduate thesis because this
novel is a very interesting novel to read. This novel carries different view on the
way people live. The different way of living is seen in the main character’s way of
living. How he faces every condition in his life. His reaction towards every event
which happens in his life is different from other people. It makes people consider
him as a stranger and freak since he acts differently from others. His indifference
is the result of his concept of life. The concept he brought is the concept of
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existentialism. Another reason why this novel is chosen is because it achieved a
great success when it appeared in 1942 and became Camus’ best known and most
popular work among youngsters (O’Brien, 1970:24).
The topic discussed in this undergraduate thesis is The Ideas of Existentialism
as Revealed Through the Main Character in Albert Camus’ The Stranger. Here,
the main character in the novel, Meursault, will be the focus of the study. The
writer wants to reveal the ideas of existentialism through the main character in the
novel. The main character in the novel undergoes the process of finding his
existence as a human being. He also looks for unlimited freedom by being an
extraordinary man.
B. Problems Formulation
The problems of this thesis that will be discussed can be formulated as
follows:
1. How is the main character, Meursault, characterized in the story?
2. What are the ideas of existentialism revealed through the main character in
the novel?
C. Objectives of the Study
The objective of this study is to find out the answer of the formulated
problems in the former part. The purposes of this thesis are; first, to find out how
the character of Meursault as the main character of the novel is characterized.
Second, to find out the ideas of existentialism as revealed through the main
character.
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D. Definition of Terms
To avoid misunderstanding about the term used in this thesis, the writer wants
to clarify the term of existentialism that the writer used in this undergraduate
thesis by giving the definition.
Since it concerns about the way people thinks, the concept of mind,
existentialism is not easily defined. There are a lot of definitions of existentialism.
In order to have a vivid definition, the writer sums up the definitions of
existentialism that already formulated by some writers. As the result,
existentialism is defined as a mindset that emphasizes on individual uniqueness.
In existentialism, existence is considered more prior than essence. Human beings
are free to choose their own way to live and have a total freedom, but at the same
time they also have to be responsible for the act and the decision they make.
Existentialism also sees human’s inability to explain the world condition and
absurdity becomes the main characteristic of human condition.
This definition is chosen because it covers the appropriate characteristics of
existentialism that will be discussed in this thesis.
CHAPTER II
THEORETICAL REVIEW
A. Review of Related Studies
In this part, the writer deals with the previous studies that have been done
related to the topic of this thesis. The studies are taken from some theses from
the students of English Letters Study Programme Department of English Letters
Faculty of Letters Sanata Dharma University and some are taken from the
experts.
One of the studies taken is Dicky Christanto’s thesis entitled “Humanity,
Absurdity and Atheism Found in Albert Camus’ The Plague in Relation with
Karl Marx Criticism toward Religion”. In this thesis the writer compares
Camus’ ideas toward religion and Marx’s criticism toward religion, the
similarities and differences between Camus’ and Marx’s atheism, the
application of atheism shown by the main character in the novel, The Plague
and Marx himself . This thesis also covers the message that can be taken from
the discussion of Atheism (Christianto,1998:6).
Another study is the undergraduate thesis entitled “Human Revolt Related to
the Crisis of Freedom in The Main Character of Albert Camus’ The Stranger “.
This thesis was written by Bambang Hendriyanto. In this thesis the writer
focuses on the study of plot, the setting of the novel and how the main character
represents his rebellion as the effect of freedom crisis (Hendriyanto,1998:4).
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A different angle in seeing the novel is taken by F.X Lilik Mardjianto. In his
thesis entitled “The Significance of the Characterization of the Minor Characters
to the Elaboration of The Theme In Albert Camus’ The Stranger”, the writer
explores the minor characters’ characteristics to find its significance that can be
confronted to the main character’s personalities. Here the main character is the
representation of absurdity while the minor characters are the antithesis of the
absurdity. By confronting the characterization between the main character and
the minor characters, the writer can find the significance of the minor character
in order to find out the suitable theme for the novel that is “absurdity is the
ultimate truth” (Mardjianto, 2005:6).
Jean Paul Sartre also wrote a philosophical essay on Camus’ work. In his
essay, Sartre mainly discussed two of Camus’ works which are The Outsider,
the previous title of The Stranger, and The Myth of Sisyphus. He said that, these
two works are associated with one another. Both of them bring about absurdity
in different way. In The Stranger, the story tells about a man living in an absurd
way. The ideas of absurdity are not provided in this story. The writer only
describes the feeling of the main character, which is the feeling of being absurd.
Meanwhile, The Myth of Sisyphus provides the ideas of absurdity. The Myth of
Sisyphus becomes an explanation of absurdity concept.
M.Camus distinguishes, as we have mentioned, between the notion and the feeling of the absurd. He says, in this connection, “Deep feelings, like great works, are always more meaningful than they are aware of being…”The feeling of the absurd is different with the idea of the absurd…” The Myth of Sisyphus might be said to aim at giving us the idea, and The Outsider at giving us the feeling (Sartre: 1962: 35).
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The Stranger provides us the feeling of absurdity. It means that when people
read this work they will be driven into the feeling of absurd. It happens when
people, in this case the main character, has the concept of existentialism in his
mind, he will live in an absurd way and this absurd way of living will be felt by
the reader.
An almost similar discussion is also proposed by Conor Cruise O’Brien in
his book entitled Camus. In his book, he discusses three of Camus’ works,
which are: Caligula, The Stranger and The Myth of Sisyphus. These works are
considered to have interrelationship to each other and regarded as forming the
phase of the stranger, meaning that these three works are Camus’ means in
delivering his idea about absurd life (O’Brien 1970:9).
O’Brien begins his writing by stating Camus’ biography; that Camus was
raised in a poor family and lived in European working class. He received a good
opportunity to continue his study in the Lychee in Algiers. Camus joined the
anti-fascist Amsterdam Pleyel movement and also joined the communist party.
In 1937, he broke up with the party. He began to write in 1935 and published an
essay entitled Betwixt and Between. Then in 1938 he wrote his second play,
Caligula and began writing on the absurd, The Myth of Sisyphus and Notes for
The Stranger. In 1941, he completed these three works (O’Brien 1970:7-9).
According to O’Brien, the setting of place, Algiers; where is majored by the
Arabic speaking people, as well as Camus’ biography, growing up among the
poorest of European working class, has an important role in building his ideas
and thought (O’Brien 1970:10).
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Concerning to The Stranger, O’Brien puts a great attention on the main
character. He sums up the story by stating the evidences that the main character
in the story is an indifferent man. The way he lives is different from others. His
indifference can be seen in the way he responds to his society and the way he
shows his existentialism through his action. It is clearly seen that Meursault is
really aware of his monotonous life and tries to rebel against it by being an
indifferent man (O’Brien 1970:14-19).
In this book, O’Brien also compares the main characters in Camus’ works,
Caligula in Caligula, Meursault in The Stranger and Sisyphus in The Myth of
Sisyphus. Meursault, as well as Caligula and Sisyphus are considered as the
absurd hero. Yet, in fact, the strategy that was used to build these three
characters is slightly different. Caligula is described as a ruthless person, similar
with a monster, while in building Meursault’s character, Camus led the reader to
give sympathy to Meursault. Although in the story Meursault killed a person,
the reader will not really aware of his cruelty because the act of killing is not
clearly seen. Another strategy is applied in Sisyphus. He is described as a fool,
someone who does a foolish thing, who accepts his absurd task to roll a rock to
the top of mountain. His integrity as a human being is shown in his willingness
to do the absurd task (O’Brien 1970:29).
In the end of his analytical writing about The Stranger, O’Brien conveys a
message that the true revolt against the absurd world is continuing to live and
not to commit suicide (O’Brien 1970:30).
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The works above are the studies that have been conducted related to Camus’
works, especially his novel, The Stranger. These studies are mainly concerned
with Camus’ ideas and the main character’s significance. Nevertheless, the
minor characters’ significance also becomes the object of study. Almost all of
these studies are studies on existentialism.
In this thesis, the writer tries to give a more specific study on existentialism.
The writer aims to reveal the ideas of existentialism in the novel. The main
character’s characteristic is explored since he becomes Camus’ means to deliver
his ideas of existentialism. The focus of this study is to reveal the ideas of
existentialism that can be taken from the novel through the main character.
B. Review of Related Theories
In this part the writer will state the theories that will be used in the analysis.
The theories are; the theory of character, the theory of characterization and the
theory of existentialism.
1. Theories of Character
M. H. Abrams in his book, A Glossary of Literary Terms, points out that
“Characters are the persons presented in a dramatic or narrative work, who are interpreted by the readers as being endowed with moral and disposition qualities that are expressed in what they say- the dialogue- and by what they do-the actions” (1981: 20).
It means that characters in a story show moral and natural qualities of mind
through their dialogue and the action in the story.
Based on the importance, characters are categorized into major character
and minor character. A major character is usually the center of the story. He or
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she is the most important character in the story. Usually, the acts of the story are
focused on this character from the beginning until the ending parts. The core of
the story is highlighted through this characters experience.
While minor character is a character that appears in a certain setting, just
necessarily to become the background for the major characters. Their roles are
less important than the major character because they are not fully developed
characters and their roles in a story are just to support the development of the
major character (Abrams, 1981:20).
Characters are also divided into two types based on the internal complexity;
they are flat character and round character. A flat character is presented without
many individualizing details, and therefore can be adequately described in a
single phrase or sentence. It also can be “a single idea or quality.” A round
character is complex in temperament and motivation and is presented with
subtle particularity. He is as difficult to describe with any adequacy as a person
in real life is and like most people, he is capable of surprising us (Abrams, 1981:
20). Characterized by one or two traits, flat characters can be written in a
sentence to describe whether they are good or bad character. It makes flat
character not fully developed. Round characters are complex and multi sided in
their temperament so that the characters have more proportion for their
development.
Based on their development or changes, according to C. Hugh Holman and
William Harmon in their book, A Handbook to Literature (1986), characters are
also categorized into two types, namely static and dynamic. Firstly, a static
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character is one who changes little. Things happen to such a character without
things happening within. The pattern of action reveals the character rather than
showing the character changing in response to the actions. Sometimes a static
character gives the appearance of changing simply because our picture of the
character is revealed bit by bit. Secondly, a dynamic character is one who is
modified by actions and experiences, and one objective of the work in which the
character appearance is to reveal the consequences of these actions (Holman &
Harmon, 1986: 83). To judge whether they are static or dynamic is not only
based on the changing in a condition or little changing in opinion, but there is a
process to make the changing.
2. Theories of Characterization
M.J. Murphy (1972: 161-173) suggests nine ways in which the author
attempts to make his characters understandable and lifelike for his reader. Those
nine ways to characterize a character are discussed as follows.
Firstly is by analyzing the character’s personal description. In this way the
writer characterizes the character by seeing a character from his physical
appearance such as his build, his face, his skin, his eyes, his hair or his clothes.
Secondly, by analyzing from another character’s point of view or character
as seen by another. A character can be analyzed through another character’s
eyes and opinions to describe the character that the writer wants to expose.
Thirdly, a character can be characterized by character’s speech. The readers
can have an opinion about the character by paying attention to the character’s
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speech. The reader can also see the conversation in which the character is
involved; the way he or she gives his or her opinion may also show the
personality of the character.
Fourthly, by considering the character’s past life, the readers are made
known of some important clues to get to know about the character. It can be
described by the author’s direct comment, through the character’s thoughts,
through the character’s conversation, or through the medium of another person.
Fifthly, a character could be analyzed from conversation of others; the
readers can get to know a character through the conversations of other people
and the things they say about him.
Sixthly, by perceiving the character’s reactions to various situations and
events, an author shows his character’s tendency, and this tendency gives the
readers a clue about the character’s personality.
Seventhly, a character can be characterized by the author’s direct comment
and description on the character. In this way there is no medium for the author
to use to characterize the character. The author directly describes the character
and also gives comment on the character.
Eighthly, the thought of the character can be used to characterize the
character. The author shows the character’s personality by allowing the readers
to understand the deepest thought of the character in a novel.
Lastly, the author characterizes the character by describing the character’s
mannerisms, habits, or idiosyncrasies. The author shows the character’s
personalities by stating the character’s gestures and habits.
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Another way of characterization is offered by Roberts, Edgar v and Jacobs
in Fiction An Introdution to Reading and Writing, that is, a story is usually
concerned with a major issue that a character must face. Characterization
through dialogue, action, comments may involve interaction between a character
with another character, with a difficult situation or with an idea (Robert,
1989:56).
3. Theory of Existentialism
Talking about theories on existentialism, we will find a list of philosopher
names such as Soren Kierkegaard, Jean Paul Sartre, Friedrich Nietzsche,
Heidegger, Dostoevsky and also Albert Camus. Each of the philosophers brings
a different theory or concept of existentialism but indeed their thought rooted
from the same philosophical question of life. Albert Camus, one of those
philosophers, begins his philosophical thought by questioning the meaning of
life as well as what the other philosopher does. Yet later on, their concept
develops with their own uniqueness.
Here, in this part, the writer will review some views of existentialism and
theory of existentialism. The theory is not only taken from Albert Camus, the
writer of the novel, but also from Jean Paul Sartre and Friedrich Nietzsche.
These two philosophers are chosen since they have big influences in Camus’
philosophical thought.
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3.1. Existentialism View and Existentialist Literature
According to Holman and Harmon in his book, A Handbook to Literature,
existentialism is:
“A Group of attitudes (current in philosophical, religious, and artistic thought during and after the second World War) that emphasizes existence rather than essence and sees the inadequacy of human reason to explain the enigma of the universe as the basic of philosophical question” (1986: 199). According to this book, existentialism is defined as some attitudes
that based on philosophy, religious and artistic thought. It exists during and after
the Second World War. The thought emphasizes on human’s existence.
Human’s existence is considered more prior than human’s essence. It observes
the human’s inability to explain the mystery of the universe. Furthermore, the
important point is human being’s awareness of their situation that they have a
total freedom but at the same time they also are completely responsible for their
act and decision (Holman and Harmon, 1986: 199).
Encyclopedia of world Literature also explains about existential literature. In
this book, it is stated that existential literature emphasizes on “the fact that the
men are not determined priori, but ‘exist’. They are in the state of ‘becoming’
within the framework of a certain given situation, and are in the long run, what
they make themselves. In this way they escape from a mechanical determination
and are ‘free’ “(Steinberg and Buchaman (eds), 1973:224).
According to this definition, men are not originally determined but they are
created themselves in their own way. They are free to choose their own way to
live and free from society determination.
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Stanton in Introduction to Literature, states that the work of existential
fiction tends to emphasize on individual isolation, how the individual can be
short of identity, finds it difficult to establish a good relationship with others,
and the opacity and absurdity of his work (1965:66). Meaning to say that
someone who has the concept of existentialism tends to have difficulty in
building a good relationship with others, lack of identity and live in isolation.
Their way of living is absurd.
A different definition of existentialism is offered by John. K. Roth in his
book International Encyclopedia of Ethics, he defined existentialism as;
“An approach to ethics that emphasizes individual subjectivity-freedom and responsilbility, and the irrational as primary features of human condition” (1995:294).
Another definition of existentialism is brought by Miffin in his book, The
American Heritage Dictionary of English Language. It is stated that
existentialism is a philosophy that emphasizes the uniqueness and isolation of
individual experience in a hostile or indifferent universe, regards human’s
existence is inexplicable and stresses freedom of choice and responsibility for
the sequences of one’s act.
This definition is quite similar with Holman and Harmon’s definition. Both
emphasize on the individual uniqueness and the freedom to choose one’s own
way and decision. Furthermore, one also has the responsibility of the choice he
and she has taken.
From the definitions of existentialism above, it can be concluded that
existentialism is a mindset that emphasizes on individual uniqueness. In
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existentialism, existence is considered more prior than essence. Human beings
are free to choose their own way to live and have a total freedom, but at the
same time they also have to be responsible of the act and the decision they
make. Existentialism also sees human’s inability to explain the world condition
and absurdity becomes the main characteristic of human condition.
3.2. Nietzsche’s Theory on Existentialism
Talking about existentialism cannot be separated from Nietzsche. Since his
influence among existentialists is no longer questionable. Sartre, Heidegger,
Jaspers and Camus are the existentialists who are influenced by Nietzsche’s
thought. Camus’ Myth of Sysiphus is considered as a distant echo of Nietzsche,
he also wrote about Nietzsche. Like Camus, Jaspers also wrote two books about
Nietzsche and discussed him in detail in his several books. Nietzsche also
becomes the first name mentioned in Sartre’s philosophic main work, L’etre et
le neant. Calling Nietzsche as an existentialist is not appropriate because it
seems giving him insufficient appreciation of his full significance (Kaufman
1956: 22).
As stated above, Nietzsche has an important role among other philosophers,
including Camus. It is not surprising anymore that Nietzsche’s influence can be
felt in Camus’ work. In Camus’ work, The Stranger, Nietzsche’s ideas of
existentialism appears.
One of his existentialism concepts is known as “God is Dead”. In this
concept, Nietzsche tries to explore his atheism in a very radical way. He
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proclaimed himself as an atheist by instinct. His atheism provided a model for
those existentialists, including Albert Camus, who wish to describe an existence,
lived entirely apart from God. On his atheism, he stated that either disbelief or
belief is optional attitude and this option is worthwhile to be researched (Collins,
1952:21).
An online source entitled Friedrich Nietzsche and his Philosophy of the
Superman states another concept of existentialism that Nietzsche offers that is
‘Man and Superman’. What is meant by ‘Man’ is an ordinary man, man who
obeys the rules surround him, who follow the value given by the society and
fulfill the society’s demands. While ‘Superman’ is a term used for a man who
has the ability to transgress the rules surround him. ‘Superman’ is a man who
bravely performs his instinct. He or she is a person who has the ability to create
his or her own value. A model of human being as Nietzsche has suggested “Do
not follow me but follow yourself” (Kaufman, 1956:50). What he said means
that someone has to be her or himself and has her or his own value. Being as a
‘Superman’ is the outcome of ‘Will to Power’. The power to overcome man, this
power is not only power over another but also power over oneself.
3.3. Sartre’s Theory on Existentialism
In Camus’ philosophical thought, Jean Paul Sartre has his own role. Camus
and Sartre recognized each other when they were involved in a Communist
Party. Yet, their relationship was broken after some years.
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As well as Nietzsche, Sartre also offered atheism. According to him, if God
does not exist, everything would be permitted and man cannot find anything to
depend on, except to depend on himself (Kaufman, 1956:295).
According to Sartre “man is nothing else, but what he purposes, he exists
only in so far as he realizes himself, he is therefore nothing else but the sum of
his action,...(Kaufman, 1956:300). It means that man will find his existence
when he is fully aware of himself and what he did.
In relation to human existence, Sartre also stated that man’s existence is not
determined originally, but it is built from him by the choice and commitment he
made.
“man makes himself, he is not found ready-made; he makes himself by the choice of his morality…we define man only in relation to his to his commitment; it is therefore absurd to reproach us for irresponsibility in our choice (Kaufman, 1956:306 ).”
Therefore, according to Sartre, the morality or goodness is subjective based
on the person’s choice and point of view. The way a man keeps his
commitment is also important to show his or her existence. Meaning to say
that person’s existence can be seen through his or her way to hold his or her
commitment and the way he or she is responsible for the choice he or she
already made.
Thus the central and the heart of existentialism, according to Sartre, is:
“the absolute character of the free commitment, by which every man realizes himself in realizing a type of humanity –a commitment always understandable, to no matter whom in no matter epoch- and its bearing upon relativity of a cultural pattern which may result from such absolute commitment (Kaufman, 1956:304).”
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3.4. Camus’ Theory on Existentialism
Talking about Camus’ theories on existentialism means talking about his
concept of absurdity. Camus’ concept of absurdity is rooted from the concept of
existentialism. Camus’ existentialism focuses on the stage that people feel when
they start to question their existence. This stage is called as absurdity. He, as well
as other philosophers, begins his thought with a philosophical problem
questioning the meaning of life. Whether life is worth living or not, since many
people who feel that life is not worth living die by committing suicide and many
others getting killed for the ideas or illusions that give them the reason for living.
It seems that a reason for living is also an excellent reason for dying (Camus,
1955:4). This basic question is the starting point of Camus’ absurdity. According
to Camus, absurd men do not recognize suicide; they are fully aware of absurdity,
accept absurdity and live with it. Absurd men are fully aware that the place they
live offers absurd things. They live within the cycle of absurdity that there is no
meaning at all in this world. The best solution to stay alive is to struggle by living
the absurd as long as possible.
Question about life and the world’s condition often appear in human’s mind.
Since life is a mystery and things happen in the world is inexplicable. Moreover,
everything people do in their life will be stopped by death. The world is absurd in
which people find it difficult to understand it. While men’s necessity about the
clarity of life and the condition of the world is not fulfilled because there is no
clear explanation to fulfill the desire. The world remains silent and gives no
explanation for irrational conditions which happen in the world. This fact leads to
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the confrontation between human’s curiosity of clear explanation of life and
inexplicable condition of the world. This confrontation is the meaning of absurd.
Thus, the concept of absurd depends on men and the world.
But what is absurd is the confrontation of this irrationals and the wild longing for clarity whose call the echoes in the human heart. The absurd depends as much on man as on the world (Camus, 1955:16).
The concept of love as well as the concept of God is another aspect in the
world that is absurd. According to Camus, things can be understood when the
things can be touched, can be smelled and resist us (Camus,1955:38). However
these two things cannot fulfill the requirements to be understood. We cannot
either touch or smell love and God. Love that entirely binds us to certain creature
is not permitted because this kind of love is the same as suicide. Suicide and this
kind of love are forgetfulness of self (Camus, 1955:54). Meaning to say that when
someone is crazily in love they will not be aware of their existence, they will
depend on others. Thus they cannot liberate himself in any relationship for the
sake of his existence.
As well as Nietzsche and Sartre, Camus also does not believe in God’s
existence. God cannot be felt by human’s senses; God is only human’s
imagination. This fact brings the idea that man is a free agent, there is nothing that
can limit his acts. Concerning to God’s existence Camus stated;
For in the presence of God, there is less a problem of freedom than a problem of evil. You know the alternative: either we are not free and God the all-powerful is responsible for evil. Or we are free and responsible but God is not all-powerful (Camus, 1955:42).
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From the quotation above, Camus offers two alternatives whether a man is the
one who owns the power or God is the owner of power. In the case that a man
who owns the power, man is the master of his life, he is the God over himself.
4. Literature and Existentialism
Understanding the relationship between philosophy and literature will help us
to find the relationship between existentialism and literature. Knight in Literature
Considered as Philosophy stated,
Philosophy and literature have acted upon another in the past, but they never lost their identity in one another. Writers who were not philosophers wrote about philosophy, what they wrote was not in itself philosophy in the strict sense of the word (Knight, 1962: 175). It is clearly seen in the quotation above the relationship between philosophy
and literature. Though the author is not a philosopher, he or she brings such
philosophical ideas in his or her literary work. Wellek and Warren in Theory of
Literature stated, “Literature might be a reflection of philosophical ideas”
(1956:111). It means that literature becomes the tools in delivering philosophical
ideas of the author.
While Rudolf Unger, in the same book, also stated that literature expresses a
general attitude toward life that the author of literary work usually answers the
questions which are also themes of philosophy (Wellek & Warren, 1956:115).
Meaning to say that literary works are used as media to deliver certain messages
about life and offer solutions concerning on philosophical questions.
Since existentialism becomes a distinct philosophical and literary movement
belongs to the 19th-20th centuries, it had a big influence on literary works created
23
during that time. There were many literary works which revealed the basis of
existentialism. In post second world war, human existence becomes the central
theme. During this time, many literary works, including The Stranger, brought the
ideas of existentialism.
C. Theoretical Framework
In this study, it requires the theory of character and characterization since the
main character takes an important role in this study. The theory of character and
characterization is used to explore the characteristics of the main character and his
character development. MJ Murphy’s theory of characterization will help the
writer in analyzing the main character since this method of characterization is
considered the most suitable method for the next discussion. Robert’s theory
indicates that the characterization of the characters in the story may involve
interaction with other elements such as interaction with other characters,
interaction with a difficult situation or interaction with an idea. This theory will be
used to show relationship between the main character’s characterizations with the
ideas he brought.
Existentialism is the focus of this study. The analysis will be based on the
theory of existentialism. Since Nietzsche and Sartre contributed significant
influence in Camus’ thought, their theories will also be used in the analysis.
The theory of literature and existentialism is used to show the relationship
between philosophy, in this discussion is existentialism, and literature, a novel
entitled The Stranger.
CHAPTER III
METHODOLOGY
A. Object of Study
The object of this study is a novel entitled The Stranger written by Albert
Camus. This work is one of Camus’ famous works. It consists of 123 pages
and the story is divided into two parts. The version used in this thesis was
published in Vintage International, Vintage Books, A division of Random
House, INC., New York and was translated by Matthew Ward. It was
published in his early career in 1942. In this time Camus was mainly
concerned with existentialism issues and what he called as “absurdity” of the
human condition.
According to O’Brien, The Stranger became Camus’ best known and most
popular work among youngsters (O’Brien, 1970:24). Albert Camus was
awarded the Nobel Prize for literature in 1957. He became the second
youngest person who received Nobel Prize.
The story The Stranger is about a man living in an absurd way. The man
here is the main character named Meursault. He is an Algier. The interesting
point of this character is the way he faces his life. The way he lives is really
different from ordinary people. He tends to refuse the norms in the society. At
the end of the story, he is sentenced to death as the result of his killing an
Arab. His inability to cry when his mother passed away becomes the focus of
his examination in the trial. He is considered as a dangerous person for the
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25
residents since he gives the impression that he has no feeling of humanity.
Furthermore, in the trial, he says that he finds difficulty in recognizing his own
feelings. This fact makes his position becomes more difficult. When his
lawyer asks him not to speak such a thing that worsens his position and asks
him to say that the reason of his killing an Arab as a self-defense, he refuses.
He receives this punishment, and refuses to lie in the trial in order to get his
freedom. In this sense, the writer finds that there are some principles of
existentialism portrayed in the main character of this novel. The ideas of
existentialism portrayed in the main character of this novel will become the
object of this study.
B. Approach of Study
In analyzing a literary work, it is important to obtain a deep and good
understanding about the literary work itself. Therefore, it needs an appropriate
approach that can help to support the analysis of the story as the material of
the thesis.
Most of literary works are aimed to deliver certain message to the readers
about what is good or bad in human life. The message that is given is usually
related to the way people have to live their life. The philosophers’ ideas about
life, especially Camus’ ideas about existentialism, are the result of their
concept of mind. Their ideas are delivered through literary work such as a
novel. It seems that the literary work is used as the means in delivering their
message. Moreover, since Camus is considered as an existentialist, his work is
26
also considered to bring some philosophical issues. Therefore, it is appropriate
to use Moral-Philosophical approach in this study. This approach emphasizes
that the function of literature is to deliver moral teaching and explores
philosophical issues within a context of the philosophical thought of a period
or group (Guerin, 1979:29).
Since this undergraduate thesis concerns on philosophical issue, that is
existentialism, that Camus tries to propose in his book The Stranger through
its main character, this approach is considered the most appropriate approach
to help the writer in the analysis.
C. Method of Study
Since this study is focused on literary work, the writer used library research
to answer the problems that were already formulated in the previous chapter. It
means that the writer took all the references from the library to support the
analysis. In this thesis, there are two kinds of data that were used. They were
primary and secondary data. The primary source was a novel entitled The
Stranger, while the secondary data were several comments and critics on the
novel and the author taken from books and online articles and also some books
of theories were used to support the secondary data.
There are some steps conducted in the analysis part. First, reading the novel
in detail. Having been interested with the story in the novel, other thesis and
other data related to The Stranger were read to gain an original topic to discuss
in the thesis. Other books, such as A Glossary of Literary Terms, and
27
Understanding Unseens were also used in order to understand the theory of
character and characterization. The writer also employed other data concerning
on philosophy and literature.
Second, analyzing the data. The analysis process was done by answering the
problem formulations raised in the previous chapter. Since the first problem
formulation is about the main character’s characteristics, the theory of character
and characterization was used. This theory was combined with the events which
happened in the novel. Then, the second problem formulation was answered by
giving a full attention to the main character’s charateristics that show the idea of
existentialism and the way the writer delivers the idea of existentialism through
the main character. In this step the theory of existentialism is used.
Third, drawing conclusion as the final step of this research. This process was
done by summarizing the answers of the problem formulations and selecting the
important points of the research.
CHAPTER IV
ANALYSIS
This undergraduate thesis concerns on the main character of the novel and his
importance in delivering Camus’ ideas of existentialism. The discussion will be
divided into two parts based on the problem formulation stated in the previous
chapter. Firstly, this study will answer the question related to the main character’s
characterization. Secondly, it will discuss about the ideas of existentialism revealed
through the main character.
A. The Characterization of the Main Character.
In chapter II, it is already stated that characterization is very important in order to
lead the readers to understand the story. Through the characters’ speeches, action or
the author’s narration, the reader can follow the plot and understand it well. It means
that characterization can help the reader to get the message or the idea brought by the
story.
In the novel, The Stranger, Camus employs the main character as his means to
deliver his ideas. Here, Meursault is the main character in the novel. He becomes the
central of the story. The story is focused on Meursault’s character. The way he thinks
and acts, his point of view and attitudes are explored in the story.
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29
Meursault as the main character in the story is an absurd man. He absurdly sees
everything surrounds him and the events he faces in his life. Therefore, it is not
surprising anymore that the dominant atmosphere in the story is absurd. According to
Stanton, the way a man who has an existentialism belief lives is absurd. Meaning to
say that the characterization of Meursault as an absurd man proves that Meursault is
Camus’ means to deliver his ideas on existentialism. In short, absurdity becomes the
essential characteristic of existentialism.
In the analysis, the writer focuses on the characterization of the main character as
the means to deliver the ideas of existentialism. Meursault’s characterization is very
important to help the reader understand the whole story and later on to grasp the ideas
Camus tries to offer.
Meursault is described as a unique person. What he does is really different from
others. It can be said that the way he thinks and acts against the mainstream. He
refuses the social-determined attitude. In the end of the story, his different attitude
leads him to be regarded as a dangerous person for the citizen.
In order to gain deeper understanding on Meursault’s character, the discussion of
Meursault’s characteristics is divided into some points.
1. Honest
Meursault is an honest man. He never lies about his own feeling. When Marry,
his girlfriend, asks him whether he loves her or not, Meursault tells her that he thinks
that he does not love her.
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“…she wanted to know if I loved her. I answered the same way I had the last time, that it didn’t mean anything but that I probably didn’t love her ” (1942: 41).
In this case, Meursault tells the truth about his feeling. He feels that he could not feel
love toward Marie. He does not want to tell a lie about his true feeling. Meursault’s
inability to love Marie happens because he thinks that love is not a serious matter and
that love does not mean anything in his life. His belief that love is not a serious matter
is seen through his own speech; he states that love did not mean anything to him.
His honesty also appears in his mother’s death through his reaction. Meursault
does not want to pretend that he was in mourning because of his mother death since
he does not feel the sadness. He does not want to give false tears at his mother’s
funeral. Moreover, he also does not want to see his mother for the last time before the
funeral. He knows that his attitude is inappropriate according to the society. What he
did does not fulfill what the society demanded.
“He stuttered a little “We put the cover on, but I’m supposed to unscrew the casket so you can see her.” He was moving toward the casket when I stopped him. He said, “You don’t want to?” I answered, “No” (1942:6). The question appears then, why Meursault does not show any grief in the funeral.
This happened because he loses his ability to recognize his own feeling. He said this
fact in jail when the lawyer asked him about his feeling when his mother died.
“He asked if I had felt sadness that day…I answered that I had pretty much lost the habit of analyzing myself and that it was hard for me to tell him what he wanted to know” (1942: 65). In this sense, Meursault is honest because he does not want to show the feeling he
does not feel. He cannot feel the sadness when his mother died, so he does not want
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to act as if he was sad and depressed. Telling what he really feels to his lawyer also
becomes another evidence of his honesty. Hearing this statement, the lawyer asks him
not to say it in the trial. The lawyer intends to state that Meursault tends to hide his
natural feeling about his mother’s death rather than show it to the people in the
funeral. But Meursault refuses to tell what is not true.
“He made me promise I wouldn’t say that at my hearing or in front of the examining magistrate…he asked me is he could say that day I had held back my own natural feeling. I said, “No, because it’s not true.” ” (1942:65).
Another evidence of his honesty can be seen in the trial. When he was asked
about the reason of his killing an Arab, he said that he never plans to kill the Arab,
the reason of his action, killing the Arab, is because of the sun. At that moment the
sun was so hot. The glare of the sun burned Meursault’s body. Meursault could not
stand to stay still in the hot sun. Then he put his revolver and shot the Arab as his
reaction toward the glare of the sun. He tends to be honest to say what really happens
that there is no certain motive of his action rather than telling a lie. Even though he
has the chance to defend himself by stating that his action as a form of self-defense
since the Arab brings a knife.
2. Brave
Meursault is also a brave man. His bravery can be seen through his action and his
nature of being honest. Though his honesty endangers his own life, Meursault still
keeps his honesty. His bravery can be seen when he honestly said that he kills the
Arab as his response towards the glare of the sun. Surely his confession makes his
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position as the suspect of the murder becomes worse. After listening to his statement,
all the audience laughed. Afterwards his lawyer asks for a break since he realizes that
Meursault’s statement will worsen Meursault’s own position. It proves that Meursault
is the one who must be responsible for the murderer.
Another evidence that shows his bravery is seen at the end of the story. At last,
Meursault was sentenced to death. His death penalty is done by cutting his head off in
the public square. In the last sentences he shows his bravery by saying:
“I felt that I had been happy and that I was happy again. For everything to be consummated, for me to feel less alone, I had only to wish that there be a large crowd of spectators the day of my execution and that they greet me with cries of hate” (1942:123).
In this quotation, it is clearly seen that Meursault faces his death bravely. To get his
head cut off, moreover in front of many people, is a tragic thing to happen. But he
faces his tragic death bravely. It also proves his acceptance of the punishment as the
consequences of killing the Arab. He is also ready for the possibility that there will be
a lot of people who mocked him and yelled hateful things to him.
3. Atheist
Another thing that differs Meursault from other characters is his view towards
God. Meursault is a man who does not believe in God’s existence. His disbelief
towards God’s existence is seen when he was persuaded to depend his life on God
since God is considered as The One who owns the ability to help him out from his
problem. He was also forced to ask for God’s forgiveness for what he had done,
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killing a person. When talking about God, Meursault responds it indubitably; he
strongly said that he does not believe in God.
“…and asking me if I believed in God. I said no. He sat down indignantly. He said it was impossible; all men believed in God, even those who turn their backs on him” (1942:69).
It is obvious that he does not believe in God, that he is an atheist. He is fully aware of
his statement; there is no doubt in his statement.
He also states his atheism when the chaplain visits him in jail. He has refused the
chaplain’s visit for three times. In the fourth time he also refused the visit, but the
chaplain insists on seeing him without his permission. The chaplain asks him the
reason why he does not want to see him. He says that it is because he does not
believe in God (1942:116).
He refuses to discuss about god and asks the chaplain to leave him since he does
not want to waste his time talking about God.
“ He wanted to talk to me about God again, but I went up to him and made one last attempt to explain to him that I had only a little time and I didn’t want to waste it on God…”(1942:120)
Then, he criticizes the chaplain about his belief. He thinks that the chaplain seems so
certain about everything but indeed he was not sure at all.
“He seemed so certain about everything, didn’t he? …he wasn’t even sure he was alive, because he living as a dead man…but I was sure about everything, surer that he could ever be, sure of my life, and sure of the death I was waiting for me” (1942:120)
In this quotation, Meursault criticizes the chaplain that a man who depends his life on
God is a man who is not sure about himself so that he has to depend his life on
34
another thing. His statement really shocks the chaplain. He gets depressed and leaves
the cell with his eyes full of tears.
4. Independent
By his own action and speech, Meursault shows himself as an independent man.
He does not want to depend his life on someone else. There are two things that people
usually depend their life on. They are; God and other human beings. Unlike the
others, Meursault tends to rely his life on himself. He refuses dependence.
His independence towards God can be seen in his belief on atheism. People
usually depend on God when there is no way out of their problem. They tend to leave
their burden of life in God’s hand. However, Meursault does not do the same thing.
Although he is trapped in a difficult condition, he remains on being dependent. When
the magistrate comes to him to persuade him to ask for God’s help and rely on Him,
he refuses the offer. According to Meursault, to depend on God or not is a choice.
The magistrate’s choice is to depend his life on God, but it is also Meursault’s choice
to be independent from God (1942:69).
Meursault’s independence is also seen through his ability to avoid dependence
towards others. His being independent towards others can be seen explicitly in his
speech when he talks to the chaplain,“I acknowledge that that was their right…as for
me, I didn’t want anybody’s help,…(1942:117). He tells the chaplain that he is
different from those who need others’ help, he emphasizes his independence by
stating that he does not need anybody’s help.
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Another evidence of his independence is seen through his relationship with Marie.
Generally, people who are in love are automatically dependent on their lover. The
example is Perez’s relationship with Meursault’s mother. When Meursault’s mother
died, Perez gets so depressed. He is so sad of losing his lover and has no willing to
stay alive. It is clearly seen that a person who is in love is dependent on the one he
loves. On the contrary, Meursault does not do the same thing. He does not want to
depend his life on Marie, his lover. Unlike the effect of Perez’s lover’s death, the
possibility of Marie’s death did not affect Meursault. He said, “Remembering Marie
meant nothing to me. I wasn’t interested in her death” (1942:115). His statement
proves that Marie’s existence does not affect him. It shows that Meursault has an
absolute independence.
As well as Marie, the presence of Meursault’s mother does not make him being
dependence. His mother’s death does not change anything in his life. His mother’s
death is an ordinary thing to him. It is seen in the beginning of the novel.
“ Maman died today. Or yesterday maybe, I don’t know. I got a telegram from the home: “Mother deceased. Funeral tomorrow. Faithfully yours.” That doesn’t meant anything. Maybe it was yesterday” (1942:3).
This quotation shows that his mother’s death is not a serious matter for him. It seems
that it is just an ordinary message, not a shocking message. He responds it calmly and
does not get depressed.
5. Responsible
Meursault is a responsible man. He is aware that people judge him as a guilty man
and he has to be responsible of what he had done. His responsibility can be seen in
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his own speech, “All they had told me that I was guilty. I was guilty, I was paying for
it, and nothing more could be asking from me” (1942:118). His speech proves that he
is a responsible man. He takes the consequences of his action, killing the Arab, and is
willing to pay for his action by accepting his punishment.
6. A man who breaks social value
Meursault is a man who breaks social values. He refuses the social determination.
He often acts differently from other people. His point of view and attitudes are often
contradictory from other people normally have.
His being different is seen in his attitudes at his mother’s funeral. He refuses to
see his mother’s dead body. Although he knows that it breaks the social tradition, he
insists on doing it. The thing that people commonly want to do when the one they
love departed is seeing the dead body for the last time, but Meursault refuses to do it.
“…but I’m supposed to unscrew the casket so you can see her.” He was moving to the casket when I stopped him. He said, “You don’t want to?” I answered “No.” he was quiet and I was embarrassed because I felt I shouldn’t have said that.” (1942:6).
This quotation shows that actually Meursault knows that his refusal to see his mother
dead body is unusual and it breaks society’s tradition. Moreover, during the vigil
Meursault even smokes and offers the caretaker a cigarette.
“Then I felt like having a smoke. But I hesitated, because I didn’t know if I could do it with Maman right there. I thought about it; it didn’t matter. I offered the caretaker a cigarette and we smoked” (1942:8).
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Although Meursault realizes that smoking in front of the departed is considered
impolite in his society, he still does it. He thinks that smoking in front of the departed
is not a problem.
After the funeral, swimming becomes his choice to be done. There he meets
Marie, a former typist in his office. Then he even asks Marie to watch a movie, a
comedy movie and makes love with her in his apartment (1942: 19-21). These
activities surprise Marie because he has just lost his mother. His action is uncommon
and unacceptable since what he does is contradictory with what people traditionally
do when they have lost the one they love. Usually people still have not recovered
from their sadness yet and cannot do other activities.
Another proof that he is a man who tends to break social value is his disbelief in
God’s existence. People traditionally believe in God’s existence, and considere that
God has to be respected and obeyed. God is the ruler of everything, including human
being, and owns the power over everything in the universe. However, Meursault
thinks differently. He believes that to believe or not in God is a choice, it is not a
must. His disbelief towards God is absolutely opposing the social standard.
Meursault’s action to kill someone else becomes another proof that he breaks the
social value. Killing is the most forbidden thing in the society. The religious belief
that the society holds consider it as a sin while the society’s law consider it as a major
crime. But Meursault breaks it; he freely kills a man as the response of the glare of
the sun. It is clear that Meursault does not obey the social value in his society.
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Furthermore, he does not show any sign of remorse when he was asked about his
action, he said, “I didn’t feel any remorse for what I’ve done” (1942:100).
His statement that he does not feel any remorse of his action is considered as a
proof that he is man of no feeling, a cold-blooded man, who might endanger the
citizen. Through his action and speech, it is obvious that Meursault is a man who
tends to break social value. He is aware of what he has done and he is really sure
about it.
In short, Meursault is a unique man. He is different from men in general. His
uniqueness is seen from his attitudes and point of view. His view towards death, love
and God is different from others. His naked honesty that is so pure about his own
feeling is also a proof of his uniqueness, though in fact his honesty endangers his life
he still keeps it as long as it is the truth. It means that he is also a man that highly
values a truth. On the other hand, he is a man who does not have the feeling of
humanity that is seen through the action of killing other people without certain
motive. Furthermore he does not have any remorse of what he had done. But he is
also a good friend. He often expreses his sympathy to his friend who was in sadness,
as what he had done towards Salamono when he lost his dog. Meursault tries to make
him feel better and shows his sympathy. Meaning to say that in spite of his action of
killing someone else, he is also a good person. A responsible person who takes the
consequences of what he had done.
Based on the explanation above it is difficult to classify Meursault as a good or
bad person. The obvious thing that can be concluded is that he is a man who is always
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sure about his mind and action. He never feels any remorse or sorry for what he had
done because he thinks that he does the right thing. In other words, he has his own
value and belief.
B. The Ideas of Existentialism Revealed through the Main Character
Albert Camus is a philosopher who is famous with his ideas on existentialism. He
is also known as an absurdist because of his absurd theory on existentialism. It is not
surprising anymore that his work is always connected with existentialism. Camus’
existentialism focuses on human being’s condition when they start to question the
meaning of life and his or her existence. On this stage, human being will feel the
feeling of absurd. It is what so called as absurdity.
In his work, The Stranger, Camus offers his ideas on existentialism. The Stranger
is a story about a man who lives in absurdity. The main character in this story
absurdly lives his life. He does not feel sad when his mother died. Furthermore, the
day after the funeral, he goes to swim, watches a movie with a girl and has sex. At the
end of the story the main character even kills a person as the response of the glare of
the sun. He does not have certain motive in killing the person. He also does not have
remorse of killing the person.
In this sense, the main character becomes Camus’ tool to deliver his ideas on
existentialism. According to O’Brien in his book entitled Camus, Meursault, the
main character in the novel, is Camus’ depiction. This name is also used by Camus as
his pen name (1970:14). Meaning to say that Camus is intentionally used this name as
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the main character in The Stranger as the representation of his thought. The ideas of
existentialism in the story are seen in the way Meursault’s view on others and his
environment, his response to the events he faces and his attitudes that are absurd.
Through Meursault’s speech, act and other’s point of view towards him, Camus
delivers his ideas on existentialism.
The following discussion is mainly focused on Camus’ ideas on existentialism as
revealed through the main character in The Stranger. The discussion is divided into
some subtopics in order to give a more detailed explanation.
1. Meursault’s view towards God
As discussed in the first part of the analysis, Meursault is described as a man who
does not believe in God’s existence. He is a man who lives with atheism belief. He
believes that a man does not need anything else to help him running his life. A man
has to depend his life on himself not on another. Though people commonly depend
their life on God by living religious belief, Meursault chooses to have his own belief.
He lives apart from God’s existence and prefers not to have a religion.
Here Camus intentionally created Meursault’s character as a unique character.
Meursault’s character is different and opposing other characters. The contradiction is
used purposely in order to deliver Camus’ ideas. Meursaults is used as Camus’ tool to
convey his ideas about atheism belief.
In this story, Camus states his idea on atheism through Meursault character. The
way Meursault refuses to believe in God’s existence is used by Camus to offer a
model of life apart from God. According to Camus, God is only human’s imagination
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because no one can feel God’s existence. God cannot be touched or smelled
(1955:16). Therefore, it is absurd to believe in God’s existence since no one can
either touch or smell God.
In the story, Camus describes Meursault as someone who is responsive towards
human’s senses. His sensitivity to human’s senses often appears in the story. One of
them is found when his mother was buried.
“All of it-the sun, the smell leather and horse dung from the hearse, the smell varnish and incense, my fatigue after a night without sleep making it hard for me to see and think straight” (1942:59). It is obvious that the hot feeling of the sun and the stinky smell of the leather and
horse dung can be felt strongly by him. The hot feeling also becomes Meursault’s
motive to kill the Arab. The sun at the beach when the incident happened was very
hot. It burned Meursault’s body and as the response towards the glare of the sun, he
kills the Arab.
“The sun was starting to burn my cheeks, and I could feel drops of sweat gathering in my eyebrow. The sun was as the same it had been in the day I’d buried Maman,…all I could feel were the cymbals of sunlight crashing on my forehead…my whole being tensed and I squeezed my hand around the revolver”(1942:59). Based on the quotation above, it is clearly seen that Meursault’s senses, in this
case the hot feeling of the sun, really influences him. Even more, it arouses him to
give a reaction and his reaction towards the glare of the sun is killing the Arab.
Meaning to say that material things seem to have a big influence on Meursault while
an abstract thing, that is God, does not influence him.
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By using Meursault’s characteristic of being sensitive towards the senses, Camus
wants to emphasize that what exists is something which is able to be felt and what is
absurd is something that cannot be felt. In fact, God is something that neither can be
smelled nor can be touched. It means that God is something absurd that does not
exist. Camus confronted the concept of God and the human’s senses in order to make
the difference between what exists and what does not. Meursault’s in the story is a
man who does not believe in God. By seeing his sensitivity towards the senses, it can
be concluded that the reason why Meursault does not believe in God’s existence is
because God cannot be felt by human’s senses.
Furthermore, according to Meursault, a man who depends his life on God is a
man who is not sure about himself so that he has to depend his life on God. His
statement is seen in his speech when the chaplain suggests him to give his life to God.
“He seemed so certain about everything, didn’t he? …he wasn’t even sure he was alive, because he living as a dead man…but I was sure about everything, surer that he could ever be, sure of my life, and sure of the death I was waiting for me” (1942:120)
His refusal to depend his life on God and his statement that a man who believes in
God is not sure about himself shows his absolute independence. He sees that a man
who is not sure about himself is a man who has lost his existence, while Meursault is
a man who is really sure about everything he does.
Sartre’s view on God also appears in the novel. He believes that God is the
limitation of one’s freedom. He states that if God does not exist, people do not
recognize the concept of God, everything would be permitted (Kaufman, 1956:295).
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In The Stranger, Sartre’s view on God is seen in the plot when Meursault kills
the Arab, people regards him as someone who does not have humanity. The minor
characters in the story, the chaplain and the magistrate, recommended him to ask for
God’s forgiveness for what he has done.
Meursault’s action to kill the Arab is used by Camus to convey Sartre’s view on
God. As a person who denies God’s existence, Meursault is free to do what he wants
to do because there is nothing that limits his freedom. Different from other
characters’ point of view, represented by the chaplain and the Magistrate, killing is a
crime and considered as a sin in religious belief, while Meursault thinks that his
action is not a serious matter. This diversity in seeing the act of killing happened
because of the influence of their view towards God. By seeing these two opposing
views about the act of killing, it is obvious that people who believe in God’s
existence have limited freedom, while people who do not believe in God’s existence
have unlimited freedom.
This diversity in possessing freedom happens because of the existence of God
through religious belief. The religious belief has some rules that must be obeyed by
the follower. The concept of sin is used to limit the follower’s freedom. Therefore, it
is obvious that the existence of God through religious belief is the limitation of one’s
freedom.
A life entirely apart from God seems to be the focus of Camus’ ideas on
existentialism. Meaning to say that an existence must be apart from God. People who
want to find their existence must live without God and depend their life on
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themselves. A total freedom is gained when God does not exist. This concept is
inspired by Nietzsche. Nietzsche also stated that either belief or disbelief are optional
attitudes (1952:21). Nietzsche’s influence in Camus’ existentialism is clearly seen
through Meursault’s speech when the magistrate tries to make him believe in God.
According to Meursault, to depend on God or not is a choice. It is the magistrate’s
choice to depend his life on God, but it is also his choice not to depend on God
(1942:69).
2. Meursault’s view towards love
The concept of love is also being explored in the story. Through Meursault’s view
towards love, Camus wants to convey his ideas about love and offers a model of
attitudes towards love. Camus states that love can blind people’s mind and make
people forget their own existence (1955:54).
Meursault as the main character in the story has a unique attitude towards his
lover. He is described as someone who seems to ignore his lover. It is proven in his
statement that he does not love Marie.
“…she wanted to know if I loved her. I answered the same way I had the last time, that it didn’t mean anything but that I probably didn’t love her ” (1942: 41).
Based on the question above, it can be concluded that Meursault does not really
regard love. In his opinion, whether he loves Marie or not is not a serious matter.
The way Meursault regards love is really different from the way common people
regards love. How common people usually appreciate and value love is described
through the minor characters in the story.
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Through the minor characters in the story, Perez , Salamono and Marie, Camus
wants to describe how people commonly regard love and treat their lover. Perez is
described as someone who lives for love; he dedicated his love for his lover, Maman.
Meaning to say that love and the existence of his lover are really important in his
life, his lover’s existence becomes his spirit to continue live. This attitude can be
seen when Maman died. He gets so depressed. He takes her death very hard. He
finds it difficult to face the reality that Maman has died. It is proven in the way he
wants to get closer all the time with Maman’s coffin. It is hard for Perez to continue
his life after the death of his lover. It means that his lover’s existence is more prior
then his own existence. He ignores his own existence.
The same condition is also experienced by Salamono. After his wife’s death, he
seems very lonely. He needs other things to fill his emptiness. He takes over a dog in
order to run away from his loneliness. The dog seems to be used as the replacement
of his wife’s existence and when the dog is lost, he comes to the same point, got so
depressed. Salamono’s attitudes prove that he is a dependent man. Other’s existence
is really important in his life. It is obvious then that Salamono forgets his own
existence by having someone or something else in his life since other’s existence is
more important for him rather than his own existence. His desperation of losing the
one he loves is the proof that he does not care of his own existence.
Marie is described as a faithful person, she wholeheartedly loves Meursault
without any doubt and takes all its consequences. Her faithfulness is seen when
Meursault was judged as a murderer. She does not care about it. Moreover she is
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more in love with him during the trial. Furthermore, she still wants to marry
Meursault even though she knows that Meursault does not love her. Her way of
loving and her loyalty towards Meursault is a proof that she is blinded by love. Her
willingness to give her whole heart without any doubt and dedicate her life to
Meursault becomes the evidence that Marie forgets her own existence.
By using these three characters, Camus wants to show that love can make people
forget their own existence. The way they love their lover drives them to forget their
self. Perez and Salamono find it hard to continue their life because of losing the one
they love, while Marie becomes so dependent towards her lover. Their being
dependent on another becomes a proof of the forgetfulness of self. They lose their
own existence because they depend their life on others and dedicated their life on
others. Moreover, they think that other’s existence is more important rather than their
own existence. Here, Camus wants to emphasize that love can be the obstacle for
people to find their self.
Meursault, Camus’ tool to deliver his ideas on existentialism, denies love.
Meursault does not want to be blinded by love. He wants to be free from other’s
influence and becomes an independent person. According to Meursault, love is not a
serious thing. When Marie asks him to marry her, he accepts her will. But when
Marie asks him whether he loves her or not, he says that he does not love Marie.
“That evening Marie came by to see me and asked if I wanted to marry her. I said it didn’t make any difference to me and that we could if she wanted to. Then she wanted to know if I loved her. I answered the same way I had the last time, that it didn’t mean anything but that probably I didn’t love her” (1942:41).
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The quotation above shows that he does not really regard love as a significant
matter. He also does not take marriage as a serious thing.
“So why marry me, then?” she said. I explained to her that it didn’t really matter and that if she wanted to, we could get married. Besides, she was the one who was doing the asking and all I was saying was yes. Then she pointed out that marriage is a serious thing. I said, “No.” she stopped talking for a minute and looked at me without saying anything. Then she spoke. She just wanted to know if I would have accepted the same proposal from another woman, with whom I was involved in the same way. I said “Sure.” Then she said she wondered if she loved me, there was no way I could know about that” (1942:41-42). Here, it is obvious that Meursault does not take marriage and love as a serious
matter. The way he sees love is really different from others. Marriage is considered
as a serious relationship in the society, but it is not a serious thing for Meursault.
Through the variety of treating love, Camus wants to explain that love can blind
people’s minds. It happens to the minor characters; Perez, Salamono and also Marie.
The three of them give their whole heart to their lover that leads them to ignore their
own self. They become dependent on their lover. While, Meursault does not want to
be blinded by love, he can be an independent man and is not really affected by his
lover. It is proven in his own speech that the possibility of Marie’s death does not
really influence his life. He said, “Remembering Marie meant nothing to me. I
wasn’t interested in her death” (1942:115).
The death of the one one’s love can be something that is really depressing, even
thinking about the possibility is already terrifying. But, for Meursault it means
nothing.
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Through Meursault’s strangeness of seeing love, Camus wants to offer a model
of life apart from love. People should be independent and do not depend on others. It
is proven that love can blind people’s minds. People are uneasy to stand to live when
they have lost the one they love, in the novel it is represented through the minor
characters. It is easier to stand to live when people are not blinded by love.
According to Camus love is the same as suicide because people who give their heart
to love cannot liberate themselves. They depend on their lover. Therefore, when they
lost their lover, they cannot stand to live. It means that they do not regard their own
existence by having the relationship.
3. Meursault’s view towards death
The story begins with the death of Meursault’s mother and Meursault’s journey to
the place where his mother will be buried. The strong atmosphere that can be felt in
this part is absurdity. Meursault gives a strange reaction about his mother’s death.
The absurd feeling can be felt when the news of his mother’s death arrived, Meursault
responds to it calmly.
“Maman died today. Or yesterday maybe, I don’t know. I got telegram from the home: “Mother deceased. Funeral tomorrow. Faithfully yours.” That doesn’t mean anything. Maybe it was yesterday” (1942:3). It is strange since what he is concerned with is the time when his mother died not
the content of the message that his mother died. This statement clearly shows that
Meursault’s mother death does not give a big influence on Meursault. He does not
feel sad and consider it as an ordinary thing to happen. Moreover, his attitude during
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the funeral is unusual; he refuses to see his mother for the last time. He smokes
during the vigil and does not show grief for losing his mother.
The absurd feeling Meursault shows is described through other character’s point
of view.
“The investigators had learned that I had “shown insensitivity” the day Maman’s funeral”. “You understand,” my lawyer said, “it’s very embarrassing for me to have to ask you this. But it’s very important. And it will be a strong argument for the prosecution if I can’t come up with some answers.”…he asked if I had felt any sadness that day” (1942:64). His insensitivity becomes supported evidence in his trial that he is a cold-blooded
man who has no feeling. His reaction is absurd since the one who died is his mother
and he does not show any grief for losing his mother.
The director of the home where Maman lived also becomes one of the witnesses
in the trial who states about Meursault’s attitudes in his mother’s death.
“The director then looked down of his shoes and said that I hadn’t cried once, and that I had left right after the funeral without paying my last respects at her grave” (1942:89). It is clear that Meursault does not feel sad when his mother died. He left the
graveyard soon after the funeral had finished and did not give his last respect for his
mother. What he did is really strange since what people usually do when their
mother died is staying in the graveyard longer than anybody else in order to give
their respect to the departed.
Another proof of Meursault insensitivity is stated by that caretaker of the home,
who states that Meursault had not wanted to see his mother for the last time and he
had smoked, slept during the vigil and had some coffee and cigarettes (1942:90).
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Marie’s witnesses about the day she had spent with Meursault after his mother’s
death becomes another evidence of Meursault’s coldness towards his mother’s death.
“So he asked Marie to describe briefly that day when I had first known her. Marie did not want to, but at the prosecutor’s insistence, she went over swim, the movies, and going back to my palace” (1942:94).
These proofs show that Meursault does not feel sadness of losing his mother; he
seems to forget his mother’s death easily. His attitude during his mother’s funeral
does not really fit with what is demanded by the society. What people commonly do
during the funeral of their family is represented in the minor characters’ points of
view. While Meursault does not do the same thing as required by the society, his
disobedience to the society’s norms is considered inappropriate. It is stated by the
prosecutor.
“Indeed, the gentleman of the jury will note of the fact. And they will concluded that a stranger may offer a cup of coffee, but that beside the body of the one who brought him into the world, a son should refused it (1942:91). It is obvious that Meursault’s attitude is against the social norms. According to
society, represented by the prosecutor, a son should show his sadness at his mother
funeral. But Meursault does not do the same thing; he sees his mother’s death as a
usual thing to happen.
In Meursault’s point of view, death is something that happens sooner or later. It
is the reason why he does not take his mother death as a serious matter.
“Then he explained that he’d heard about Maman’s death but that was one of those things that it was bound to happen sooner or later. I thought so too (1942:33).
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The quotation above shows that Meursault sees death as a natural thing that happens
in human’s life. It will come to human’s life sooner or later as what had happened to
his mother.
Death seems to be one of Camus’ focus in his existentialism. Through
Meursault’s characterization, Camus wants to deliver his ideas about death.
According to Camus, everything people do in their life will be stopped by death.
Death is the only thing that has certainty in the world. As the part of a cycle of life,
death is the end of life. It seems that life is useless since everything we do will be
stopped by death. Many people think that life is not worth living and many others
think the opposite. People who believe that life is not worth living die by committing
suicide and people who believe that life is worth living getting killed by the ideas
that give them the reason for living (1955:4). The best thing that people should do,
according to Camus, is not to commit suicide but to be fully aware of the absurdity
of the world, accept absurdity and live with it. The best solution for people is to
struggle by living the absurd as long as possible. It means that man has to struggle to
live in the world that is absurd.
Meursault, as Camus’ means to deliver his ideas, regards death as a usual thing.
It is a natural thing that happens in people’s lives. Meursault does not want to take
the death of his mother as a thing to be regretted. He is fully aware that people’s
lives will be stopped by death. He accepts his mother’s death and continues his life.
Meursault is a type of man Camus proposes who keeps struggling to live in the
absurdity of life. He is different from other characters, represented through Perez and
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Salamono, who lost their spirit of life because of the death of the one, who gave
them the reason to live.
4. Meursault’s view towards freedom
Freedom seems to be the main focus in existentialism. Almost all of the
philosophers emphasize their existentialism on freedom. As stated in the previous
chapter, existentialism is defined as;
An approach to ethics that emphasizes individual subjectivity-freedom and responsilbility, and the irrational as primary features of human condition (Roth, 1995:294). According to this definition it can be concluded that individual subjectivity-
freedom and responsibility that follows the freedom is the focus of existentialism.
Furthermore, absurdity becomes the primary characteristic of existentialism.
In the story, Meursault is described as a man who has an absolute freedom. There
is nothing that is able to limit his freedom. He does not believe in God’s existence
therefore God also cannot limit his freedom. The event that shows Meursault’s
existentialism is the moment when he kills the Arab. He kills the Arab without a
certain motive. When he is asked about the reason why he kills the Arab, he stated
that the only reason that arouses him to kill the Arab is the glare of the sun. From his
statement, it is clear that he is a free man and owns absolute freedom. His freedom
can be seen through his action of killing the Arab. His action shows how free he is so
that he can do such action to respond to the glare of the sun.
Meursault’s action to kill the Arab can be seen by using Nietzsche’s point of
view. This action can be regarded as the manifestation of Nietzsche’s theory, ‘Man
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and Superman’. According to Nietzsche ‘Man’ is an ordinary man, a person who
obeys the rules around him, who follows the values given by the society and fulfills
the society’s demands. While ‘Superman’ is a term used for a man who has the
ability to transgress the rules around him. ‘Superman’ is a man who bravely
performs his instinct. He or she is a person who has the ability to create his or her
own value (1956:50).
In this sense, Meursault is regarded as ‘Superman’ since he bravely performs his
instinct. He disobeys the society’s rule by killing the Arab. Moreover, Meursault
does not feel any remorse of what he has done. According to him, what he has done
is not a serious matter. His being ‘Superman’ is clearly seen in his speech, “I didn’t
feel any remorse for what I’ve done” (1942:100).
His statement that he does not feel any remorse for what he has done strengthens
the idea of being ‘Superman’. It proves that Meursault has his own value that is very
different from the society’s value.
Even though he does not feel any remorse for what he has done, Meursault wants
to be responsible for his action. He confesses his action in the trial that he is the one
who kills the Arab as the response of the glare of the sun and accepts his punishment
as the consequence of his action.
Meursault’s responsibility is also seen as an attitude of an existentialist.
According to Sartre, man has to be responsible for the commitment he makes and the
action he takes (1956:304). Meursault is a man who holds his commitment and he is a
responsible man. His responsibility is seen through his own speech in the trial.
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“I told him I didn’t know what a sin was. All they had told me that I was guilty. I was guilty, I was paying for it, and nothing more could be asking from me” (1942:118).
It is obvious that Meursault is responsible for his action; he accepts his punishment as
the consequences of his action.
Freedom as a basic need for human being is explored deeply in the novel.
Through Meursault’s attitude, killing the Arab, Camus explores his existentialism.
An absolute freedom that followed by a total responsibility is Camus’ ideas of
existentialism he offers through the main character in his novel.
From the discussion above, it can be concluded that the novel, The Stranger,
contains the ideas of existentialism. Camus employs the main character as his means
to deliver his ideas of existentialism. Through Meursault’s characterization, the ideas
of existentialism are revealed. Meursault’s point of view, attitudes and speech shows
the ideas of existentialism. Here, in the story, God, love, death, and freedom are the
focuses of the discussion in the thesis. Meursault’s view towards these things are
very different from what common people have in their mind.
Meursault denies the existence of God, he does not believe in God. In his
opinion, people who believe in God are people who are not sure about themselves.
His disbelief in God becomes his manifestation to show his existence.
His attitude towards love is also different from other people’s attitudes. He does
not permit love to take his existence since many people forget their own existence
because of love. Therefore, he does not really regard the value of love. It is seen
through his attitude towards his lover, that he always says that he does not love her
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and that love is not a serious matter. His attitude towards love becomes his effort to
keep his existence. Thus, love is forgetfulness of self.
Meursault also sees death differently. He does not feel sad at his mother’s
funeral. It happens because according to Meursault death is an ordinary thing to
happen. It is only a matter of time. Death comes sooner or later. Hence, Meursault
does not take death, as a miserable thing and that it does not need to be sorry.
Meursault’s existentialism is also clearly seen in his action of killing the Arab.
Through his action it is obvious that Meursault is a man who has an absolute
freedom. He kills the Arab only because of the glare of the sun. This fact shows how
free he is, that as the response towards the sun, he can freely kill someone else. On
this point, Camus strongly portrays his ideas of existentialism through the main
character in the story.
In the whole of the story, Camus creates an absurd atmosphere. The absurdity
can be felt in the main character’s attitudes. It happens since that main character
absurdly lived his life. His absurdity is the essential characteristic of his
existentialism. Meursault’s way of life is very different from others; the way he
views life, his attitudes and his speeches are peculiar. That is the reason why it is
absurd to see Meursault’s life.
According to Camus an existence can be gained when men have an absolute
freedom, while God is the limitation of one’s freedom. It means that an existence of
human being must be separated from God’s existence. An absolute freedom has to be
followed by a total responsibility. Moreover, Love is something that makes people
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forget their own existence since they live for others and death is the certain thing that
will happen in human’s life. Everything people do in their life will be stopped by
death. However, suicide is not the best solution to end a life, but to struggle is the
thing that people should do to face the absurd world. People who have existentialism
belief are absurdly living their life. Meaning to say that absurdity becomes the
essential characteristic of existentialism.
CHAPTER V
CONCLUSION
The Stranger is a novel about a man who lives in an absurd life. Meursault as
the main character in the novel lives his life differently. He is different from other
characters in the way he sees life. His being different has a significant role in
delivering the ideas of existentialism. Through his speech, action and other
character’s point of view about him, the ideas of existentialism are revealed.
In the novel, Meursault is described as a man who has unique characteristics.
He is man who does not believe in God’s existence. He is also a man who keeps his
honesty; he highly values truth and also a good friend for others. But on the other
hand, he is a man who gives an impression that he does not have the feeling of
humanity. He kills a man without certain motive. His action is merely a respond
towards the glare of the sun that burns his body at the beach. The most obvious thing
about him is that he is a man who is really aware of his action. He is always sure
about everything he does and responsible for the consequences of his action.
By paying a great attention on Meursault’s characteristics, the writer finds
some principles of existentialism portrayed in Meursault’s characteristics. There are
four points that have been discussed in relation with the ideas of existentialism
Camus tries to offer.
The first is Meursault’s view towards God. Meursault is someone who denies
the existence of God. In his point of view, a man who believes in God is not sure
about himself. God cannot be felt by human’s senses, meaning to say that God’s
existence is deniable.
The second is Meursault’s view towards love. The way Meursault sees love is
different from other characters. He does not want to give his whole heart to his lover
as other characters do. He believes that love can blind people’s mind. A man who
gives his whole heart and dedicates his life towards his lover will ignore their own
self. Meaning to say that love is forgetfulness of the self.
The third is Meursault’s view towards death. According to Meursault, death is
natural thing that will happen to every person. Death is a part of the cycle of life. It
comes sooner or later. Therefore, it is ridiculous to get depressed because of one’s
death. Death is something that unnecessary to be regretted.
The last is Meursault’s view towards freedom. An absolute freedom has to be
owned by a man. A freedom that does not has its limit. In the story, there is nothing
that can limit Meursault’s freedom. He does everything freely, including kills
someone else. Although a man should have an absolute freedom, a total responsibility
should follow one’s freedom. In this sense, one should be responsible of what he had
done.
Through Meursault’s characteristics, Camus wants deliver his ideas on
existentialism that an existence requires a total freedom. A total freedom should be
owned without any limit. Since God, through religious belief, can be limitation of
one’s freedom, men should live apart from God’s existence. A total freedom should
be followed by a total responsibility. A man should be responsible for his action.
Moreover, absolute independence is needed to gain an existence. Thus love can be the
obstacle of one’s independence. Love is forgetfulness of the self since people who
give their whole heart for love will ignore their own existence. Such love should be
avoided. Furthermore, one’s life will be ended by death. Death is natural thing to
happen and it stops everything people do in their life. However, suicide is not the best
solution to end a life, but to struggle is the thing that people should do to face the
absurd world. This belief leads people to behave absurdly. In short, absurdity
becomes the essential characteristic of existentialism.
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