The Stranger explores the idea of happiness and how it can be achieved. I think the book's argument is exemplified by the transition that Meursault goes through when he kills the Arab and "knocks four quick times on the door of unhappiness" (59).
In order for Meursault to become unhappy, he must have started out happy. Before he shoots the Arab, he is content in his detachment from society and has complete control over his actions and thoughts. When Meursault shoots the Arab, he feels no remorse and becomes no less indifferent about death; the only part of Meursault that changes - what makes him unhappy - is his loss of the freedom to control his thoughts and actions. He can no longer eat, sleep, or see Marie or Raymond whenever he wants. I believe Camus is ultimately arguing that in order to achieve happiness we must live as individuals and not allow our decisions to be controlled by others.
I completely agree that in that part of the novel, Camus is arguing that in order to achieve happiness we must be individuals and make our own decisions, but by the end of the novel, Meursault seems perfectly content if not happier with his life.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your interesting argument. After reading it, I also realized that Meursault loves attention. When he has control of his own life, people always come to him (i.e Marie, Masson, etc.), but when he did not have control he did not have all this attention. That could be another reason for his unhappiness.
ReplyDeleteI also agree with what you are saying. It seems that Meursault was, perhaps, happy with his currently lifestyle although it seems foreign to us. Now that his life is out of his control he has sort of an uneasy feeling about it, yet his mother always taught him to make the best of each situation which I believe he does, especially exemplified in the last line of the book.
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