Most likely one of the weirdest moment from the first three chapters from the book is the pages 21-24. Meursault spends most of the day and night sitting on his balcony and staring out of the window.
After lunch he read newspaper and cut out stuff that interests him. In the story it is not specified when he decides to go on the balcony and watch the streets but the reader can infer it is about 2-3pm. He saw local boys heading to see the movie therefore it should be about the time school ends.
He observes the people and the weather. The family, the teenagers, the tobacconist, children, sky and many more. He's outside until early morning.
...with the streetcars running less often and the sky already blue above the trees..(pg. 24)Why does he spends so much time without doing anything else? How does he have so much patience?
Does he have anything else that he enjoys doing?
I never thought about his interests - it does certainly seem like his life is without any hobbies or broader interests.
ReplyDeleteThis is partly a common practice for non-readers and non-technology users who are also not compelled to leave far from their houses for the sake of finding something to do. In other cases, people who simply want to attain a sense of stillness will sit and do nothing. Even I do a variation of this sometimes - albeit, only for two hours outside at the most - and, as boring as it sounds, it's one of the most satisfying pastimes ever. Admittedly, it is strange that Meursault would do this until the next morning, especially when we assume that he is usually concerned with pragmatic issues as opposed to emotional ones, because this appears to be less of a pragmatic activity and more of one concerning tranquility. This leads to another question about The Stranger; does someone's pastime, or life as a whole, make sense if and only if it is meaningful?
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