One of the last thoughts we hear from Meursault in
The Stranger is "I had lived my life one way and I could have just as well lived it another. I had done this and I hadn't done that. I hadn't done this thing but I had done another" (121). I considered this striking line, and immediately my thoughts brought me to the spectacle of my childhood - Hannah Montana. By living a double life, she is able to get everything she wants: fame, fortune, privacy, and true friendship. Why can't we all do this? If Meursault had had the ability to live two lives at once, perhaps he wouldn't have "felt ready to live it all again" (122), because he would have experienced all he could in his first time around. By allowing herself to stray from societies rules about how people define themselves, Hannah Montana establishes herself as an existentialist because she lives two different lives simply because she can, instead of one life where she is constantly forsaking some of desires.
The lyrics in her song Life's What You Make It preach similar advice that I imagine Meursault would give to someone.
"Don't let no small frustration/ Ever bring you down/ No, no, no, no/ Just take a situation/ And turn it all around/ With a new attitude everything can change/ Make it how you want it to be/ Stay mad, why do that? Give yourself a break"
It may be a bit of a stretch, but maybe Disney's writers were trying to hide some deeper message in Hannah Montana's character, and teach children that it's okay not to conform to society in all ways, and just do things that will make you happy.
Furthermore, couldn't it be argued that all people slightly live double lives? I personally act and speak differently at school, work, and on college apps than I do when I'm at home or talking to people that I'm really comfortable with.
I love this connection, but I don't know if I agree that Meursault was leading a double life. I feel like his life was his life in that he did what he wanted and didn't lie about it even though it was different from the rest off society. Hannah Montana lived her life the way she wanted to but she lied to society to hide certain parts of her identity to protect herself. For Meursault, protecting himself wasn't really on his mind because he was just enjoying life the way he was living it and not worrying about what other people thought.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Julie because Meursault lived his life independently the way he wanted to, even if he did not conform to societal expectation. The ending and his realization and consequent happiness I think stems from his realization that he has complete control over his life. Hannah Montata, lives much of her life lying to others, something Meursault was never capable of, even when his life was on. However, I do like this connection, it is something I never would have thought of.
ReplyDeleteIf we're getting into analysis of Disney channel characters, I would argue Hannah Montana isn't a true existentialist hero. Although she lives 2 lives, one of them is entirely fake and only exists to serve society's expectations of a pop star. If Miley was able to do this completely separate from her personal life I think your argument would hold true, but we constantly see the struggles she goes through in order to keep her secret. By letting this shallow persona negatively affect her real life, she remains constrained by society's standards of popularity and success.
ReplyDeleteI think that although Hannah isn't necessarily a existentialist because of her main purpose being to entertain and serve others its a super interesting connection. Even though she often wants to stop living her double life but continues to, to make other happy I think someone actually living a double life in which they loved both parts of it would be a great example. I think you did a really good job making a interesting connection and even though there are some inconsistencies you made a good claim about it.
ReplyDelete