Meursault in Albert Camus's "The Stranger" Comparison to Junot Diaz's Main Character in "Edison, New Jersey"

Meursault throughout Albert Camus's book The Stranger is portrayed from the beginning to be a selfish and uncaring human being. Meursault seems to lack love for anything or anyone except himself. For instance on page 6 when the caretaker asks if he wants to see his mother's body, Meursault replies, "'No.' He was quiet, and I was embarrassed because I felt I shouldn't have said that." When the character asks why he does not want to see his mother a few sentences later, Meursault simply replies, "I don't know." Undoubtedly, this response to his mother's death gives the reader a sense that Meursault truly is an uncaring human being. Meursault has not seen his mother in what the reader can infer as quite a while and he does not even bother to say goodbye forever. This is an insult to his mother's life because it is as if his mother never meant anything to him. Again, when asked on page 9 if he would like to see his mother one last time, he quite plainly responds no. Evidently, Meursault's life lacks meaning because he does not even care for one's who love him. He has no personal goals to reach for himself and is wandering aimlessly through his life.
Furthermore, Meursault can be more interpreted as a man who has lost his way. In chapter 5, his "girlfriend" asks him to marry him twice, his response is dull. On page 41, the text reads, "I said it didn't make any difference to me and that we could if she wanted to." This is one of the most important decisions of his life and he still has no care for it. He puts the choice on Marie, his girlfriend, and not himself. This further exhibits Meursault's inability to make decisions for himself and his lack of personal goals. He is gliding through life, taking each day as it comes, but is not really living. He avoids most important decisions in his life because they do not matter to him.
A character that relates to Meursault the most is the main narrator from Junot Diaz's short story Edison, New Jersey. The main narrator throughout the story seems lost, with no sense of direction in life. He is going through every day, taking risks in hope for something to come out of the opportunities that arise. For example, at the end of the story when the main narrator comes back from New York to drop of the woman, his coworker asks, "Was it worth it," and "Did you at least get some?". Even though he simply dropped off the woman and came straight back, he replied,"Hell yeah." This exemplifies that the narrator's goals was to get something out of taking the woman to New York, whether a relationship or sex. Just like Meursault, the narrator in Edison, New Jersey has no personal goals and is going through life without really living it.
What is going on with these two characters? Why do they just sit back and observe life, letting it pass right before them?