Dark Humor In The Stranger

"The woman kept on crying. It surprised me, because I didn't know who she was. I wished I didn't have to listen to her anymore (pg. 10).

This quote, shows not only how distant Monsieur Meursault was from his mother, but also how he isn't as emotionally involved in the situation as others. I think that this shows the dark humor in the story because the narrator doesn't want to see his mother, and is more worried about his boss being mad at him for missing work than he is about his mother being dead. It is almost as if he sees his mother dying as an inconvenience rather than a tragedy. This isn't directly funny, but it has a sense of dark humor that is exemplified by the narrator constantly making light of the situation.

The Maman Burden

"I was tired. The caretaker took me to his room and I was able to clean up a little. I had some more coffee and milk, which was very good. When I went outside, the sun was up. Above the hills that separate Marengo from the sea, the sky was streaked with red. And the wind coming over the hills brought the smell of salt with it. It was going to be a beautiful day. It had been a long time since I'd been out in the country, and I could feel how much I'd enjoy going for a walk if it hadn't been for Maman." Pg 12

This paragraph exemplifies the way that Monsieur Meursault feels about his mother. At the very end of this paragraph he says "I could feel how much I'd enjoy going for a walk if it hadn't been for Maman," which depicts how he feels that even though he deposited her in the old person's home, she still is affecting him. And now, despite the fact that Maman is dead, he still feels as if (while he is visiting the home for her funeral) she is weighing on his shoulders. Later in the chapter, he is relieved to go back to his home. This shows that he really didn't want to deal with his mother and didn't really care for her because he thinks she is a burden.

Let's Use the Entire Apartment, Shall We?

"After lunch I was a little bored and I wandered around the apartment. It was just the right size when Maman was here. Now it's too big for me, and I've had to move the dining room table into my bedroom. I live in just one room now, with some saggy straw chairs, a wardrobe whose mirror has gone yellow, a dressing table, and a brass bed. I've let the rest go." - Albert Camus' The Stranger, page 21

Camus lives up to the strangeness of his title by inserting the antithesis of materialism. Although the novel was originally published in 1942 France, I think there would still be materialistic values in society, right? World War II was blowing full force across Europe, and Camus is seated in a cushioned chair, writing of his protagonist's self-sacrifice (at least that's how I envision him).

Perhaps I have completely misinterpreted the quote. Maybe Meursault is truly grieving over the untimely loss of his mother, but I personally find that hard to believe, as he hadn't visited her, nor could he recall the actual day his mother died.

If I could visit Meursault myself I would scorn him for wasting such a lovely French apartment! Yes, houses can be too large for comfort, but there's no need to squash furniture into the four walls of a room when there's an entire apartment to inhabit.

I assume I owe a massive apology to Nabakov for bringing my personal vision of materialism and the correct use of furniture and applying it to Camus' "new world" which I have just begun to learn of in the first 30 pages of the book. But Meursault seems to be wasting away his life and worldly possessions. Who hurt this man? I don't believe that he's ethereal enough to reject all material temptation, yet he seems to be moping around in a cramped apartment that shouldn't be. His only solace comes from a liquor bottle or the fingers of a cigarette. Perhaps that is why his mirror has gone yellow. Smoke is no good for material possessions, but they must not have known that in 1942 France.

sa mere est morte

Meursault seems to be very disconnected from everything that is happening in his life. The novel starts with his mom dying, but he seems completely unaffected by it. Later on, he meets a girl and takes her home, but thinks nothing of it the next morning. Many major events are happening in his life, but he never has a large reaction to it, and will continue his life as though nothing had changed. This severe disconnect struck me as detrimental to Meursault, as he can't explain himself to anyone without the emotion behind the event. While it could be that Meursault is going through depression, it seems impossible as he is still motivated to do things such as work and talk to his neighbors and friends. With the small amount of emotion coming off, it appears as though Meursault doesn't care about his mother or anything that might happen to him.

Stranger Things:

When we had dressed, she stared at my black tie and asked if I was in mourning. I explained that my mother had died. “When?” she asked, and I said, “Yesterday.” She made no remark, though I thought she shrank away a little. I was just going to explain to her that it wasn’t my fault, but I checked myself, as I remembered having said the same thing to my employer, and realizing then it sounded rather foolish (p. 20).

These lines struck me as being particularly strange. Both during and after his mother's funeral seems to be unfazed. At the same time, parts I II and III do not convey to us that has a poor relationship with his mother or that he did not love his mother. He seems to be distracted.

Who's the dog?

"...I asked him what the dog had done. He didn't answer. All he said was 'Filthy, stinking bastard!' I could barely see him leaning over his dog, trying to fix something on its collar. I spoke louder. Then, without turning around, he answered with a kind of suppressed rage, 'He's always there'" (Camus, page 28).

As soon as the funeral is over, essentially nothing happens in the first three chapters of "The Stranger." And yet, a whirlwind of odd details and seemingly unimportant, yet puzzling, interactions piece together to form an intriguing illustration.

Possibly the strangest aspect of Camus' snapshot of Meursault's Sunday is the interaction between Salamano and his dog. After Salamano senselessly beats his pet multiple times, Meursault confronts him about it. Salamano's reaction ("'He's always there'") seems contradictory, leaving the reader to wonder about the significance of Salamano's need for dominance. Going forward, will this owner/pet relationship parallel something larger? If so, what is Salamano? And who is his dog?

Stranger Things

The main character in The Stranger by Albert Camus seems robotic and machine-like. He seems to be devoid of any type of emotions, hardly batting an eyelash when his "Maman" dies at the beginning of the novel.

He walks through the the burial day for his mother in a trance-like state, not remembering much except vivid snapshots of individual's tear-stained faces, as well as the extreme heat of the day, portraying how selfish he is. He cannot seem to get over his discomfort, fearing that he might either faint or catch a chill. Although he is bland narrator, he does describe the day in artistic details, focusing on the things he views, instead of what he is internally feeling. He even describes "blood-red earth spilling over Maman's casket, the white flesh of the roots mixed in with it...," which creates an image that the reader can insert themselves into, being drawn into the story.

The oddest occurrence ends the second chapter. After what would be coined an overwhelming day for most, Meursault is only thinking of his bed, and the blissful twelve hours of sleep that awaits him.

Edward Said's Orientalism And the Postcolonial Mind

In Said’s Orientalism, he discusses how Europeans began generalizing attributes they associated with Orientals, and their artificial portrayals began transcending into their very own Western world through; scientific reports, fashion trends, film, and many other sources of multimedia.

It is interesting to track our bizarre relationship with these Other cultures and countries, and notice how the West’s imperial mentality with Eastern cultures has so deeply invaded our very own culture and how it has transformed with modern times, into such a juxtaposed obsession.

On one hand you have the West’s obsession with the East, transfigured into this compulsive need to intrude Eastern countries with extreme and excessive militant visits. However turn around to the more glamorous side of the West, the fashion industry, and see just how much the West truly “idolizes” the East in such a glorifying manner.

For example, It’s sickening that they can’t go a season in the fashion industry, without some designer releasing a completely inappropriate Oriental collection; stock full of beaded flowy tunics, ornate headpieces, oh and don’t forget the baggy pants! No Oriental collection is complete without THE baggy pants!

No Oriental collection can go without the traditional baggy pants. Chanel designed them from translucent materials of black, beige and white color.

They continued,

Perhaps are not quite familiar clothing for residents of the metropolis, but for those who are going on vacation are real gems.

And Chanel is no dummy. They make sure to cover all of their bases. Are you feeling angry indifferent about this collection in respect of the “Oriental culture”? No need to feel like you're appropriating a culture’s attire! Because after all,

Despite the Oriental theme, the designer did not forget about those who are indifferent in respect of this culture. The combination of short tight-leg trousers with a loose tunic has long time ago become universal. It’s comfortable, actual, and most importantly – it is fashionable and elegant.

You go, Chanel!

Unfortunately there is still this Orientalist mindset today, it would be completely foolish to think otherwise. Many classmates have brought up Aladdin for example, and while this is a great example and definitely shows how the Western perceptions get filtered into the minds of the young--can we just talk about for a second that that movie came out 24 years ago! That is over two decades. That is insane!

Now I know that the infiltration of an Orientalist mindset into our mainstream media has not been diminished since then, so have we become more immune or..what? Has Orientalism really been able to slide on by, making frequent stops on runways, movie screens and tv, mouths of political candidates?

A Worldly Divide

Edward Said's critique on how people look at Orientalism has a lot to do with the dichotomy between the East and the West. Western opinion on Orientals is that they are exotic, strange and devious people. These negative words associated with Orientals cumulate into making them the Other. We see people from the East as exciting and different from us, which is problematic as it creates a sort of Us and Them/Other divide.

Reading this article made me think of a John Oliver video I watched recently on white-washing in Hollywood.

It talked about how there is no excuse for the extreme lack of people of color in movie, since even when there are roles perfect for non-white people, the part is still given to a white person. One of my favorite examples he brought up was the movie Prince of Persia. Persia, the former name for Iran, is a Middle Eastern country. Yet the movie has Jake Gyllenhaal, a white man, as the lead. With this movie, they had the chance to cast an Iranian actor, but instead they went with a well known white dude.

As a society, we are so focused on not letting in people unlike ourselves (look at any Republican presidential candidate's opinion on immigration) that we miss the fact we are all essentially the same. I don't mean to sound idealistic and disregard valid cultural differences and traditions, but when there exists concepts like Orientalism and clear divide between two cultures, I think its important to take a step back and realize that between cultures and continents we're really not all that different.

It´s an Orientalist Life

Edward Said suggests that orientalism is the perception of the East from the West perspectives. Said says that orientalism favors the West and that it makes the West seem to be superior to the East as it is the vantage point by which we as a society see the other culture. It seems to be a much more evolved to the uncivilized and disorganized East. These biases have become ingrained in societal perception of the East.

In consideration of the orientalist view s that exist right now, the perception that permeeates throughout American culture is the perception of the Middle East. It is seen as savagery and through political campaigning and media people believe that the Middle East is savage and brute. For example, the film Aladdin and Argo both depict the Middle East as a completely foreign and almost extra terrestrial land that is unlike that of the West.

Orientalism

Orientalism, based on Said's definition, is the political differences between the structure of the East and the West. The Europeans, who once dominated the Middle East and Asia, see the people from those lands as sly, impossible to trust, incapable of concrete practical organization, or rigorous, detail oriented analysis. In summary, simply strange people, and Westerners see themselves as "better" than them.

I believe that today, we still stereotype anybody who doesn't live and behave in the same way we are used to as strange. Whether it is that the Westerners see the Easterners dress, religion, and food as strange or vice versa. Even though we are all human and have more similarities in culture than differences we still use the media to determine how someone really lives. For instance movies like The Wolverine, The Mummy 3, and The Karate Kid portray almost every Asian character as some sort of ninja or martial arts guru.

My 5th grade teachers were fascinated by Indian and Nepali culture, and traveled there every summer, so we spent most of the year studying their gods, culture, and history, which was one of the first times my mind was fully opened to another culture. We watched historical movies about famous Indian people like Gandhi and documentaries about Indian culture and how it would be like to live there. It really shattered the idea that they were different from us because they lived in a different place, for me. Ultimately, we all get up, go to work/ school, and go to sleep. Still, orientalism is still at large and in many forms. We are scared to let immigrants into our country and want to build walls (*cough cough Trump) to keep our country "safe".

Orientalism in Action

According to Edward Said, orientalism creates a relationship between the West and the East. Because there is no actual connections made between the two areas of the world, the relationship is full of lies and false information. The West has more power over the East in this relationship. Simultaneously the West views the East as "sly and obsequious" in certain situations. This creates a relationship full of false views and opinions based on lies. This orientalism has created an opinion that many westerners have of easterners that they are untrustworthy, exotic and strange. Said also asks, "but where is this sly, devious, despotic, mystical Oriental? Has anyone ever met anyone who meets this description in all particulars?" Truly, there are very few who actually meet these standards, further proving the bias that has become so prevalent that it is difficult to look beyond.

Overall this orientialism is very well alive today. Take Donald Trump for example. Constantly in his arguments he talks about the "dangers" of Muslims This is a prejudice that it seems will never leave the United States ever since 9/11. Muslims or people that even just look Muslim are considered dangerous by many, when in fact the person is most likely just a regular citizen. It is hard to form an unbiased opinion of people of eastern descent, especially when people in the United States are constantly saying these people are bad and that they're terrorists. Reading The God of Small Things has helped for this idea to come full circle and for readers to view the other side of things rather than seeing the citizens of the United States's perspective. It is quite enlightening as to the effect westerners have over easterners through the eyes of people in the east. Overall, the west has this strong opinion of westerners that has been implemented by the government, ultimately, that will never fully disintegrate.

Said Says

Edward Said says that Orientalism is the way the Western culture perceives the Eastern cultures. According to him, Orientalism puts a difference between us(the West), and them(the East). He argues that this difference arose from imperialism, which started a power binary between the colonizing and the colonized. When a territory was taken by a foreign power, especially when the territory was populated with a race that was different from the foreign power, a feeling of us vs. them was sure to arise. An example of this is when the European nations vied for colonies in Africa after the Berlin Conference in 1884.

Views like this are almost always disputed, especially in the dominated territory. Orientalism is similar to this binary. I agree with Said on its existence. The binary was hardened when artists brought their depictions of the East to the West, creating a further gap between the two cultures. The pictures they made solidified the position of power the West had by depicting the Eastern person as vastly different from the Western Person. Said's argument seems to be valid.

Orientalism

Orientalism, by Edward Said, is a critique of the study of the Orient and its ideology. By examining the historical, cultural, and political views of the East that are held by the West, Said was able to traces the various views and perceptions back to the colonial period of British and European domination in the Middle East. He discovered that the early studies of Orientalism revolved around languages and the eventual translations of them. The colonial rulers could not rule properly, it was believed, without some knowledge of the people they ruled. They thought they could acquire this knowledge from translating various works from the native language into their own. In their minds, the Orient was made to be dominated. But through Said's work, he was able to point out the errors in the ways of these early Orientalists. He maintained that the Orient should be viewed for itself and its own cultures and societies and not viewed in the concept of Western perspective. Said's perspective basically led to a difference in the way the Orient was approached in studies, which led the field into a more modern approach. 
Unfortunately, Orientalism is still prevalent in today's society. From the start of the 21st century, our greatest and most feared enemies are considered to be in the Middle East. We have waged multiple wars on the inhabitants of those countries, mostly fueled by the tragedy of 911. For American and Middle Easterners alike, there is a deep rooted fear and spite towards the other. Most of the time, the prejudice is unjustified. But I think the idea of Orientalism is what drives a great deal of this conflict. It is the need for power and control that makes countries crumble and international relationships fail. 

Orient Our Point of View

Edward Said lays out Orientalism as the view held by the West, "us", of the East or Orient, "them". His postcolonial theory explains that the western view of this Orient wildly exaggerates between the two cultures. According to said, Orientalism favors the West, making it seem superior to the uncivilized and disorganized West. These biases have become ingrained in society throughout history and is still recognizable today.

The customs of those from the Orient are unfamiliar to a West perspective and have been construed as uncivilized because, in our society today, something unfamiliar is strange and unsophisticated. In The God of Small Things, this fear of unusual customs was found in the interactions between Sophie Mol and the members who belong to Rahel and Estha's family. When Sophie Mol and Margaret Kochamma first arrive, Margaret questions the way the family and cook goes about greeting them in an attempt to understand it. Because of Margaret's questions, Ammu becomes upset and storms out saying they are being examined like "natives" under scientific study. The rituals which are a part of everyday life to Ammu are unfamiliar, or even off-putting, to Margaret and Sophie. This emphasizes the Orientalism, because they have not experienced the culture before, Margaret and Sophie assume that the ordinary behavior of their lives is what is supposedly right while anything else is wrong and primitive. I believe many people from western cultures might have behaved in the same way, this fact emphasizes that Orientalism is still present in our current society.

Orientalism and Fetishisation of Asian Cultures

According to Edward Said, orientalism is a construct that sets up the binary between Western and Eastern culture. Because of orientalism, people from Western countries see people from the East as sly, mystical, and untrustworthy. The idea of orientalism was born when imperialistic European countries began to take hold of Asian countries. Because of orientalism, Westerners now see themselves as superior than the Other People from Eastern countries.

Orientalism is definitely still present today, one of the most prominent examples is Islamophobia and prejudice against people from the Middle East. Many Americans have unfounded fear and anger towards Muslims after 9/11.

But orientalism is not always easy to see. Orientalism today is present in the fetishisation and appropriation of Asian culture, especially Japanese culture. The people we call weeaboos have an over-exaggerated view of Japan and they see Japanese people as images to be put on a pedestal or in a picture frame, rather than actual human beings. This mindset can lead to the sexualisation of young girls from any Asian country that Westerners view as Other. This is obviously incredibly harmful and predatory, and it all stems from the sense of removal Westerners have from Eastern countries, because to the people who are fetishizing them, those girls aren't really people, they're just some entertainment from a faraway place.

In a Land Far, Far Away...

Edward Said describes Orientalism as a myth that has been so intricately spun over hundreds of years that it has become "knowledge." The culture that makes this possible is one of superiority over the East. Western power and its commitment to defining the Eastern people as Orientals, makes the myth strong. Although this colonial attitude was developed years earlier during times of Imperialism, it is still alive today. Westerners know that they are not too different from Easterners in terms of experience and that Orientals have a place in their culture. Defining the East as a place of strange behavior with people that can't be trusted, helps Westerners define themselves by contrast.

I think that we are definitely still disconnected from the East and although we know more truth about that part of our world today than we used to, it still seems like a far away place with people completely different than us. Different can often feel scary. This is obvious in the common American fear of Middle Easterners, specifically Muslims. We have come to assume that "all" Muslims and Middle Easterners are terrorists because of the actions of some of their people. By labeling them as evil, we simultaneously define ourselves as "good" and as the victims, when in reality, they are the victims of our closed-mindedness.

Orientalism: A Web Thicker Than We Thought

Said´s postcolonial theory of Orientalism is complex. He writes that Orientalism is the political mindset that emphasizes differences between the West and East. Further, that people of the ¨Orient" are the ultimate ¨other" because they are engrossed in religion and are incapable of rationality. The myth of Orientalism has been solidified into fact in Western cultures, as is evident in studies of eastern cultures. Said attributes this action to European political dominance in the Middle East. As one of my classmates brought up earlier this week, ¨The winners write history¨. That phrase applies well to this part of Said´s ideas.

Said´s postcolonial theory also brings a fresh perspective to Western culture. First, he highlights the fact that modern imperialism is even more dangerous than ancient imperialism because conquerors want to impose ideology. Also, he writes that Western cultures sort of depend on the Orient as a model for various parts of society. In other words, we define our society as not that. Overall, he believes Orientalism is still prevalent in the Western mindset.

I thought Said´s ideas were interesting and provocative. I didn´t fully realize how much this ¨web¨ ideas and attitudes about another part of the world affects life right at home. I see it in movies such as Aladdin and even recognize a bit of it in my freshman year World History class. The unit we did on eastern cultures such as India or countries in the Middle East focused on religion and societal differences. The focus wasn´t necessarily bad, but I can see where my classmate is coming from with the phrase, ¨The winners write history¨.

That Land Across The Sea

Edward Said describes Orientalism as the way in which culture makes the east and the west seem like very different areas. To better understand what Said means, he references Heart of Darkness, by Joseph Conrad, by likening his idea of imperialism with the idea of Orientalism. In Conrad's story, Imperialism is a process that makes another part of the world seem frightening and full of mystery, which is very similar to the idea of Orientalism.

Today, I feel that our society is still in many ways disconnected from eastern culture, and where we are disconnected from that culture, the Orientalist mindset begins to creep into our heads as to what we think the east is like. Although recently with the new rise of technology we are now easily connecting with all parts of the world and I believe that this increased connectivity will end Orientalist thinking.

Orientalism Is...

According to Edward Said, Orientalism is a political view that encourages the binary between the familiar West and the unfamiliar East. People from the East, or "Orientals," are stereotypically sly, mystical, and untrustworthy. These "Orientals" are also completely contrived by the West- they are characters created to make the East seem more other, to make western cultures feel knowledgeable about the East, and to strengthen the binary between them. Basically, the West created Orientalism to make it seem like they knew their stuff when it came to non-western countries, when, in fact, they did not.

So, is Orientalism still present in modern western cultures? Yes! It's alive, well, and presenting itself in new and terrible ways. For example, America has created a binary between itself and the Middle East specifically. There are offensive stereotypes about Middle Eastern people (they're terrorists, everyone wears a turban and rides a camel and has twenty wives) that Americans use to pretend to understand what their culture is like while also maintaining dominance in the binary by imposing those negative stereotypes. Islamophobia seems to be the modern Orientalism.