The Stranger
Meursault is a man who will not lie to himself. In Albert Camus? The Stranger, his actions and reactions display him as an immoral man, expressing apathy towards society?s formulas for convention. He will not feign emotion, nor use religion as a vehicle to give his life meaning. Meursault has a passion for the truth, which opens the revelation for all humanity: life is absurd; it is man?s mortal responsibility to be committed to himself, for death is definitive.
At his trial for murdering an Arab, Meursault?s inability to relate to the conventions of society puts him at a disadvantage. When discovering that the court will appoint a lawyer for him, Meursault thinks that it is “very convenient that the court should take care of those details” (63). He does not see the necessity in finding, consulting, and paying an attorney to defend him in court. Meursault knows that he has killed an Arab and having a defense seems needless. Confronted with the court?s legal mechanics, Meursault is a stranger to the judicial world, thus disabling him.
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