The Outsider

Novel | Albert Camus

What Message do you Get From “The Outsider?”

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What message do you get from The Outsider NU Albert Camus s The Outsider gives a powerful message about life The hero Meursault lives in Algiers He does not follow society s rules Through his mother s death the murder and his trial we learn deep truths about existence Life is Absurd From the beginning Meursault shows life s absurdity He says Mother died today Or maybe yesterday I can t be sure At Marengo he drinks coffee and smokes near the coffin He does not cry Society sees him as heartless Later he says Mother now was buried and tomorrow I d be going back to work as usual This teaches us that life and death are uncertain Life is absurd Society is Hypocritical At Masson s beach house Meursault kills the Arab He says It was because of the sun But at the trial the court forgets the

crime The Director the Caretaker and Marie Cardona all speak about the funeral The Prosecutor calls him a monster He is judged not for murder but for not crying at his mother s death This gives the message that society punishes differences more than crime Society values false emotion over truth Freedom Comes from Accepting Death In prison Meursault rejects religion The Chaplain asks him to pray He shouts I didn t believe in God He accepts death calmly He feels the world s gentle indifference This message is strong Life has no fixed meaning But if we accept death and meaninglessness we find peace and freedom The Outsider gives three main messages Life is absurd Society is hypocritical Freedom comes from accepting death as truth Meursault becomes an outsider but he also becomes free Camus shows that meaning is not given by others It is created by ourselves

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