The Stranger: Journal Entry # 8

Personal Response

The first time I read The Stranger I absolutely did not like it at all. I thought Meursault had no meaning to life, he had no feeling, and he took everything for granted. I believe I thought this because I couldn't see him in any other perspective and I was reading the book fast to get over with it because it disgusted me. However now that I have read the book a second time I feel I understand Meursault better than I did before. I think there are mainly two mind sets you can have for this book. You can either sympathize with Meursault or be disgusted by everything he does. Before we started reading the book in class I was preparing myself to not like the book, and I think because of this I found that I liked the book the second time. I found reasons to make excuses for Meursault’s repressed emotions in the text through the literary techniques Camus uses. I looked for reasons that Meursault is that way he is. I can relate to the way he feels (not that I have ever felt that way), however I can understand where he comes from because I can understand the way some people feel even if I have never experienced it the way they are. If I had never read the book as a literary work and analyzed it, I believe I would have kept on disliking the book. But because of reading The Stranger and analyzing it I have found a new appreciation for the book that I didn't have before. The only thing that bugged me during the process of analyzing it is that we couldn't pick certain topics for the essay and in effect at the beginning of the book I never established what the sun really means. I still don't really know what the sun means because I never went to analyze it because we were told not to. The only thing I would change is to not limit the essay topics at the beginning of the book because that may lead to the misunderstanding of some key themes in this novel. Another thing I really liked about the Stranger was I bought my own book. I don't think it is wise to rent books from the library because you cannot mark up the book. Marking up the book helped me further understand the novel. The Stranger the second time reading it is very interesting. Because I knew what was going to happen I could look for specific things that I knew were going to be significant in the text later. The Stranger seemed to upset a lot of people and I can understand why because I went through that, however I am wondering why they didn't see the things that I saw the second time in the book. Sometimes I would read a certain part of the book out to my mom and tell her the significance of it. She wouldn't understand why Meursault felt the way he did, where I felt I had proved that Meursault had feelings.   

What makes a literary work great cannot be defined. If anything it would be defined as it has deep insightful meaning.  Each book is unique in it's own way. If each book had a criteria to go by in order to be a great literary novel, that would be what every writer is striving for and the criteria would be changed.  I believe what make The Stranger a great book is the deeper meanings it has. I enjoyed the different literary techniques Camus used in order to make this novel a great literary work.



Thesis: Final

To portray the struggle for power Camus uses the submission of inferior characers to boost the dominant characters pride and justifye the actions of the inferior character.

Do I have a "So what"? I think I do however I am not sure.

The Stranger: Journal Entry # 7

Topic: Power v Powerless

Thesis A: Camus uses external conflict to demonstrate the power struggle between characters to portray a sense of inferiorty and dominance.

Thesis B: Camus uses internal conflict to demonstrate the power struggle of Meursault physical desires and societies rules to portray Meursault as an inferior being.

1. "Nevertheless I answered that I had pretty much lost the habit of analyzing myself and that it was hard for me to tell him what he wanted to know" (Camus 65)
2. "He left, looking angry. I wished I could have made him stay to explain that I wanted things to be good, not so that he defend me but, if I can put it this way, good in a natural way" (Camus 65-66).
3. "As always whenever I want to get rid of someone I'm not really listening to, I made it appear as if I agreed. To my surprise, he acted Triumphant. "You see, you see!" he said. "You do believe don't you and you're going to place your trust in Him, aren't you?" Obviously I again said no" (Camus 69).
4. "But he wasn't too happy about it. I even said, "It's not my fault." He didn't say anything then I thought I shouldn't have said that"(Camus 3).
5. "...some of them weren't any older than he was. But of course it wasn't the same. He was the caretaker, and to a certain extent he had authority over them" (Camus 8).
6. "I wished I didn't have to listen to her any more. But I didn't dare say anything" (Camus 10).
7. "She said, "If you go slowly, you risk getting sunstroke. But if you go to fast, you work up a sweat and then catch a chill inside the church." She was right. There was no way out" (Camus 17).
8. "in the first place it isn't my fault if they buried Maman yesterday instead of today and second, I would have had Saturday and Sunday off anyway obviously, that still doesn't keep me from understanding my bosses point of view" (Camus 19).
9. "Then he beats the dog and swears at it. The dog cowers and trails behind. Then it's the old man who pulls the dog. Once the dog has forgotten, it starts dragging its master again, and again gets beaten and sworn at. They both stand there on the side walk and stare at each other, the dog in terror and the man in hatred" (Camus 27).
10. "...I ran into him on the stairs, Salamano was swearing at the dog...so I asked him what the dog had done. He didn't answer" (Camus 27).
11. "He wanted my advice about the whole business because I was a man, I knew about things. I could help him out, and then we'd be pals. I didn't say anything" (Camus 29).
12. ""but she couldn't get by on what I was giving her""(Camus 30).
13. ""...don't realize that everybody's jealous of how good you have it with me. Someday you'll know just how good it was"" (Camus 31). 
14. "...he wanted to know what I though of the whole thing. I said I didn't think anything but that it was interesting." (Camus 32)
15. "I didn't mind being his pal, and he seemed set on it" (Camus 33).
16. " She asked me to go find a police man, but I told her I didn't like cops" (Camus 36).
17. ""...I never thought the bastard would take of like that"" (Camus 38).
18. "I explained to her that it didn't really matter and that if she wanted to, we could get married" (Camus 41).
19. ""You see you understand these things. The rest of them don't."" (Camus 78).
20. "I wasn't thinking about anything anymore. But the presiding judge asked me if I had anything to say. I thought about it. I said, "No." That's when they took me away." (Camus 107)

The Stranger: Journal Entry # 6

5 Analytical Questions

1. Is Meursault really insensitive or does he have emotions?
2. Why does Camus have a newspaper artical about Czechoslovakian? What is it's significance?
3. Why does Camus say that life has "come to a stand still" when Meursault was first in his jail cell and when Meursault killed the Arab?
4. Why is Camus surrounding Meursault by Arabs in jail? Is he doing this to portray discrimination or is it something different?
5. Why does Meursault seem to not fit in to society?

   (6. Is there a power struggle thoughout the novel? )

Posts

1. Camus makes Mersault's emotions dependent on the environment because Mersault doesn't know how to distinguish between his emotions and therefore must rely on his surroundings to express emotions (Tanner Bean's 1st question).

2. Camus expresses that if one’s emotions are repressed they will display irritation when others show emotion due to one’s envies for the others ability to show emotion (Megan Davis' 2nd question).

3. Albert Camus uses the title "the Arabs" to stereotype that all Arabs look for trouble or do not like other people messing with them and will go to extremes to do defend what is right to them. I base this off that the Arabs followed Raymond to the beach, and there were only Arabs at the jail (Tate Bankston's 4th question).

4.Camus shows that Meursault indulgence and pointless life style is due to the fact that Meursault cannot tell his emotions apart from one another and therefore he doesn't care about anything. He is incapable of distiguishing his emotions (Anthony Nguyen's 3rd question).

5. Camus ties both the events together to show that during both events Meursault is experiencing the same emotion. Since Meursault's surrondings are how he experiences his emotion the harsh sun means he is experiencing anger (Shannon Graham's 4th question). I am assuming during both event's Meursault was experiencing anger because of the sun being portrayed as harsh.

The Stranger: Journal Entry #5

Part One and Part Two

Why?

Camus created a part one and a part two to show that death changes ones life either for the better or worse. In part one Camus introduces us with the death of Maman and the funeral, where in part two he introduces us with Mersault in prison for killing an Arab. In both the funeral day of Maman and the Arab's murder Mersault says he experience the same scorching sun, meaning he is feeling the same emotions on both of those days (Camus 58).

Camus created a part one and part two to also convey the plot in a normal bell curve of expressing Mersault's philosophies. At the beginning Mersault seems to be absurd because he does not care about anything starting with the death of Maman. Then as the novel progresses Mersault becomes less absurd till he comes to the point of thinking "for the very first time I thought I was going to get married" (Camus 50). This is the climax of the plot where Mersault is almost existentialist, he has almost escaped the absurd. However then he kills an Arab which like the death of Maman is a life changing event, which is expressed by the sun being the same as the sun when he was at Maman's funeral (Camus 58). Therefore he starts turning absurd again by the confinement in prison. He only believes facts are facts and nothing more which to an extent upsets everyone around him leading to his execution. We know he is absurd in the end because he states "throughout my whole absurd life I'd lived..." (Camus 121). This is important to part one and part two because it shows that similar events can have completely different outcomes, and the parts are both the complete opposite of each other.

Camus may also have created a part one and part two to show a contrast in the setting. Throughout part 1 the setting takes place in Algiers and other surrounding areas, where part two takes place in prison. Camus did this to show that even after being put in prison Mersault still thinks the same way with his  absurd thoughts, even though the settings are completely different. He thought about his "whole absurd life" (Camus 121). Mersault recognizes that nothing meant anything, and he believed that prison was just another place to be in life and doesn't complain because of his absurdest beliefs.

The Stranger: Journal Entry # 4

6 Discussion Questions

1. Why does Camus use commas when he should use periods and periods when he should use commas?

ex: "Once out in the street, because I was so tired and also because we hadn't opened the blinds, the day, already bright with sun, hit me like a slap in the face" (Camus 47).

ex: "The beach wasn't far from the bus stop. But we had to cross a small plateau which overlooks the sea and then drops steeply down to the beach" (Camus 49)

The conjunction make it seem like there should not be a sentence break.

2. Why does Camus describe the physical surroundings on the way to some place and once they get to the destination not go in to as much detail?

ex: "We got off in the outskirts of Algiers. The beach wasn't far from the bus stop. But we had to cross a small plateau which overlooks the sea and then drops steeply down to the beach. I was covered with yellowish rocks..." (Camus 49)

3.What is the significance of using silence in this chapter, and why is it used like a paradox?

ex: "They were staring at us in silence, but in that way of theirs, as if we were nothing but stones or dead trees." (Camus 48).

ex: "The whole time there was nothing but the sun and the silence, with the low gurgling from the spring and the three notes." (Camus 55)

ex: "...and the double silence of the flute and water..." (Camus 56)
4. Why does Camus repeatedly use the word face? What does it signify?

ex: "...and the sun on my upturned face was drying the last of the water trickling into my mouth." (Camus 50)

ex: "...and put my face on the sand. "(Camus 51)

5. Why does Mersault have arbitrary physical emotions he cannot control?

ex: He said he was not hungry, and then proceeded to say that he was starving and ate allot of the lunch(Camus 51).

6. What is the effect that Camus gives by using the alliteration of s?

ex: "...and everything came to a stop there between the sea, the sand and the sun, and the double silence of the flute and water." (Camus 56)

7. What is the significance of this day being like Maman's funeral?

ex: "The sun was the same as it had been the day I'd buried Maman..." (Camus 58)

The Stranger: Journal Entry # 3

Universalism: My Personal Philosophy

 (I know that I wrote more then 10 however I could not get rid of any of them.)

• I believe in a greater power out there in the universe that has to do with using our mind. If we choose to then you can become in tune with the universe. The universe has its own living power that is around us all the time. This is important to me because this is how I see the world. I have been training in Shin Shin Toitsu Aikido, and without this principle it would be impossible to do this type of Aikido.
•  Look at things positively. If you look at something negatively then it will come back to haunt you later. I find this important because this is how I see the world. If I focus on all the terrible things then I feel down and depressed. However since I view the world positively then I can be happier. This doesn't mean, I don't face the facts of what really happens all around the world just find a way to help the people positively instead of having an endless cycle of negativity.
• Others can only control you if you let them lead your mind. This is true for me. If I let others who are around me take control of my mind then I go crazy and get stressed out because usually this happens when I am under some sort of pressure.
•  Do not complain just do what you have to do, and it will be done faster than you previously believed. I don't have to go to sleep at 1 am, I usually go to sleep around 9:30 pm and still have time to eat dinner and do other things important to me on a night that a project is due. This is what I always do. I do not obsess on how much homework I have for 30 minutes (like freshmen year) I just do it and I get it done.
• Believe in yourself. Do everything with confidence. I find that when I don't believe in myself and I don't have confidence, then I have a harder time doing the same thing that I previously did.
• There is no try there is only do and do not. Only you can make the decision to do or not do. I know this sounds like Yoda but it is true. What point is there to try? That just means you failed at something and didn't accomplish it. This is also what my sensei's in Aikido say frequently. You can either do it, or you can't. There is no in between.
• Have an open mind. Be open to new things. If I didn't do this then I would not like traveling and I would be complaining about classes all the time. This is important to me because if something doesn't make sense to me then I try to have an open mind then I can try to understand why a person wants me to do this or that.
• Don't start complaining till you know the complete details. I notice that people frequently obsess over assignments that seem so difficult but later end up being so easy. For example the Spanish IA was not as difficult as I thought it was, but I complained about it before I got the assignment.
• Be kind to others even when you do not like them. In the end these people might end up being your friend. This is how I made some friends that I thought I would never be friends with. Since I was never mean to them they still respected me enough so when I became more of their friend we became very good friends. This is additionally important because not being kind to people sends off a negative energy which is not good in the end, and probably just creates more drama.
• Do your absolute best. Do not expect more or less. I always do my absolute best or attempt to at every instant in time. This is important to me because when I don't do my absolute best then I belittle myself and make myself feel very small. I don't understand why I thought that not doing my best at that particular instant in time makes me any better or for what reason I didn't do my best.
• Listen to your body. Don't push yourself to far. Relax. I have had injuries because I don't listen or I push myself to hard. Last year I badly sprained my toe right before a big event and still did the event and I still gives me trouble sometimes. I don't think I ever completely healed, however it's too late to do anything about it now.
• Control your mind, it's hard than it looks. Have a calm mind.  (Your mind reflects your body.) I learned this principle in Aikido and this is why I am so disciplined, this is why I do good in school and time management. It is because I control my mind.
• Distinguish when something is right and something is wrong then do the right thing. This is important to me because if I do the wrong thing I have a terrible feeling in the pit of my stomach. Typically if I know something is wrong then I do not do it.
• Do not procrastinate. (Shows you have a weak mind) I am still working on this part of my philosophy. One of my sensei's said that procrastinating shows you have a weak mind. This is important to me because it makes me strive for a better me.
• Your goal for school should be to learn, not to get an "A". If that is your goal, change it. I do not go for the "A" like it seems a lot of people think. When teachers ask me if I'm going for the "A" I tell them yes but that is not my ultimate goal. My ultimate goal is to learn. If I don't learn anything then I feel that I am just wasting time. If end up getting an "A" in the process of learning then that is great, however if I don't that is okay too. Just as long as I did my best.

The Stranger: Journal Entry #2

Part One 

I believe Gilbert has more literary value because he distances the reader though the setting as opposed to the characters thoughts. The distancing the narrator from the setting instead of thoughts gives a more not obvious themes. Even though we believe that Wards edition is more close to the text, I am going against this. How can we know for sure without reading and analyzing the book in french what Camus is really saying and which book is actually closer to the meaning that Camus originally stated. I am valuing the word choice, and the characters, and the way he portrays the symbols. For example he says something about the dark waters in the sea and this is more distant for the reader which gives more meaning then Wards edition because we can naturally assume what he means by the symbols he uses. The flat characters in Gilbert's edition seem to play more of a role (this is an assumption from what I have seen so far) giving Mersault a more distant feeling from them.

Part Two: The Outsider

The current version of the book we are reading (the Ward translation) I would call the Outsider. This is because although Mersault knows what is currently happening he is not really part of the society and is powerless. This lack of being able to emotionally connect to society makes him an outsider therefore that is what the book should be named.