l'etranger characters

Meursault

• Contains words for death sun salt and mother

• His perception and sensations are normal it is only his reactions which are bizarre

• He only begins truely relecting when he is in prison

Meursault and wisdom

• lives in the present moment not thinking about the past or future

• Explains his strange opinions on marriage and why he accepts raymonds offer of friendship

• Gives him a strange sort of wisdom

Innoncence and the truth

• Does not even think of denying or diminishing responsibility for his crimes

• He does not want to fit in with society and noting will make him turn away from the truth

• He does not feel regret only ennui

• Refuses to say his insensitivity is a consequence of his mothers death

Rebellion

• Refuses to play the game society expects him to

• Both before and after his trial he stands firm in his non-belief of god

• When he calls the crowd to welcome him with shouts of hatred he marks the difference between him and others

Strange or stranger

• It is his strangeness that makes him feel like a stranger

• An outsider at his own trial

Marie

• Camus expresses his sexual attraction to women in Algeria

• Physical drive rather than love

• Finds the news of mamans death strange

• She visits him only once and stops writing to him

• During the trial she is worried abut having damaged his case accidentally

Raymond Sinèts

• Potentially a pimp

• Also accidentally damages meursaults trial

• Seems to have a code of honour

• It is because of Raymond that Meursault arrives at his death