Stranger #5

Personal philosophy - Pride and Prejudice.

1. Do your best. Being a Boy Scout, that motto has been repeated over the years and ingrained into my brain. I strive to give my full effort to everything I do. When I don't give something my best, I feel uneasy. I think many problems could be solved if people stopped giving up when times are hard and giving a solid effort.
2. Utilize opportunities. Living in America, we have it much better than some other countries. One opportunity that many people take for granted is school. In a way, not trying in school is like denying a gift. Sure, it takes effort but people who do well in school usually have an easier time paying bills. Opportunities when taken seriously can lead to success and fun
3. Curiosity rarely kills cats. I feel that being curious is good. Although when asking questions, you may not get the answer you are looking for. Having intrigue is healthy, and most people appreciate that. This is important because programs and groups that may be beneficial have a hard time getting anywhere if no one is interested. 
4. It's not what you say but how you say it. Tone of voice and attitude do in fact matter. As a sarcastic person, I have been misunderstood many times through text messages and other forms of communication where words are only seen. Match how you feel with how you show what you feel. If this is done, there is less confusion.
5. People should not be blamed for things they cannot control. This may sound obvious, but many times people do get blamed for things out of their control, and when this does happen conflicts arrise. These conflicts often grow into discrimination and violence. These occurrences need to be reduced.
6. You don't have to like everyone. This being said, there is little if any benefit to being rude mean or harsh to a person that you don't care for. Ignoring or avoiding a person that you don't want to be around is better than confrontation. Preventing a problem is better than fixing one.
7. Evaluate and evolve. It is human nature to make mistakes. However, when a person makes the same mistake multiple times, that is when they run in to trouble. I am somewhat of a perfectionist, and making mistakes in turn causes me to make an effort to not make more. Adjustments are necessary for growth and improvement. 

Stranger #4

At the end of the novel The Stranger by Albert Camus, there is a change in Mersault's thoughts. "So close to death Maman must have felt free then and ready to live it all again. Nobody, nobody had the right to cry over her. And I felt ready to live it all again too. As if that blind rage had washed me clean" (Camus 122). Mersault comes to the conclusion that since everyone dies, people should live life to the fullest. Mersault concludes that they way that a person dies does not matter either; he does not say that there is any difference between his situation and his mother's. Furthermore, he wants to celebrate all the time that he has left. I also feel that he feels a little regret for not realizing it either. As a whole, maybe this shows that people don't realize how good things are until they are gone or almost gone.

I believe Camus does want people to make these conclusions too. He wrote the book with his own opinions, and he wants to get his points across to people. I don't see any downside of making these conclusions to be honest.

Stranger #3

Camus intentionally divided The Stranger into two parts:

In the first section of The Stranger, Albert Camus presents Mersault's view on people. By giving a short and plain description to the people he encounters, an indifferent atmosphere is created. Mersault encounters the caretaker at the home at Marengo. "He was sixty-four and came from Paris" (Camus 7). In general, Mersault has short and to the point thoughts and perceptions in the first half of the novel. One might deduce that Mersault is a person that cares about himself over others. This deduction might be disproven in the second half of the book. After he arrives in prison, Mersault describes people and his thoughts in a more elaborate detail. Mersault goes in depth when illustrating his view on his lawyer. "The next day a lawyer came to see me at the prison. He was short and chubby, quite young, his hair carefully slicked back. Despite the heat (I was in my shirt sleeves), he had on a dark suit, a wing collar, and an odd-looking tie with broad black and white stripes" (Camus 64). I think that Camus' intentions here to change Mersault's thought pattern was to change the reader's view of Mersault. I feel more sympathy towards him as a whole in the second part of the book. This may be important, because there is less sympathy for him in general as the jury eventually finds him guilty.

Stranger #2

The image of the sun has many components. For example. throughout the novel, many parts are used. The light the sun omits, the heat, and the glare also are factors. "The sun glinted off Raymond's gun as he handed it to me" (Camus 56). Although used less frequently and in a less obvious way, I think the glare caused by the sun is significant. Seen at the start of the book with the glare of the light off the walls at the vigil, and also when he shoots The Arab, glinting is used to connect to being distracted and loss of focus. This contributes to a mood of the first section, which is cloudy and dazed. When Mersault is at the trial, and he refers to the glare of the sun as a motive for killing, the audience laughs. I think the use of glare relates to a theme of the book that uncomfortableness is an individual experience, and people need to be more open to other's feelings.

Stranger #1

Raymond's ex-girlfriend
One of the women he supposedly lives off of. Raymond refers to her as his mistress (Camus 29). Her rent and food costs were paid by Raymond. She also did not work. The only evidence that Raymond had on her to prove that she was cheating was a lottery ticket, and proof that she pawned bracelets. It seems that those items aren't conclusive enough. Therefore, I think that she was really the victim in the situation, although it did not come across that initially. This connects to the title of the novel, because she too was misunderstood. Also, it could relate to how women were treated in that time period?

Raymond
Receives a lot of description. Physically, described as short, but with broad shoulders and referred to as a boxer. Also, he dresses sharply. I think it's critical that he is short. Some short people have a chip on their shoulder, and have an attitude inclined towards picking fights. This is what I see Raymond as. Mersault is invited over to Raymond's place for blood sausage and wine. They are both red, and more so, the blood sausage shows that Camus' tone towards Raymond to be violent. In his room, Raymond has an angel, which shows another religious connection, pictures of famous athletes which show a physicality to his character, and pictures of naked women, illustrating a gender tension. I see Raymond being a character that highlights all the violence that took place around the time this book was written. Raymond seems like he would be the one killing someone, not Mersault.

"Robot Lady"
Overall, this character is described as quick, feverish and meticulous. Although never given a name, she is referred to as the "little robot lady." In many ways, this character is different that Mersault.   This character could represent how a society sees others. Looking through Mersault's eyes, this lady is seen as different, but with a sense of curiosity. Mersault does not completely understand her. Furthermore, at the end of the novel, she stares at Mersault in the courtroom. This parallels in existentialism how one person can change the societal beliefs.