Aside from
his atheism
, Meursault makes few assumptions about the nature of the world around him. However, his thinking begins to broaden once he is sentenced to death. After his encounter with the chaplain, Meursault concludes that the universe is, like him, totally indifferent to human life.
What are Meursault’s religious beliefs?
In the world depicted by Meursault,
religion is the single most harmful social construct
. Meursault doesn’t see religion as inherently harmful, but does reject its use by men like the chaplain and the magistrate.
Why is Meursault so hostile to religion?
However, while Meursault’s rejection of religion represents
the culmination of his nihilism
, Harun rejects religion in order to emphasize the value and glory inherent in everyday life, regardless of the presence or absence of a divine plan.
What kind of person is Meursault?
Meursault is
a detached figure who views
and describes much of what occurs around him from a removed position. He is emotionally indifferent to others, even to his mother and his lover, Marie. He also refuses to adhere to the accepted moral order of society.
Does Meursault believe in God?
Meursault, like Camus, is an absurdist and an atheist.
Neither of them believe in God or the afterlife
. This unnerves the magistrate and the priest to no end, both of whom want Meursault to believe in something, anything. … Belief does not engender life.
What Meursault dying wish?
In the last sentence of The Stranger, Meursault wishes
for a crowd of angry spectators to appear at his execution because
it will confirm him in his outsider status. The impact of the ending is meant to be shocking, to show us how it is still possible to be free even on the brink of execution.
Who asked Meursault if he could pray for him?
Meursault describes his verbal and physical attack on the chaplain. In this moment, he feels and exhibits more emotion and engagement than in any other moment in the novel. He reacts to
the priest’s sermonizing
, in particular to the promise that he would pray for him.
Why is the stranger an existentialist novel?
In The Stranger, Albert Camus uses Mersault and his experiences to convey the philosophy that man is full of anxiety and despair with no meaning in his life except for simple existence. … As an existentialist,
he accepts life as it is without seeking deeper meaning
.
What does Meursault realize at the end of the stranger?
At the end of The Stranger, Meursault realizes
that death is inevitable and the universe is indifferent to humanity
.
Is Meursault a nihilist?
Meursault is
seen as a Nihilist because
of his denial of objective truth and rejection to common laws. However, he is an absurdist through the story as he did not show any emotion to his mother’s death and the way he is passive and detached from society.
What does Meursault say about God?
Meursault declares that,
if everyone’s going to die, God shouldn’t matter. Those who believe in God will meet their ends just as those who don’
t. Death makes life a level playing field.
What role does religion play in the stranger?
Religion is important in life because it not only gives humanity order, but it also gives people a reason for life. … In Albert Camus’ The Stranger, Meursault
loses his faith in life, God, and society
because of his lack of understanding and comprehending his feelings and emotions.
Does Meursault change throughout the stranger?
If you look on the surface, it’s hard to see any change within Meursault.
He starts off uninterested in life
, and he ends up…uninterested in life. But there’s nothing we at Shmoop hate more than boring ol’ surface-skimming analysis.
Is Meursault a good person?
Meursault is
neither moral nor immoral
. Rather, he is amoral—he simply does not make the distinction between good and bad in his own mind.
How does Meursault view death?
After speaking with the chaplain, Meursault no longer views his impending execution with hope or despair.
He accepts death as an inevitable fact and looks forward to it with peace
. This realization of death’s inevitability constitutes Meursault’s triumph over society.
What makes Meursault happy?
In The Stranger, Meursault is
made happy through simple sensual pleasures and comforts
. By the end of the book, his full acceptance of the absurd also brings him happiness.
