

Absurdism also states that being conscious of the absurd allows individuals to extend their own freedom.Īt the end of the novel, this is just what happens to Meursault. People are faced with encounters, such as Meursault’s with the man on the beach, and have to decide which of the two paths will direct their decision-making process. It is the conflict between these two ways of thought that is at the core of absurdism.Įxamples are set out in everyday life and appear throughout The Stranger. Or second, that life is without meaning and operates in a universe without purpose. First, that life contains within its realms a purpose imbued by an undefined higher power.

The philosophy is connected to human attempts to find purpose in life and the resulting two conclusions. This system of thought sets out that there is no rational or natural basis for moral orders. It was Camus’s absurdist philosophy that inspired the novel. It at the novel’s conclusion that Meursault finally understands the “gentle indifference of the world”. He fails to show grief at his mother’s funeral and towards the end of the novel kills a man for no apparent reason. The short novel tells the story of a young man, Meursault, who is emotionally detached from his surroundings, family, and friends.
