The Meaning of Life According to The Stranger
Image found here . I think one important message of The Stranger is that a universal meaning of life does not exist, despite people's attempts to create one. Conversely, it is up to everyone to explore what makes life meaningful to them or if they need a reason to find life meaningful at all. Throughout the novel people in Meursault’s life try to force their conventional views on meaning onto him, but he simply does not need their explanations to enjoy his life. Everyone from the funeral caretaker, his boss, Marie, the court, to the chaplain need Meursault to validate their life views, but Meursault does not see the point in wasting time on peoples’ opinions that have little to do with him. For Meursault meaning can not be imposed from the outside, but must be a continuous internal experience. A few examples of Meursault’s independence from other social conventions include his refusal to see his Maman in the casket, “‘You don’t want to?’, I answered, ‘No.’” (Camus 6). When he r...