as you read this week, ponder the following question and be able to answer it at the completion of the book -- given the existential idea of Existence precedes Essence, at what point in the book does Mersault finally make a choice that would give his existence essence? In other words, at what point does he finally become a person, an identity, a 'self'? Discuss.
Mersault finally becomes a person when he is sentenced to death. He begins to contemplate his importance in relation to the world around him in a broader sense. He identifies that nobody's life effects the world. We first see joy in Mersault when he thinks about how everyone eventually dies and that death is the only way to reach freedom. Mersault finds comfort in death because it is the only certain occurrence in life. While he is waiting for his execution, he has nothing to "play" with except for his own thoughts. He has no choice but to think about himself and thus, he conceptualizes that death is inevitable. Mersault comes to peace with his approaching death and grasps that he is an enemy to society. Therefore, he is ultimately identifying a self.
I completely agree. Throughout the entire book Meursault had no real thought towards his identity, until he was put in prison and forced to remember the things he liked to do and the way he acted. In the end he has a moment of realization when talking to the chaplain and decides that life is basically pointless and that, like you said, everyone is going to die anyways.
ReplyDeleteI agree that Meursault does not become a person until he is sentenced to death. I wrote about that too in my blog post. Meursault says that he feels most free when he is sentenced to death because he now knows what he is living for. His whole life he did not see a meaning to his life but now that he knows he is sentenced to death, he can find meaning.
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