Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Continuing the next three chapter of The Stranger by Albert Camus, we see different events happening. At the beginning we see the chain of power first on the case of Raymond and his mistress. It was a fine day and Mersault and Marie were staying at Mersault's place when they heard the screams of a young lady...when they went out they found Raymond beating his mistress, Marie proposed to call the police but Mersault apparently was not so fond of policeman. The police came anyway and punched Raymond in the face when he refused to remove the cigarette. Here we can see the chain of power again, this time when Raymond starts trembling from the fear of the authorities, this time the police. Yet still, he turnes around and says to his girl "See you soon PET".
Moving on, we have the case of his neighbor Salamo and his dog. Salamano who is always being a bit too much arrogant and authoritative to his dog, one day his dog runs away, only to leave him with pain and regret. So the whole chapter the author shows this chain of power and authority in a way which I find fascinating.
          The most significant thing that happens in these three chapters happens right at the end of chapter six, when Mersault murders one of the Arabs who was a companion of Raymond's mistress' brother. The reason is somehow unclear, we can assume that it was self-defense, since the Arab put his hand in the pocket and tried to reach for his knife, but always keeping in mind that Mersault had a bit too much wine and it was so hot that day in the beach, and the sunlight was piercing his forehead, and the sweat from his eyebrows dropped and blurred his eyes. He fired four more shots and realized that the rhythm of that fine day in the beach with his favorite girl Marie, and his friends has been ruined. The balance of the day has been shattered....

No comments:

Post a Comment