Book 12: Finished.

Well, I finished The Stranger. And I honestly don’t have a lot to say about it. When I finished I just thought, “meh.” I mean, there were portions I really liked, but I don’t feel like I got anything out of it.

The style is very simplistic. It is all in first person point of view and just kind of goes. It never really breaks and the events seem to move quickly from the opening pages. The result left me feeling like I wasn’t getting as much from it as I should have.

It starts with the character Meursault journeying to the Home where he had sent his mother. He was notified before the book even begins that she had died and so he is going to her funeral. Once there, he seems completely distant from the events and does not shed a tear at her funeral. He comes back home after the funeral, hooks up with his lady friend, Marie, and they go with a friend, Raymond, to the beach. At the beach there is an altercation between Raymond and a few men. Meursault then wanders out on the beach, stumbles upon one of the men, and kills him. All of these events take place over a course of a couple of weeks and the account of them seems very straightforward.

The second half of the novel describes Meursault’s time in jail and his trial. This half spans over 11 months. In this part, the reader finally sees some kind of emotion. All emotion is missing in the first half and even though he facing death, Meursault still doesn’t show any feeling or regret for his actions. This lack of feeling comes out in his trial and is the prosecution’s main argument against Meursault. People from his past, including Marie, Raymond, and workers from his mother’s Home speak about his personality and his lack of emotion at certain turning points in his life.

Meursault’s eminent death ends up being the climax of the novel as a chaplain comes and tries to get Meursault to admit to some kind of emotion. In the last pages of the novel, they argue about the existence of God and finally Meursault realizes that the universe does not care for humanity.

All I will say is that it is hard to connect to a character who doesn’t demonstrate any feeling, when I am a person perfectly fine with showing my emotions all the time. And while I enjoyed the writing style and the ease of the novel, I still don’t think I pulled any value from it. Now, it could be because I was unusually tired when I read the middle portion of the novel, but I think that even if I went back to reread it, I would feel the same.

With all that said, there were a few portions of writing that I found to be beautiful. Camus knows how to write and he writes well.

I leave you and Book 12 with one of my favorite quotes:

“As if that blind rage had washed me clean, rid me of hope; for the first time, in that night alive with signs and stars, I opened myself to the gentle indifference of the world. Finding it so much like myself — so like a brother, really — I felt that I had been happy and that I was happy again. For everything to be consummated, for me to feel less alone, I had only to wish that there be a large crowd of spectators the day of my execution and that they greet me with cries of hatred,” (154).

Book 12: The Stranger.

Making the list of books to put on my list was hard. I wanted to make sure I picked enough to get a broad scope of the classics, but narrow enough that it wasn’t going to become a never-ending task. The result was 250 books, of which there were only 70 or so that I had previously read.

Obviously there were some essentials on the list—Shakespeare, Tolstoy, Dickens, Austen, etc, but there were also quite a few books and authors that were added that I had never heard of in my life.

One of these is Albert Camus. There are two books by him that I am reading: The Fall and The Stranger. Neither one of them have I even heard of. So when I went to my library’s quarterly book sale back in September, I armed myself with a list of books I was having a hard time finding and set out.

When I got there, the library was packed. It was the first day open to the public (this first day is always reserved for friends and family of workers at the library), so I was kind of expecting it. I ended up plopping down on the floor in the middle of a crowded aisle to first go through the books in the mass of boxes on the floor. I ended up buying 23 books that day for only $11.

Of these, my copy of The Stranger by Albert Camus, was one of my favorite finds. I like owning old editions, or editions with fun covers. I also loved to find vintage editions in good condition. My copy of this book met those criteria. You can see the cover of my edition above. I think finding these fun old editions makes your ownership of the book a little more personal.

I also love that someone who owned the book before me left his mark. On the inside cover is his name, along with the date of September 27, 1968. I love knowing that people have read things decades before me. It is a kind of kinship between book readers.

And since this edition was first published back in 1948, I hope that he got the book from someone else, and it was passed on after him to others, so I am not just the second person to open its cover.

Anyway, I also decided to do a little research on Camus before reading his work, because I literally know nothing about him. This is what I found:

~This book is cited as a prime example of existentialism, which is the belief that the individual has total control over giving their life meaning.

~Another early author to be labeled as an existentialist is Fyodor Dostoevsky. Interesting…

~The novel was first published in 1942—right in the middle of World War II.

So, at least I know something about the author and the book, which always helps me set in place in my mind the context in which it was written. I’m finding that learning this always helps me as I tackle these texts.

Anyway, I leave you with the blurb on the back as a teaser,

“The Stranger by Albert Camus is a short novel about an ordinary little man living quietly in Algiers. Life begins to stalk him quietly and slowly, but inexorably. The pace quickens until the little man commits a pointless murder—and reaches its climax after his trial. The Stranger presents an indelible picture of a human being helpless in life’s grip.”

Sunday Salon: November 22, 2009.

This has been a slightly crazy week. Coming off from my wedding shower last weekend, I was kept busy with a lot of unpacking and organizing at the apartment. Then I spent a good deal of time cleaning out my closet and my dresser in efforts to ease the final move over in January, after the wedding.

I also kind of hit a low point on Friday. I had a panic attack in front of Matt, which I am sure freaked him out. Stress from being unemployed and having no money kicked in, so I freaked out. After a reality check with Matt and my mom, I know things will be okay. And of course, there is a light at the end of the tunnel. As soon as we’re back from Florida and our honeymoon, I have no more commitments to prevent me from getting a job. I just have to keep telling myself that everything will be okay.

In reading news, I finally finished Great Expectations, which I was starting to think would never happen. I even entertained the idea of quitting my little reading project and going back to reading the science-fiction, fantasy, and YA lit I love and miss. But to only give up after 10 books is pretty weak and I just need to keep my head down and keep going. I know that by reading through this list I am proving a few things to myself in regards to determination. Also, how could I ever expect my future students to keep going if I gave up this early on?

This week has truly been a lesson for me. I think I just needed a little reality check and I am all set to continue.

So, I have finished the first 10 books off the list of classics I made. Which means I am a whole 4% complete with my list! Only 240 more books to go!

This week I am planning on getting through The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison and The Stranger by Albert Camus. I also want to get into Germinal by Emile Zola if I can. It’s doable as long as I set aside the time to read, which I haven’t been doing recently.

I think this is the first year since I started tracking the number and titles of books where I won’t be hitting the magical 100. Last year I barely hit 100, but the year before I was at 108. Realistically, there is no reason why I shouldn’t be there, but it took me entirely way too long to get through Great Expectations. I have 14 books to read before January 1st, and with the holidays, the wedding, and the honeymoon, I think it just won’t happen, but I am going to try.

Here’s to a great week of reading ahead of me.