Jumat, 15 Januari 2016

EXISTENSIALISM IN ALBERT CAMUS’ “THE STRANGER”: A DUALITY OF LIFE AND DEATH, AND ABSURDITY


 
A Picture of Sisyphus


INTRODUCTION
Existentialism is defined as "a philosophical theory or approach that emphasizes the existence of the individual person as a free and responsible agent determining his or her own development through acts of the will”. (Galens: 2002) In other words, existentialism emphasizes individual freedom. Meanwhile, in the context of life, absurd means irrational or illogical thing. Camus’ absurdity (reflected in the novel) emphasizes the contradiction between individual desires with reality. This irrational situation is found in human life when the desire of their irresistible looks for a clarity in the obscurity of this world. Man as an existence character has the freedom to be themselves, instead the world limit their freedom as a human being. Camus assessed the relationship between humans, life and death as an absurd thing.

Throughout “The Stranger”, the amount of existentialism and absurdism views are varies. The use of Mersault’s experiences (as the major character in the novel) conveys the idea that human life has no meaning except for simple existence (life then death). The issue of existentialism and absurdism in Albert Camus' “The Stranger” reflect through Mersault's life experiences with his relationship with Marie, the death of his mother (Maman), the murdering of the Arab, and Mersault's trial and execution, all those events show that Mersault’s life as no meaning. (See Albert Camus’ “The Stranger” Novel)

A DUALITY OF LIFE AND DEATH, AND ABSURDITY
It is such an irony to say that the existence of a beginning must be ended with an ending - that human life must be finalized by a finish point called death. Talking about ‘life’, people will blow their mind to such a question about death. Death is something absolute and absurd, ‘death’ become a final destination that every existence, humans, animals, plants, things, and other existences in the world will experience, but there is nothing can tell about what will happen in afterlife. Everything has their own belief about death. Etruscan creates a version about death with a green giant monster who wait for cowards against Romanian. Buddhist believes in reincarnation, while Moslem, and Christian believe about an afterlife resurrection that everybody will resurrect and it depends on merits and sins that they did during life. However, when life and death can be valued and defined by people, it means it has no value and meaningless at all.

At this point, I am concern to the stage of existence, that life and death might have no value as the absurd things. Even each of us are focusing to make merits and avoid sins as more as possible during our life. Each of us are more concern about ‘the payday’ (death) to determine whether heaven or hell as the final destination after life. In this case we are not comprehend fully on experiencing our life since we only do merit for something-a better life afterlife without living the life itself.

Mersault as the prior character in Albert Camus’ “The Stranger” is symbolized vanity. For Meursault, life and death are a series of absurdities that must be accepted as reasonable and as the absolute thing. As a quotation below about the death of her Mother:
(1) “Maman died today. Or yesterday maybe, I don’t know. I got a telegram from the home: ‘Mother deceased. Funeral tomorrow. Faithfully yours.’ That doesn’t mean anything. Maybe it was yesterday.” (Camus, 1985:1)
(2) “It occurred to me that anyway one more Sunday was over that Maman was buried now, that I was going back to work, and that, really, nothing had changed.” (Camus, 1985:20)

(3) She said, "if you go slowly, you risk getting sunstroke. But if you go too fast, you work up a sweat and then catch a chill inside the church." She was right. There was no way out. (Camus, 1985:3)

(1) The opening sentences of the novel embodies Meursault’s absurdist outlook on life, his emotional indifference and detachment to people, and his passive but quiet alienation from the rest of society. It’s also a big flashing clue that this character is unaware and apathetic. He doesn’t even know which day his mother died, and to him, it "doesn’t mean anything" anyway.

(2) Meursault is able to say that "nothing had changed" after Maman died since he wasn’t living with her anyway. This makes sense practically, but not emotionally (like many of Meursault’s beliefs)

(3) Camus explicitly pictured the essence of existentialsim as something absolute by a dialog between the nurse and Mersault. The nurse speaks of both weather and human condition. The sun's heat is inescapable, just as death is inescapable. There was no way out except through acceptance.

A CASE OF EXISTENTIALISM AND ABSURDITY
Today we may not face any kind of absurdity as irrational act (subjectively, irrational act can be rational for some people or vice versa), we may not see people like Mersault anymore. We might not think and sincere about something just happened to us. A case of life and death as an absolute thing is not really recognize by some people. As cited in quotation (3) that we cannot escape from the consequences of life-whatever the form is.

Take an example. I just met a dustman-a poor little widower that-to through his life, he has to collect some waste products, then sell it to collector for him to fulfill their daily needs. Through several conversation about his life, he said;

(4)Untuk apa menyesali kematian istri saya, toh kita sudah dikasih hidup, ya harus terima juga dengan adanya kematian kan semuanya memang milik Tuhan. Toh juga menangis endak menyelesaikan masalah tho?”

(5) “Saya mah cuman jalanin hidup selama masih di dunia. Masalah penilaiannya biar urusan Tuhan saja”

From this conversation, this man shows no emotional feeling to what was happening to him (consider as irrational act). Though, he just think rationally about a case of life and its consequences. Instead, he just live his life. He said, he just do merit as he could live in this world without concerning about the term ‘payday’ afterlife, and let it judge by Him. It can be said as “everything happens for a reason”. I do determine this act is not irrational at all and I do determine it in a positive way.

The case of existentialism about life and death is inescapable by human as living character in this world. What people think about rational thought of life and death, and its consequence are changed by the influence of emotional feeling and the world is limit it. Thus, everything that happened just let it happened whatever the form of consequence is. Since life and death are the absolute and absurd things.

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