1. “Mother died today. Or maybe yesterday; I can’t be sure.”
2. “I opened myself to the gentle indifference of the world.”
3. “In our society, any man who doesn’t cry at his mother’s funeral is liable to be condemned to death.”
4. “For the first time, the first, I laid my heart open to the benign indifference of the universe.”
5. “I felt the urge to reassure him that I was like everybody else, just like everybody else.”
6. “I had only a little time left, and I didn’t want to waste it on God.”
7. “But everybody knows life isn’t worth living. Deep down, I knew perfectly well.”
8. “People never change their lives. And that’s how it ought to be.”
9. “It’s like knocking four quick times on the door of unhappiness.”
10. “I was sure about me, about everything, surer than he could ever be, sure of my life and sure of the death I had waiting for me.”
11. “I was assailed by memories of a life that wasn’t mine anymore, but one in which I’d found the simplest and most lasting joys.”
12. “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 hate.”
13. “They seemed to be expecting me to say something, but I didn’t know what.”
14. “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.”
15. “I explained to him, however, that my nature was such that my physical needs often got in the way of my feelings.”
16. “I had no reason to change my life. Looking back on it, I wasn’t unhappy.”
17. “The only way to deal with this was to stay calm, not get excited, and make no sudden movements.”
18. “I would have liked to have tried explaining to him cordially, almost affectionately, that I had never been able to truly feel remorse for anything.”
19. “The only thing I was aware of was the hollow ring of my footsteps on the tiles.”
20. “I realized that I’d destroyed the balance of the day and the perfect silence of this beach where I’d been happy.”
21. “I explained to him, however, that my nature was such that my physical needs often got in the way of my feelings.”
22. “I looked up at the mass of signs and stars in the night sky and laid myself open for the first time to the benign indifference of the world.”
23. “No, I wasn’t learning, it was only something I felt. I couldn’t find my way.”
24. “In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer.”
25. “Nothing, nothing mattered, and I knew why.”
26. “One gets used to everything, the sea, the sun, the night, and finally to the very existence of man.”
27. “I’d rather not have upset anyone, even if I had to make a huge effort to control myself.”
28. “I was waiting for the sun to burn my eyes out.”
Summary of “The Stranger”:
“The Stranger” is narrated by Meursault, a French Algerian living in Algiers. The novel begins with the news of Meursault’s mother’s death, but he shows little emotion about it. Throughout the story, Meursault is portrayed as emotionally detached and indifferent to societal norms and expectations. He becomes involved with Marie, a former co-worker, and forms a superficial relationship with her.
The turning point in the novel comes when Meursault shoots and kills an Arab man on a beach during a chance encounter. Meursault’s trial becomes a symbolic examination of his perceived lack of emotion and his failure to conform to society’s conventions. The court focuses on Meursault’s apparent lack of remorse for his mother’s death rather than the actual crime of murder.
Meursault is ultimately sentenced to death, not for the murder itself but for his perceived social and emotional deficiencies. Despite the efforts of the chaplain to elicit feelings of remorse and faith, Meursault remains steadfast in his indifference to life and death.
“The Stranger” is a powerful exploration of existential themes, challenging readers to question the meaning and absurdity of life, the role of societal expectations, and the nature of human existence. It remains a thought-provoking classic in the realm of existential literature.
