The First Impression Journal. The Stranger. By Albert Camus.

Tanasha Kardeo

           

When I read the first sentence of this novel, I was interested, curious and I questioned the character without actually reading about him. The first sentence reads “Mother died today. Or, maybe, yesterday” (Camus, 4) as a reader, that sentence drew my attention and I wanted to find out why this character didn’t know when his mother had died. I had many questions and thought such as this character is a foster child just realizing his birth mother had died, what person doesn’t know exactly when their mother died. So far in this novel the main character is Meursault. The novel begins in Marengo which is a home for elderly people; Meursault mother stayed there for only three years. Meursault had left his home in Algeris, where his mother had once lived there with him soon enough he realized that she wasn’t happy there and wasn’t doing much for her self and that is why he sent her to Marengo home to be with people of her own generation”When we lived together, Mother was always watching me, but we hardly ever talked” (Camus 5)

At the home he became friends with the doorkeeper who had been working at the home for five year and was 64 years old and hailed from Paris. The doorkeeper helped Meursault know more about his mother’s life, her friends and what she did. “She had good friends here, you know, old folks like herself “(Camus 5). Meursault never really had a good relation ship with his mother, he only visited her some time at the home and only on Sunday, which was why he never knew much about her or even when she had died. Little further in the novel Meursault returned to his home and begins to work again.

At home he rearranged the furniture so that he wouldn’t have to leave his bedroom. He put all the necessities of living into his bedroom such as microwave, sofa, television, refrigerator and telephone.

With the few page that I’ve read, I’m not sure what the theme of this novel will be like, at first I was sure it would be about how he would cope with the death of his mother, and how he would’ve regret not spending time with her, but reading further and realizing that he didn’t really know his mother, made me think that it might no affect him as I thought. Hopefully while continuing reading this novel I will get a better understanding of what the tone will be, but as of right now I’m not sure.

Tanasha Kardeo