West Forsyth High School
4155 Drew Road
Cumming, GA 30040
770-888-3470
AP Literature
Summer 2016
1. After the first week of school, we will be discussing The Stranger by Camus. It would be beneficial if you read
the book over the summer. You will need a copy of the book in class starting the 2nd week of school.
Here are some ideas to consider while reading.
So what's this book all about? It's Camus's attempt to put his philosophy of the Absurd and the Absurd Hero
into a narrative form.
(1) It's easy enough to dismiss this book as boring, simply written, and thus not worth reading. While the first
descriptor is certainly subject to opinion, the second (and with it, the third), I can attest as being intentional on
Camus's part. Meursault is an outsider and a "blank" character of sorts--he reports only physical stimuli, and
does not appear to be concerned with anything emotional, moral, or otherwise abstract. Only the physical, only
the here and now. In this way, Camus forces us as readers to compare and contrast Meursault and his behavior
with our own thoughts and actions. How are we like him? How are we different? Why does he seem so foreign
to us? Are his actions justified or are others' judgments of him justified? I would argue that Meursault is
not just a blank slate, but a mirror; in looking at and judging Meursault, Camus wants us to
subject ourselves (and our society) to the same scrutiny.

This is another way of phrasing the above: consider every other character in the book
(you the Reader included) as a foil to Meursault. How is he similar to and different from
each of the other human characters he (and thus we) encounter in the novella? How is he
similar to and different from you?
(2) How would you define a Hero? Is Meursault heroic by your definition? How does Camus define an Absurd
Hero? Does Meursault fit the definition of an Absurd Hero?
(3) Examine Meursault in his various social relationships (I use all of these terms lightly): son, lover, friend,
observer, etc. What do these reveal about him as a character? What do these reveal about our society and its
standard behaviors?
(4) In what ways, if any, is Meursault moral? Immoral? Amoral?
(5) In Absurdism, the necessity of existence is for the individual to find his or her own happiness regardless of
one's environment or situation...even in "the rock" itself. How does Meursault do this? Find examples; Are you
able to do this? Can you find your happiness, regardless of your environment and your situation? Can you find
a reason to be happy and a moment of happiness in every single day?
(6) One could argue (I am that one) that the controlling metaphor in Part II of The Stranger involves the
relationship between Meursault and the judicial system. Through this relationship, Camus metaphorically
represents man’s Absurd condition in the universe. Analyze and support this claim with examples from the
text.
-Is Meursault a nihilist, existentialist, or absurdist (feel free to look up these terms)? (He could
represent aspects of each, of course)