When I was in high school, I remember seeing this copy of The Stranger and being immediately blown away by the absolute weirdness of this stage troupe.
Aside: Does anyone know what group this is, who took the photo, what it’s about? I think it’s the Bantam edition.
I then proceeded to check the book out and I honestly can say I didn’t understand Mersault ( does anyone? ) and having read the book at least twice more and once in its native language, I’m still completely baffled by Mersault, his motivations, his identity. Mersault’s wedding plan, Mersault’s bliss over tablets of chocolate and cigarettes, his deadly flat attitude towards marriage, and ultimately his dispassionate choices standing on the sand.
As far as existential icons I prefer the doctor from The Plauge or Raskolnikov from Crime and Punishment but there’s something about Mersault that haunts me - and it may be something to do with this cover.
I haven’t read this book since high school, but I don’t really remember finding it confusing. Then again, maybe there’s something in the teenage mind that innately relates to the concept of action without purpose in a way that older people find harder to digest (how many of the things that we do, particularly in our youth, are actually just unthinking reactions to a given situation rather than a well though course of action?). I remember liking Mersault because he’s honest about his thoughts and feelings, even when such honesty might not be in his best interest (it wasn’t until later in life that I began to find some relentless honesty in some people a bit tiresome). Mostly I liked the book because Mersault steadfastly insists upon owning the entirety of his life, even responsibility for the murderous bad parts, rather than surrendering any part of his life to some sort of external, controlling force. As a sort of rebellious kid who grew up in a strongly religious household, I found the idea of taking full ownership of one’s life, even at the risk of potential damnation, sort of intriguing.