The moment I put down the book: “The Stranger” by Albert Camus , I felt a deep heaviness in my chest, and I instantly started writing. Perhaps I started writing because I wanted the story to last longer, and by writing, I thought I could prolong the book’s experience.
This is a classic novel, set in Algeria, and originally written in French. The profoundness of the classics often keep readers away, but this is not one of those tales. The author uses simple writing to tell the story of a peculiar man who does not cry at his own mother’s funeral. As the story progresses, page by page – I am not exaggerating – the reader gets more entangled into the tale and into the psyche of the protagonist.
The strangeness of the Other is the strangeness of the narrator. Maybe what makes stories different than reality is that they introduce us to scenarios that may be possible in reality, but through a perspective that we may never encounter.
The narrator finds himself dragged into an incident that almost costs him his life, and he is taken to court for it. Left for months and accompanied by only his thoughts, the narrator uses his memories of the past to keep him entertained and hopeful for a better future.
The narrator is imprisoned for being different –for reacting to his mother’s death with blatant indifference.
Because he does not participate in the ‘social norms’ he is indicted for his in-humanness. This novel does not question the meaning of life –but rather, the meaning of being human. And despite how deep that sounds, the reader starts to relate to the narrator because he speaks the truth. The overriding theme of truth, and the authenticity in his writing, makes the reader empathise with him to the point where he becomes a familiar, and an unforgettable, character. You’ll never forget him because he has let you into the deepest part of his soul. And he does not leave abruptly, either, as the story ends with his lingering reflections. This novel encapsulates the compelling qualities of great storytelling: simplicity, depth, and engagement.
BOOK RECOMMENDATION:
The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera
Set in communist Prague, this is a story about a woman who chooses monogamy and a man who cannot commit to her alone. The agony leaves them both in love and not in love, amidst a war within their country and one within themselves.
