Synthesis

This passage in chapter five illuminates the work as a whole as it reveals the philosophy of existentialism and how life is meaningless as death eventually arrives. Existentialism is a philosophy that describes how one is introduced to life without any meaning until he or she makes decisions about his or her own future. In addition, it focuses on the idea that "existence precedes essence," in other words, one is responsible of creating meaning out of life. In The Stranger, Camus conveys this philosophy through Meursault as he experiences the death of his mother, his relationship with Marie, and his own execution. Camus shows how Meursault strongly believes in his view of life and how he refuses to believe another person or belief system. In this passage, Meursault confronts the chaplain and compares him to a "dead man" as he refuses to see the meaningless of life. Meursault believes that "nothing [matters]": the sins one commits, the emotions one has, and the faith of a possible afterlife. This demonstrates an existentialist Meursault; his essence is what he follows and not even imprisonment changed that essence.