Journal entry 7.5 Stranger

Sorry, this is really the journal set for February 27, the one after the "create your thesis" blog. I thought that the thesis thing was the next journal, so just letting you know which one this journal is.

I believe that Camus creates a part one and a part two in order to highlight a change that happens inside of Mersault. In the first part, he was more uncaring, and did not mind anything unless it was for his own benefit, but in the second part, he realizes the importance of other peoples opinions, whether they benefit him or not.

One parallel idea that is in both of the parts is this air of uncaring about Mersault. In the first part of the novel, Mersault is frequently seen not doing things unless it is for his own benefit, such as when Raymond offered him a cigarette, Mersault took it because he did not have a cigarette at the time. This is also when he refuses to acknowledge other peoples feelings and respond to them. In the second part of the book, he goes through a little bit of a change. He still does not care about what others think of him, but he starts to acknowledge how others feel. This is justified by how Mersault almost felt like crying during his trial, because he could feel how much everyone hated him.

Camus achieves a certain effect by creating two different parts with similar ideas. It shows that Mersault comes to a realization about life. That he does not need to care about what others think of him, but he should acknowledge what they have to say.