Research Paper on:
The Sun in 'The Stranger' by Albert Camus

Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
Vincent van Gogh created landscapes that expressed his joy with bright sunshine" (Kelly). In Albert Camus story, "The Stranger," however, we are not presented with the sun as an object  of beauty or warmth. In fact, it "Camus usage of the sun opposes its warmth and beauty in The Stranger" (Kelly). Bearing that in mind the following paper examines the  significance and symbolic use of the sun in the development of Camuss story. The Sun in "The Stranger" In many ways, "The sun is a symbol for feelings and  emotions, which Monsieur Meursault cannot deal with. There is a sun motif present throughout the novel, which perniciously characterizes the usual fondness towards the sun" (Kelly). In essence the sun  stands as a distraction for Meursault and he is constantly bothered by it. We note this condition in the first chapter as he is facing the death and  funeral of his mother. He states that, "But today, with the whole landscape flooded in sunshine and shimmering in the heat, it was inhospitable and depressing" (Camus). While earlier the  sun had warmed his feet, now the sun was incredibly oppressive and continued to be powerfully depressing as time wore on: "All around me there was still the same luminous,  sun-drenched countryside. The glare from the sky was unbearable" (Camus). In this first chapter the power and glare of the sun become so powerful and oppressive that he "could  hardly see or think straight any more" (Camus). He looked for Perez but he was "lost in the heat-haze, then he disappeared altogether....All I could feel was the blood pounding  in my temples....After that everything happened so quickly and seemed so inevitable and natural that I dont remember any of it any more" (Camus). Throughout this we see the foundation