The Stranger Philosophical Viewpoints: The Absurd Quotes Page 9
Citations follow this format: (Part.Chapter.Paragraph). We used Matthew Ward's translation, published by Vintage International published in 1989.
| Quote #25 And my lawyer, rolling up one of his sleeves, said with finality, "Here we have a perfect reflection of this entire trial: everything is true and nothing is true!" (2.3.16) |
Meursault’s defense attorney has just uttered the perfect epigraph to The Stranger.
| Quote #26 Celeste put his hands on the edge of the box, and you could tell he had something prepared. He said, "The way I see it, it’s bad luck. Everybody knows what bad luck is. It leaves you defenseless. And here it is! The way I see it, it’s bad luck." (2.3.17) |
Celeste’s outburst in trial puts a further spin on the concept of absurdity, and emphasizes just how irrational Meursault’s crime was.
| Quote #27 Yes, it was the hour when, a long time ago, I was perfectly content. What awaited me back then was always a night of easy, dreamless sleep. And yet something has changed, since it was back to my cell that I went to wait for the next day...as if familiar paths traced in summer skies could lead as easily to prison as to the sleep of the innocent. (2.3.22) |
With much detachment and passivity, Meursault begins to accept his fate.
