Analysis of existential anxiety in the character of Meursault from the novel The Stranger by Albert Camus
Neda Yans
1
(
azad uni
)
Keywords: Existential anxiety, existentialism, Albert Camus, Meursault, The Stranger nove,
Abstract :
The Stranger by Albert Camus is one of the most prominent examples of existentialist literature in the 20th century, in which the main character, Meursault, appears with a kind of indifference and emotional detachment from the world around him. The aim of this article is to psychologically analyze existential anxiety in Meursault’s character, relying on existentialist theories, including the views of Jean-Paul Sartre, Martin Heidegger, and Erwin Yalom. Existential anxiety is defined as a type of fundamental anxiety arising from human encounters with concepts such as death, freedom, responsibility, and the meaninglessness of life, and is distinct from clinical anxieties.In this study, Meursault’s behaviors, language, and decisions throughout the novel are examined using the method of psychological-literary analysis. Meursault's cold reaction to his mother's death, his murder without a clear motive, and his callous acceptance of his fate in court are all signs of his encounter with emptiness and existential anxiety. The narrative language, with its simple structure, short sentences, and lifeless descriptions, also reflects Meursault's mental space and helps convey the existentialist experience.The findings of the article show that Meursault not only suffers from existential anxiety, but also achieves a kind of philosophical acceptance of death and meaninglessness at the end of the novel, which is in line with Camus's concept of "freedom in the heart of emptiness." This analysis shows that literature can be an effective platform for representing and exploring deep psychological concepts, and literary characters such as Meursault provide a better understanding of existentialist experiences.