Full Answer
This is rare insight for Meursault to realize about himself, and it is rarer still for him to admit such a statement, when his life depends on convincing a jury that he should not be executed for murdering another man. With almost child-like innocence, Meursault tells the lawyer that he'd rather that his mother had not died.
Meursault is neither moral nor immoral. Rather, he is amoral—he simply does not make the distinction between good and bad in his own mind. When Raymond asks him to write a letter that will help Raymond torment his mistress, Meursault indifferently agrees because he “didn’t have any reason not to.”
at first, what bothers Meursault about prison not having cigarettes, being cut off from nature (ALL OF THE ABOVE) whose gun does Meursault use to kill the arab Raymonds
He does not place any value judgment on his act, and writes the letter mainly because he has the time and the ability to do so. At the novel’s outset, Meursault’s indifference seems to apply solely to his understanding of himself. Aside from his atheism, Meursault makes few assumptions about the nature of the world around him.
Meursault does not want understanding and sympathy from the lawyer, and he admits being tempted, at times, to assure the lawyer that he is only "an ordinary person." But he does not because, as he says, he is too lazy to do so.
Because Meursault is heartless, the prosecutor feels no qualms because, being a religious man, he is following not only his own conscience, but his sacred obligation.
Meursault feels that his lawyer defended him during the trial as best he could. he wants to spend his last minutes on earth alone and in quiet reflection. he doesn't believe in God, so this life is it.
Meursault's attorney tells him that it wouldn't last more than two or three days because a more interesting parricide (the murder of a family member) case is coming up after his trial.
What does Meursault feel about his lawyer's and the prosecutor's summations? Meursault thinks the prosecutor is a better lawyer than his own. They feel that they are almost the same because they both say he is guilty.
When Meursault does not answer, the magistrate waves a crucifix at him and asks if he believes in God. Meursault says no. The magistrate states that his own life would be meaningless if he doubted the existence of God, and concludes that Meursault has an irrevocably hardened soul.
By Albert Camus At first, Meursault finds the pleading stage and closing remarks amusing. Both lawyers plead guilty, but his attorney does it with an explanation, whereas the prosecutor does so without one. Meursault feels that all through trial, more is said about him than about the crime he committed.
After the examination of Perez on the witness stand, he says, “Here we have a perfect reflection of this entire trial: everything is true, and nothing is true!” Unconsciously, the lawyer has just sided with Meursault-the truth of the court is arbitrary and meaningless.
What defense did Meursault's lawyer present? Meursault's lawyer offers an interpretation of the events that led up to the crime, speaking in the first person, as though he were Meursault.
if Meursault felt any sadness the day of the funeral. The attorney asks him because it's very important and it would be a strong argument for the prosecution if he can't come up with some answers.
What is Meursaults complaint about the trial proceedings and especially about both the defense lawyer and the prosecuting attorney? How does he react? He finds the trial extremely boring. Can Meursaults crime be considered premeditated?
What does Meursault's lawyer ask him not say in front of others? That people sometimes wish that their loved one's were dead.
Because Meursault does not grieve, society sees him as an outsider, a threat, even a monster. At his trial, the fact that he had no reaction to his mother’s death damages his reputation far more than his taking of another person’s life. Meursault is neither moral nor immoral.
At the novel’s outset, Meursault’s indifference seems to apply solely to his understanding of himself. Aside from his atheism, Meursault makes few assumptions about the nature of the world around him. However, his thinking begins to broaden once he is sentenced to death. After his encounter with the chaplain, Meursault concludes ...
Meursault is also honest, which means that he does not think of hiding his lack of feeling by shedding false tears over his mother’s death. In displaying his indifference, Meursault implicitly challenges society’s accepted moral standards, which dictate that one should grieve over death.
After his encounter with the chaplain, Meursault concludes that the universe is, like him, totally indifferent to human life. He decides that people’s lives have no grand meaning or importance, and that their actions, their comings and goings, have no effect on the world.
Rather, he is amoral—he simply does not make the distinction between good and bad in his own mind. When Raymond asks him to write a letter that will help Raymond torment his mistress, Meursault indifferently agrees because he “didn’t have any reason not to.”.
He begs Meursault not to make such damning statements during the trial. And Meursault promises — for one reason: "to satisfy him." He has done this repeatedly: he helped Raymond because he wanted to satisfy him; he promised to marry Marie to satisfy her. But now he warns the lawyer that his promises are not iron-bound. He explains that his "physical condition at any given moment" usually influences what he says and does and how he feels. This is rare insight for Meursault to realize about himself, and it is rarer still for him to admit such a statement, when his life depends on convincing a jury that he should not be executed for murdering another man.
Meursault considers this a strongly positive statement. Merely because he did not weep carries no importance because he was hot and tired that day; were it up to him, his mother would be alive today. But she died. It was not his fault and it is astonishing that the lawyer can place so much importance on the fact that, because of the heat and Meursault's fatigue, he did not weep at the funeral.
The magistrate's next question causes Meursault to pause before he answers. He emphasizes that he did not shoot five consecutive shots. He tells the absolute truth. He fired one shot, killing the Arab, and then, after a short interval, he fired four more shots. And he cannot explain the interval between the first shot and the others, but he relives that instant, probably due to the intense heat and light in the magistrate's room. He sees the glow of the beach hovering again before his eyes. He cannot answer the magistrate's question, even after the magistrate waits, fidgets, half-rises, sits down again, and asks for an answer. He insists on an answer, but Meursault remains silent.
Meursault dies because he refuses to lie in a court of law; he dies, says Camus in the same preface, "for the sake of truth.".
At this point, Meursault says only that he was "quite fond" of his mother. This is the most positive statement he can make, which does not carry much legalistic clout, especially when one is considering a charge of callous, cold-blooded murder.
But he does not because, as he says, he is too lazy to do so.
The lawyer, who is what most readers would probably consider "normal," feels sure that Meursault will want to say that on the day of the funeral that he managed to keep his feelings "under control." This is impossible for Meursault to do. It would be a lie. We are not surprised when Meursault says that the lawyer looked at him queerly and seemed slightly revolted, saying that the head of the Home and some of the staff would be witnesses, proving that Meursault was devoid of feelings for his mother. The prosecution has powerful weapons to use against Meursault.