Meursault in Camus' L'etranger

[honest intellectual]

L'etranger ('The Outsider'/ 'The Stranger') is meant to be a study of the human condition, n'est pas?
Meursault is meant to be taken as an example of the situation facing all people?
So then, would it not make sense for Meursault to be 'an average guy'? Why is he so damn weird? Specifically, why is he entirely without emotion?

Surely he can't be valid as an example of the human condition when Camus has excluded such a huge part of being human? Why did Camus do that?

I think by ignoring the existence of emotions, Camus made a major error. His conclusion was that we needn't commit suicide because of the pleasure of football, beaches and girls. But he failed to take into account that there are emotional as well as sensory pleasures.

[cubist]

what if you hate football, beaches and girls say you like baseball snow and boys for example,

emotional issues relating to suicide are slightly odd you can find aesthetic guides to make you forget the emotional issue and keep you on track for survival.

really though suicide is going against the fundamental instinct we have kept through evolution SURVIVAL

[Wenty]

Mersault is meant to be a normal person. He is meant to be like everyone else (on the outiside) who just goes about their daily life. But at the end when he is sentenced to death he feels anguish because his life is being taken away from him, he might not enjoy life but it is at this end when he realises that he has to cherish it.

I disagree with you when you say that, "His conclusion was that we needn't commit suicide because of the pleasure of football, beaches and girls". Camus says we shouldn't commit suicide because it would be giving into the absurd. We should live our lives to the fullest as you never know when you're going to die, Camus advocates a position of revolt or to become a rebel against the absurdity of existence. An opinion I actually agree with.

There is a book by brian masters called Camus: a study, which can explain it much better than i can.

[suffianr]

Meursault is normal. His actions and responses in the book, like shooting the Arab at the beach because the sun was blinding him and not crying at his mother's funeral, are just examples of how certain reactions to situations can' be explained in terms of 'normal' and 'not normal'.