Journal #5- The Stranger

My Philosophy- Jesus Plus Nothing
This comes out of my life's pursuit of God, and I find that my personal relationship with Christ is so intertwined in my own life, it must become a part of my own philosophical views.
1. Do not worry: This comes from my own experiences with spending time worrying about consequences that may or may not happen in the future. Matthew 6:34 talks about how we should not worry about anything, because today has enough troubles of its own. Ultimately, God has a destiny for all people, and we should never worry about what is coming next for us.
2. Never judge, ever: The idea of judgement is saying that you believe that someone is determining their own self worth about your own because they believe they are better than you. This also leads to the deadly path of comparison. However, no two people are made the same nor are two experiences ever parallel. Therefore, one can never tell another that they are below them, and instead we all should care for one another.
3. Pride be gone!: The best way to prevent the second guiding principle is to never have vanity or pride-fullness  within one's self. No one gets into Heaven by works, so that no one can boast. The only thing I should ever boast about is the work of the Lord.
4. Be upfront with others: Gossip and lies are common within our culture. Because there is damage others feel from this (which I have wrongfully inflicted upon others and others have inflicted upon me), it is best to come and be out front with others if you have a problem with an individual. However, in all decisions, you shouldn't violate the next guiding principle.
5. Go to God first: Whenever I have problems, it is easy for me and many others to want to talk to a friend or counselor about an issue. However, it is better to come to the Father first. Even when in a moment of rejoicing, it is best to go to Him before others.
6. Have accountability: Even though we must go to God first, we aren't meant to live alone. Human beings are meant to live in community with one another, and we should all have others which we can confide in. That can hold us accountable to our actions and will help get you get through anything.
7. In everything, Rejoice: Even in the worst of circumstances, choose to be joyful and not be tied down to the emotions of humanity. We all have a reason to rejoice just by being saved! This is also so that people don't feel bogged down by feelings of ungratefulness.
8. Admit you are broken: This ties in with guiding principle 2 and 3. Admit that you are not a perfect person and that you are nothing without Christ.
9. Live La Vida Genrosa: Be generous! Do not hoard or store up your treasures on Earth, because you'll be leaving soon. Give to others, and help them become strong on their own with God.
10. Have a Personal Relationship with God: In pursuing a relationship with Christ, you must put Him first above all. But not like the pagans do, following rules and regulations, but instead for all of the other principles to come into place.

Yes, this may be a bit controversial for many reading this post. And I regret not following these everyday and there are probably dozens of more principles that I could write about on this topic (in fact, there's a whole book on it). I do not write these with anger in my heart to make you all like me, but rather to show you all a bit of my own faith, which guides the rest of my life.

Journal #4- The Stranger

At the end of the novel, Mersualt comes to the conclusion that everyone dies, so it doesn't matter when it happens to him. That this life doesn't really matter, and that he wasted his time on either thinking of absurd things and it almost seems as if he has slipped into an emotion-less state, where he has no ties to anything within the natural world anymore. I think that Camus wants us to observe Mersault's life as an example of absurdism. He himself admits that he considers himself absurdist more than existentialist. What can be shown through this is that Mersault though almost gets to a point of rational irrationality. That he gets so into being outside the world that he creates this insane world in his own head.  I think that absurdist ideals are applicable in this case because the rest of the world around him tries to make sense of the world and fails, and he wants them to see their failure in trying to describe the world around them. I think that Camus wants us to come to our own conclusions in the true spirit of the philosophy of the time. He isn't trying to push his own moral agenda on anyone, he's just trying to show a story of an absurdist philosophy is all.

Journal #3 The Stranger

I think that the obvious plot- related reason for splitting The Stranger into 2 parts is to show Mersault before being accused in his normal life and afterwards as he is convicted. I think that the contextual clues help show the deeper reason as to why this novel is split into 2 parts. First off, the way the story is written. The first part of the story is more action oriented, whereas the second digs deeper into Mersault's personal thoughts. The theme of freedom is expressed in the second part in the second chapter, where Mersault reflects on how jail serves as a place to take away freedom, the greatest punishment. However, because Mersault is free from responsibility he once had in the real world, it is almost more emancipating than being 'free' in the world. For example, he talks about how he wants to sleep in Part 1 all the time, and then in Part 2 he finally gets this sleep. Also, because he becomes accustomed to living without cigarettes, he is able to find himself comfortable in his life in prison. But what's more than that is I think that Camus is really saying something about the absurd and rationality in general. In the beginning, Mersault just exists, and in prison he just exists, in both situations not really reflecting the world around him. In the focus of WWII time period, I think this is significant because it's almost as if Camus is saying that those who lived a life before the war were doing the same thing as after- existing, just now closer to death. However, it's how you view the situation that gets you through the time.

Journal #2- The Stranger

Camus's use of a 1st person POV for the writing of this story I find to be significant. In general when writing in 3rd person, the author tends to be more descriptive/ poetic about certain parts of life as a narrator, whereas with 1st person, the reader feels more of the action/ one character's thoughts that convey one big picture. Also, this is Mersault's story of how he wants to tell it, so it's natural that the author wants to have him tell this. With Mersault's personal account being told, I could also see this point that we can the story straight from the source, and we can see how a rational viewpoint like Mersault's changes the way the story is framed and to give an objective viewpoint versus the bias of a narrator.

Journal #1- The Stranger

Three Characters:
1. The policeman: This man is of heavy authority in Mersault's society that smacks Raymond's face when he feels disrespected. Camus is most likely trying to show the respect of authority in the society, and that the people must listen to those they have given power.
2. Boss: Mersault's boss tries to tell him of a better life he'd have in Paris and that he could advance his life if he would just take the opportunity to care. He also calls Mersault 'unambitious'. Later, Mersault says that he stopped caring about school when he left. This can relate back to existentialism because Mersault  doesn't care about his advancement in life whereas everyone else does.
3. Lady in the restaurant: This woman moves with robot-like movements and is very meticulous and to the point. I think Camus is trying to say something about routine/ punctuality and how Mersault is fascinated by her, however forgets her soon after. This is similar to people in life, because we can be fascinated by people who seem to have it all together, however they are soon forgotten in the  perspective of the world.