Escapism and The Stranger and the Immoralist

One of the most common aspects in both books is the lack of emotion that both men show. Mersault has no inclination to feel sorrow when his mother dies because he was never close to her. Everyone at the funeral expects him to cry but he doesn’t think that it would be an honest show of emotion. He knows that he is right but he still feels a little bit guilty. This feeling does not stay with him long and shortly after the funeral he begins a fling with Marie.

Michel and Mersault do whatever they want. They do not feel that they have to abide by society’s laws and customs. The only thing that matters to them is their own well being. They believe that they are superior to everyone around them and this is why they don’t feel the need to make social connections with anyone. One of the hazards of their self-serving ways is that their actions often harm those around them. Michel harms his wife and Mersault harms his girlfriend and kills an innocent man. Ultimately, the two men do not care about the consequences of their action. Michel feigns sadness at Marceline’s sickness but in reality he hopes that she will just die and get it over with. Michel and Mersault intentionally never let anyone get close to them so that they never have to worry about hurting someone that they care about.

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