The Stranger: Part 1

     If I were to grade this writing, big red marks saying "vary the syntax!" and "too passive" would be scrawled across the pages. The opening line of the novel is "Maman died today" (3). We later learn that Maman is the narrator's mother, so one would expect more description or emotion to be incorporated. However, the novel continues in the same passive, disinterested tone. In Part One, the narrator becomes indifferently involved in a cheating scandal, marriage, and murder. The death of Manan soon becomes insignificant in the life of the narrator, foreshadowing the shift of priorities in his life.

     Abuse is a recurrent theme throughout the first section. We are introduced to the narrator's prominent neighbors, all of whom are all abusive in their relationships. First we meet Salamano, who "beats [his] dog and swears at it" (27) daily. The poor dog is heard whimpering from his room, but the owner is devastated when the dog runs away. Salamano projects his loneliness and sadness onto the dog, making both of their lives miserable in the process: "He hadn't been happy with his wife, but... when she died he had been very lonely" (44). Similarly, Raymond, another neighbor of the narrator, is physically and emotionally abusive towards his mistress when he suspects her of cheating. Raymond decides that he needs to punish her, and the narrator relates, "The woman was still shrieking and Raymond was still hitting her" (36). The narrator witness all of these abusive relationships, yet he does not become emotionally involved. The novel is strange because it is although the narrator is passively relating the events of his life without becoming emotionally invested in his surroundings. 

     Even when the narrator has sexual desires, his descriptions remain very vague. Marie asks Raymond if he would want to get married, and he responds by saying that he is indifferent. Although he is dispassionate about the thought of marriage, he retains his basic instincts: "I felt her legs wrapped around mine and I wanted her" (51). It is odd because he spends multiple pages describing the blinding heat of the sun, but he only divulges one sentence to explain his romantic feelings towards his fiance. There is a pivotal shift at the end of the Part One when the narrator becomes an active participant in his life upon committing murder. He has "shattered the harmony" (59) and now must become more active and involved.