Published in 1942 by French author Albert Camus, The Stranger has long been considered a classic of twentieth-century literature. Le Monde ranks it as number one on its "100 Books of the Century" list. Through this story of an ordinary man unwittingly drawn into a senseless murder on a sundrenched Algerian beach, Camus explores what he termed "the nakedness of man faced with the absurd."

"Maman died today. Or yesterday maybe, I don't know. I got a telegram from the home: "Mother deceased. Funeral tomorrow. Faithfully yours. That doesn't mean anything. Maybe it was yesterday."
Spoken by Meursault, the novel's narrator and protagonist, these I said that people never change their lives, that in any case one life was as good as another and that I wasn't dissatisfied with mine here at all.are the opening lines of the novel. They introduce Meursault's emotional indifference, one his most important character traits. Meursault does not express any remorse upon learning of his mother's death-he merely reports the fact in a plain and straightforward manner. His chief concern is the precise day of his mother's death-a seemingly trivial detaiSpoken by Meursault, the novel's narrator and protagonist, these are the opening lines of the novel. They introduce Meursault's emotional indifference, one his most important character traits.

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