Albert Camus

Albert Camus was a French novelist, essayist, playwright, and philosopher. He was a leading figure of the existentialist movement, although he rejected the label, and he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1957.

Early Life

Camus was born in 1913 in Mondovi, in French Algeria, to a poor family. His father was killed in the First World War, and he was raised by his illiterate mother.

He studied philosophy at the University of Algiers and worked as a journalist. He was involved in the theatre and in the left-wing movement of the time.

He contracted tuberculosis at a young age, which prevented him from pursuing an academic career. He moved to Paris during the Second World War.

The Myth of Sisyphus

The Myth of Sisyphus, published in 1942, is a philosophical essay on the absurd. Camus asks whether life is worth living and argues that the question of suicide is the fundamental philosophical problem.

He defines the absurd as the confrontation between the human demand for meaning and the indifference of the universe. He rejects both suicide and the leap of faith as evasions.

He concludes that we must imagine Sisyphus happy. The image expresses the attitude of revolt and of acceptance in the face of the absurd.

The Stranger

The Stranger, published in 1942, is a novel about a man who commits a murder on a beach. The protagonist, Meursault, is indifferent to the conventions of society.

The novel is written in a flat and detached style and is set in Algeria. The trial of Meursault becomes a judgment on his character rather than on his crime.

The work is a classic of existentialist fiction. It illustrates the themes of the absurd and of the alienation of the individual.

The Plague and Other Works

The Plague, published in 1947, describes the outbreak of an epidemic in the Algerian city of Oran. The novel is an allegory of the German occupation and of the human response to suffering.

The Rebel, published in 1951, is a philosophical essay on rebellion and on revolution. The book led to a break with Sartre and with the existentialist circle.

His plays include Caligula and The Misunderstanding. His later works include The Fall and Exile and the Kingdom.

The Break with Sartre

Camus and Sartre were friends and allies in the resistance and in the intellectual life of the post-war period. The publication of The Rebel led to a bitter public quarrel.

Camus criticised the justification of revolutionary violence and the Soviet system. Sartre defended the necessity of revolution and the support of the communist movement.

The quarrel divided the French intellectual left and remains a subject of debate. Camus was isolated after the break.

Death and Legacy

Camus died in 1960 in a car accident near Sens, in Burgundy. He was travelling with his publisher, Michel Gallimard.

The manuscripts of his autobiographical novel, The First Man, were found in the wreckage and were published in 1994. The novel describes his childhood in Algeria.

He is regarded as one of the most important writers of the twentieth century. His work is studied for its treatment of the absurd, of revolt, and of moral responsibility.

He is remembered for his integrity and for his opposition to totalitarianism. His novels and essays continue to be widely read.

The Resistance and Combat

Camus joined the French Resistance during the Second World War. He edited the clandestine newspaper Combat and wrote editorials under a pseudonym.

The paper became a voice of the Resistance and of the post-war left. He called for justice and for the reform of the political order.

He was associated with the intellectual circles of Paris and with the existentialists. He met Sartre and Beauvoir and was part of the debate about the responsibility of the writer.

The Theatre

Camus was involved in the theatre throughout his life. He founded the Théâtre du Travail in Algiers and adapted works for the stage.

He wrote the plays Caligula, The Misunderstanding, State of Siege, and The Just Assassins. The plays treat the themes of the absurd and of political violence.

He directed and acted in several productions. The theatre was for him a collective art and a form of moral education.

The Political Journalism

Camus wrote for the left-wing press and was a critic of colonialism and of the death penalty. He wrote on the Algerian question and called for a federation of the communities.

He resigned from UNESCO when Franco's Spain was admitted. He was critical of the Soviet system and of the use of terror.

He was isolated after his break with Sartre and with the Marxist left. He continued to write and to speak on the issues that concerned him.

The Car Accident

Camus died in the car accident in 1960 at the age of forty-six. He had a train ticket but was persuaded to travel by car with his publisher.

The manuscript of The First Man was found in the briefcase at the scene. The novel was published in 1994 and was received as a major work.

His death was mourned by writers and by readers throughout the world. His grave is in Lourmarin, in Provence.

The Legacy

Camus is regarded as one of the most important writers and thinkers of the twentieth century. His work treats the themes of the absurd, of revolt, and of moral responsibility.

His novels and essays are widely read and studied. The Stranger and The Plague are among the most taught works of modern literature.

He is remembered for his integrity and for his opposition to totalitarianism. The annual Camus prize and the conferences on his work preserve his legacy.

See also

• Absurdism
• Existentialism