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Movies and a Show
The fact that the day after the funeral, he goes on a date with a girl to a comedy, juxtaposing the death of Maman, shows his apathy. Unlike most people he did not need a time of mourning, continuing the apathetic portrayal of Meursault. By failing to mention his mother at all, it seems that the movie and his later relations with Marie, are not a coping mechanism rather just more indifference and a way to kill time. -
Saturday at the Beach
Meursault is incredibly sexually driven as seen his actions like " brush[ing] against her breast". Similarly, he focuses on her stomach and them together. When he felt the need to "tell her it wasn't [his] fault," he shows that he really does care about how others think about him. This passage shows that while Meursault does care, he is ignorant of how people shape those opinions, demonstrated through him not understanding why Marie is surprised to see him in mourning. -
Sunday Post Saturday at the Beach Part 2
By telling Marie that they would have lunch together, Meursault demonstrates that he is inconsiderate to her and feels a need for control in a situation. Soon after when Marie asks if he loves her and he says no, he mentions that she "looked sad", further illistrates that he is unable to anticipate others reactions. -
Raymond, the Girl, and the Observers
Meursault's inaction towards the abuse furthers his idea of convenience in relation to events rather than a moral compass. For example, he had no reaction to the screams of the woman, even when Marie said they were terrible. While Marie asked him to find a policeman in an effort to help, Meursault did not, stating he "didn't like cops" (which is honestly a cop-out answer). -
An Awkward Marriage Proposal
Similarly to Meursault's response in regards to Marie's question about whether he loves her, his response to her question about marriage demonstrates his indifference or lack of understanding to her reactions. Similarly, in his responses to her later questions, he continues to misunderstand her views on the importance of marriage, eventually causing her to wonder if she even truely loves him. -
Imprisoned
Marie shouts “You have hope", which Meursault assumed meant that he wanted to be able to squeeze Marie’s shoulder through her dress. Meursault justifies this conclusion because “she was smiling,” demonstrating his inability to truly understand Marie’s meaning. He also seems to ignore that he is in jail, not worrying about what his future. Similarly she said "take care of yourself" which he follows with "now it was my turn" , demonstrating he is only following along with customs.
