Medea

TO

Gender antagonism

The conflicting perspective of the court members and Meursault

Jason and Medea hold contrasting views on justice.

The prosecutor and Meursault have conflicting interpretations of expressed emotional indifference

Jason believes his betrayal of Medea is justified by his pursuit of power and stability, viewing it as a necessary step for his social advancement. In contrast, Medea rejects Jason’s rationale, asserting that her violent revenge is warranted as an act of justice against the wrongs inflicted upon her.

The prosecutor views Meursault’s emotional indifference at his mother’s funeral as profoundly inappropriate, casting him as a social anomaly who defies society’s moral principles. Meursault, however, believes that expressing emotion toward the deceased is both meaningless and, in his view, absurd.

1. Societal judgment is imposed on the protagonists’ actions and emotions, labelling them as immoral or aberrant. Jason’s abandonment of Medea is condemned by her and symbolically by the gods, reflecting a clash of values about loyalty and justice, while Meursault’s unemotional response to his mother’s death is condemned by the court, which deems him a moral outcast. Both characters are therefore in conflict with societal expectations of emotional and ethical behaviour, revealing each society's rigid standards.

2. Both Medea and Meursault maintain perspectives that defy societal norms—Medea believes her revenge is just, grounded in personal retribution, while Meursault’s stoic indifference reflects his belief that societal expectations of mourning are absurd. Each character's resistance to social norms results in societal alienation and condemnation, highlighting a dissonance between individual convictions and community values.

Medea’s justification for her actions is deeply rooted in a personal sense of justice—she sees her revenge against Jason as a response to the betrayal of marital and divine oaths.

• Medea portrays personal revenge within a framework of self-assumed justice

Meursault, however, does not seek to justify his indifference through a moral lens; his response is rooted in existential indifference, reflecting a belief that human emotions and norms are arbitrary.

• The Outsider presents interpersonal conflict as a result of existential detachment

Medea’s reaction to societal condemnation is active and defiant; she directly confronts Jason and takes calculated steps to exact revenge, showing an assertive rejection of her marginalized status.

• Self-empowerment

Meursault passively accepts his condemnation, unable or unwilling to defend himself against the court’s moralistic accusations.

• expose the futility of attempting to reconcile individual values with societal expectations

Quote:

Quote:

Jason: I know how a poor man is shunned by all his friends.

Medea: Am I not wronged? Do I not suffer? Should I not weep?

Three enemies I shall strike dead today. In bitterness and pain they shall repent.

Prosecutor: the psychological enlightenment provided to me by the sinister mind of this criminal soul.

Meursault: I didn’t understand how the natural qualities of an ordinary man could be turned into overwhelming proof of his guilt.

Antichrist

Medea

TO

Medea’s ultimate triumph and Jason’s utter defeat

Meursault is sentenced to death. The judicial system eradicates the threat to their moral structure and beliefs.

Medea's "victory" arises not from conventional justice but from her intelligence and anger in punishing Jason. By killing their children, she strips him of everything he values—his lineage, future, and pride. In achieving her revenge, Medea transcends her marginalized position, gaining agency through horrific means. Jason's actions exemplify the Athenian arrogance and hubris that ultimately lead to his tragic downfall.

The legal process reinforces social norms by interpreting Meursault’s lack of remorse and rejection of conventional beliefs as monstrous, equating his emotional indifference with criminal intent. The death sentence serves as a symbolic purge, attempting to restore order by removing an individual who embodies existential absurdity and challenges societal demands for meaning and morality.

Tragic Consequences of Defiance: Both Medea and Meursault defy societal norms, leading to their respective tragic outcomes. Medea's horrific act of revenge results in the loss of her children and Jason's ultimate defeat, while Meursault's emotional indifference culminates in his death sentence, reinforcing the notion that nonconformity incurs severe repercussions.

Medea's conflict resolution is personal and active; she takes matters into her own hands, using her intelligence and rage to enact revenge

Meursault’s resolution is passive and external, as he becomes a victim of a legal system that condemns and sentences him without his active participation.

In Medea, justice is served through a supernatural lens, often hinted at by the presence of divine intervention such as the "deus ex machina" that influences the characters’ fates.

The Outsider presents justice as a human construct, symbolized by the guillotine, which serves as a relentless mechanism of societal order, representing the rigidity of societal expectations rather than divine judgment.

• Medea: Now you have loving words, now kisses for them. Then you disowned them, sent them into exile
• Stichomythia.
• Deus ex machina

• Symbolism of guillotine: immutable mechanism, a foregone conclusion, not open for discussion.

Medea

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Medea’s internal conflict between maternal love and vengeful intent: Medea’s immediate shift from weeping for her sons to questioning her own cowardice highlights the intense conflict between her maternal instincts and her desire for vengeance. On one hand, she expresses deep sorrow over her children, signifying her love and attachment. On the other, the realization that her emotions are tempting her away from her resolution to enact revenge illustrates the struggle between her identity as a mother and her desire for justice against Jason. This juxtaposition emphasizes the duality of her character—she is torn between love and hatred, tenderness and brutality.

Meursault initially shows a fleeting inclination to conform to societal expectations by displaying emotions that would make him seem more "normal." Yet, his apathy quickly overcomes this brief impulse, and he dismisses the effort as “too much trouble.” This moment underscores his lack of commitment to societal norms and highlights his internal conflict: while he acknowledges what society expects of him, he finds the notion of adapting himself to fit these standards trivial and unnecessary. This conflict between societal pressures and personal indifference is central to Meursault’s character and reveals his underlying alienation from the world around him.

Both characters’ internal conflicts are arising from their isolation from their society. Medea as a foreigner is perceived as inferior and the force of prevailing xenophobia pushes her to choose between responsibility and love for her children and herself pride, which is a tragic dilemma of Medea as she values both. Meursault’s internal turmoil is stemmed from his existentialism belief that conflicts with the societal moral principles, resulting in him first trying to fit in his society but later giving up and stay true to his real belief in meaninglessness of life.  

Resolution: The passion inside Medea overcomes her reasoning power, resulting in her committing a horrific filicide. This violent resolution contrasts sharply with Meursault’s acceptance, showcasing how her internal struggle results in catastrophic consequences, while Meursault's leads to a philosophical epiphany.

Resolution: Meursault confronts and ultimately dismisses society’s moral judgments, recognizing them as meaningless within his own framework of existentialism. He fully embraces his belief in a universe devoid of inherent meaning. This realization allows him to reject societal values, marking his transformation into a figure of existential resilience, as he finds comfort in the acceptance of life’s inherent absurdity.

[She turns away in a sudden flood of weeping]

Dear sons, your smile at me – your last smile: why?

What a coward I am, even tempting my own resolution with soft talk.

I wanted [the lawyer’s empathy]; I didn’t bother because it seemed like too much trouble.

They announced a journey to a world that was forever indifferent to my fate.

Medea

TO

1. Jason has broken an oath to Medea that was sworn to the gods. He was therefore guilty and deserving of divine punishment.
2. Medea pleads the gods to punish Jason and resume the social justice and sacredness of oaths
3. Medea choose to take up her own revenge rather than waiting for Zeus to help her. Claiming that what she will do is just.
4. Euripides forces us to consider whether passion ever justifies violence.

1. The setting of the courtroom: The Judge's interrogation of Meursault, is designed to portray the court as a hypocritical, biased and unjust arena. The courtroom is the place in which social and moral attitudes are brought to the fore.
2. A travesty of justice: Meursault's emotional indifference to his mother's death is trailed instead of his action in the murder of the Arab. Perhaps Camus is commenting on society's hypocrisy in the following way: society will be morally outraged when someone transgresses its moral codes, but the murder of an Arab is considered of little consequence.
3. Double travesty: not only is Meursault condemned for behaviour that is unrelated to the crime for which he is on trial, but the text also touches on the larger issues of racism and the travesty of society's refusal to treat Arabs in the same way as the Frenchs.

Hypocrisy and Bias in Justice Systems: Medea highlights the bias against women and foreigners; although Medea seeks justice for Jason’s betrayal, she knows the limitations imposed by her marginalized status, compelling her to take justice into her own hands. Euripides prompts the audience to question the legitimacy of a justice system that marginalizes Medea, pushing her to extreme actions. In The Outsider, Camus criticizes the French-Algerian justice system’s double standards, which judge Meursault's character based on moral codes rather than his crime. The court’s focus on Meursault’s perceived lack of morality and the dismissal of the Arab victim highlight the system’s inherent bias and the hypocrisy in how justice is administered.

subjective and intensely personal, with Medea seeking revenge outside societal laws.

justice is institutional and impersonal, with Meursault condemned by the legal system

Medea’s view of justice is fuelled by passionate rage and a sense of betrayal, pushing her to act violently. Her belief in justice is deeply intertwined with her emotional suffering, prompting her to avenge herself by transgressing social and familial bonds.

Meursault, on the other hand, shows existential detachment from societal norms and moral judgments, which ultimately isolates him. His indifference to societal standards of justice underscores his alienation, as he fails to see value in societal rules that judge him for not conforming emotionally. His trial, unlike Medea’s act of revenge, exposes a moral disconnect between individual and society without any personal desire for retribution.

Quote:

Mighty Themis! Dread Artemis! Do you see how I am used by my accursed husband despite those great oaths I bound him with?

Today three of my enemies I shall strike dead. In bitterness and pain they shall repent

Quote:

The hypocrisy of the justice system: All those others, they too would one day be condemned to death. Everyone is guilty in some way.

Medea

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Medea use her intelligence emotionally. Her unbridled emotions.

Meursault shows emotional indifference to human connections

Medea's unbridled emotions drive her to commit extreme actions, culminating in a tragic ending where she sacrifices even her own children in pursuit of revenge. Her overwhelming rage leads to irrevocable destruction, leaving both herself and Jason in utter ruin

Though he is condemned by society for his perceived indifference and lack of conformity, his final moments bring a sense of clarity and peace. Camus uses Meursault’s acceptance of his fate to illustrate a philosophical triumph: by embracing his own beliefs, Meursault finds liberation from societal judgment, rendering their moral expectations meaningless to him.

Both are perceived as social anomalies. Medea is too boisterous; Meursault is too detached.

Medea’s story underscores the cost of unchecked passion

Meursault’s attitude highlights the liberating potential of existential acceptance.

Anger, the spring of all life’s horror, master my resolve.

Chorus: O miserable mother…stone and iron you are, as you resolved to be.

I may look as if I had nothing but I was sure of myself, sure of everything, sure of my life, sure of my impending death.

Medea

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Jason’s blind pursuit of power and stability

Meursault feels unmotivated towards higher living standards and better work opportunities

A representation of men in patriarchal society where power and status dominate in their life. His willingness to betray Medea for a politically advantageous marriage highlights the societal expectation that men prioritize power over personal loyalty.

Meursault’s lack of motivation to pursue status or career advancement sets him apart from the expectations of his society. Meursault rejects the conventional view that ambition is necessary for a fulfilling life, dismissing his boss’s frustration with his apathy. He sees "no reason to change" his life and regards every existence as “more or less the same,” suggesting his resistance to societal pressures to gain power or status.

Power as a social expectation: Both characters face societal pressure regarding power and ambition. Jason conforms to this expectation, seeing power as essential to his identity, whereas Meursault dismisses it altogether, rebelling against the social values around him.

Outcome of their values: Jason’s pursuit of power ultimately leads to his downfall as he sacrifices personal relationships, while Meursault’s indifference enables him to achieve inner peace, as he remains unburdened by societal judgments in his final moments.

1. Jason: I know how a poor man is shunned by all his friends
2. Nurse: Jason is a prisoner in a princess' bed
3. Messenger: As prosperity grows, happiness never.
4. Dramatic irony that Jason was blindfolded by his ambition and did not realise that he has lost everything including his heirs.

The boss: [Meursault] have no ambition and that this was disastrous in business

Meursault: I could see no reason to change my life……every life was more or less the same.

Contrast, workers are reduced to productivity and measured by how much value they bring to their employers: My boss hadn’t seemed very happy when I asked for two days off. I worked hard at the office today/ My boss was nice to me.

Medea

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Medea’s divine power

The power of natural world is irresistible and dictates the end of Meursault’s life.

Medea invokes Zeus, questioning the absence of divine markers to differentiate good men from bad, expressing her reliance on godly powers to enact justice. The gods’ final intervention through the deus ex machina – a divine chariot that rescues Medea – underscores the unpredictable authority of the gods, as the Chorus notes, "Many matters the gods bring to surprising ends." This divine intervention emphasizes the gods’ control over human outcomes and their role as arbiters of fate, often acting in ways beyond human comprehension.

the power shaping Meursault’s fate is not divine but natural, portrayed through an oppressive, indifferent environment that dictates his actions and emotions. The extended metaphor of the sun symbolizes an overwhelming natural force that propels Meursault to commit the murder of the Arab. He describes feeling "burned alive" and assaulted by the "light flashing off the steel of the Arab’s knife," suggesting that his actions are almost involuntary, driven by the overpowering presence of the sun. In his final moments, Meursault accepts the “tender indifference of the world,” identifying a kinship with nature’s neutrality and rejecting traditional moral or religious interpretations of fate.

External power shaping fate: Both Medea and The Outsider feature forces beyond the characters' control that shape their actions and destinies. For Medea, it’s the gods who endorse her path of vengeance, while for Meursault, it’s the natural world’s overwhelming influence.

Detachment from human morality: The gods in Medea and the natural world in The Outsider are both indifferent to human ethical values. The gods rescue Medea despite her violent acts, while the natural world compels Meursault without regard for societal moral standards.

Medea views godly power as something to appeal to or invoke, seeking its intervention for justice.

In contrast, Meursault ultimately aligns himself with nature’s indifference, feeling at peace with its amoral presence rather than perceiving it as a separate, interventionist force.

Apostrophe, rhetorical question: O Zeus! …but when we need to know bad men from good, the flesh bears no revealing mark?

Mighty Themis! Dread Artemis!

Deus ex machina: [the chariot has moved out of sight]; Chorus: Many matters the gods bring to surprising ends.

Symbolism of the sun

I was being burned alive, I knew it was stupid but I took a step forward. The light flashing off the steel of the Arab’s knife, thrusting deep into my forehead.

The sweat rushed down to my eyes because of the heat. The sun crashing like cymbals against my forehead.

I opened myself for the first time to the tender indifference of the world. To feel it so like me, so like a brother, in fact.

Medea

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Medea as a foreign woman are perceived as inferior by Corinthian citizens.

The Arabs in the novel are never named, yet this again has been interpreted in both positive and negative ways.

xenophobia is starkly evident through the way Corinthian society marginalizes Medea as a “barbarian.” Jason’s reference to her as a “barbarian princess” emphasizes her perceived inferiority and lack of sophistication compared to Corinthian society. He patronizingly asserts that by living in Hellas, Medea has been exposed to a “society where force yields place to law,” suggesting she should be grateful for the supposed superiority of Greek civilization. Medea’s soliloquy, with phrases like “Of course a stranger must conform,” reflects her awareness of her marginalized status and the societal pressure for foreigners to suppress their identities to be accepted.

The Arabs’ response reveals a more accepting and matter-of-fact response to his actions compared to the court workers, who focus intensely on moral condemnation. The prisoners’ immediate reaction, with no expressed outrage or moral judgment, contrasts sharply with the court’s intense scrutiny of Meursault’s character and his lack of remorse. Their silence suggests a shared understanding of life’s harsh realities and a lack of preoccupation with societal moral structures. This scene underlines how those outside the societal power structure—the prisoners—can offer a more authentic understanding than the supposedly moral authority within it.

Marginalization of the “Other”: Both works depict foreign or colonized individuals as inferior or less human, with Medea cast as a barbarian in Corinthian society and Arabs stripped of individual identity in The Outsider.

Medea actively resists her outsider status and challenges Corinthian values, using her intelligence and resilience to counter the perception of inferiority.

the Arabs in The Outsider lack any voice or agency in the narrative, reflecting the silencing effect of colonial power.

Medea’s experience reflects tension between foreign presence and cultural conformity

the Arabs’ anonymity highlights an extreme marginalization where they are viewed as invisible.

Jason refers to Medea’s identity as a barbarian princess in dialogue: That you left a barbarous land to become a resident of Hellas: here you have known justice, you have lived in a society where force yields place to law.”

1. Medea’s soliloquy: language with high modality: Of course a stranger must conform.

You have this city, your father's home, the enjoyment of your life, and your friends' company. I am alone; I have no city; now my husband insults me. I was taken as plunder from a land at the earth's edge.

I told them that I’d killed an Arab and there was silence. But a few minutes later it began to get dark. They told me how to lay out the mat I had to sleep on.

The fact that Meursault’s emotional indifference is judged instead of his action leading to the incident of him killing an Arab man.

Medea

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Medea defies the traditional women role as a responsible and caring mother.

The silence in the relationship between Meursault and his mother. Camus exposes the sad reality of intergenerational relationship that sometimes there is lack of explicit emotional attachments.

Disruption of Traditional Family Bonds: Medea defies the role of a caring mother, vacillating between love and hatred for her children, ultimately prioritizing revenge over her maternal duty. Her internal conflict is visible as she experiences moments of softness—such as her tears and hesitation when confronted with her sons’ trust—only to suppress these emotions to pursue her "just" revenge. Similarly, Meursault’s bond with his mother is marked by a lack of explicit emotional attachment, as shown by his indifferent reflections on her passing and his passive memories of their interactions, which lacked warmth or profound connection. Both characters challenge traditional roles, with Medea’s violence as a mother defying nurturing expectation, while Meursault’s detachment questions the depth of filial devotion.

Medea’s relationship with her children is intense and emotionally charged, embodying a fierce love that is ultimately overwhelmed by her vengeful resolve. Her internal struggle highlights a complex mixture of love and rage that culminates in a tragic decision.

Meursault’s connection with his mother is emotionally muted; his lack of emotional response, even at her funeral, suggests an acceptance of life’s indifference, where family connections lack intrinsic meaning. Medea’s intense emotions stand in stark contrast to Meursault’s existential indifference.

Medea consciously chooses to break her bond with her children, seeing their deaths as a necessary act of vengeance. Her agency in this violent decision reflects a tragic assertion of control over her familial ties. “Anger, the spring of all life’s horror, master my resolve.”

Meursault, however, passively accepts the estranged relationship with his mother, never questioning or seeking to change it. His passive acceptance is shaped by his belief that “it was of no importance whatsoever,” reflecting a lack of agency and acceptance of life’s randomness, whereas Medea’s choice is deliberate and destructive.

Medea’s love for her children, foreshadowing their death and her grief: stage direction, imagery, hyperbole: [She turns away in a sudden flood of weeping.]

Medea is hesitating when she sees how her sons trust her with no reasons: Dear sons, why are you staring at me so? Your smile at me – your last smile: why?

However, this moment of softness is immediately erased by Medea’s last sentence in her monologue: What a coward I am, even tempting my own resolution with soft talk. 

Meursault and his mom: visual imagery: When we live together, Mama spent all her time silently watching me come and go.

I didn’t know if I should smoke in front of Mama. I thought about it: it was of no importance whatsoever.

My mother died today, or maybe yesterday, I don’t know.

Medea

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Euripides neither fully condemns nor glorifies Medea's rebellion, but rather presents the devastating outcomes of a society in which both men and women are trapped in roles that foster resentment and violence. He questions the societal structure that create such antagonism, rather than proposing a clear solution to gender conflict.

Meursault's collusion with Raymond to punish Raymond's mistress, which shows that Meursault values masculine friendship above fair treatment of women.

Critique of Gender Roles: Euripides highlights the societal constraints that trap both men and women in Medea, suggesting that gender roles foster resentment and violence. Medea’s rebellion against her subservient role as a woman serves as a powerful commentary on the limitations imposed by a patriarchal society. Similarly, in The Outsider, Meursault’s collusion with Raymond underscores a societal endorsement of male dominance, as he prioritizes male friendship over fair treatment of women. This dynamic reveals how societal expectations shape male behaviour and perpetuate misogyny, emphasizing that both genders are victims of restrictive roles.

Expression of female anger

Reinforcement of make apathy

Jason: Jason’s blame on women: high modality, derogatory diction: “If women didn’t exist, human life would be rid of all its miseries.”

Medea: Mocking the defamation on women, juxtaposition of honesty and evil potential: We were born women – useless for honest purposes, But in all kinds of evil skilled practitioners.

1. I [Raymond] had been keeping her
2. You don’t see how jealous everyone is of how happy I’ve made you
3. I’d slapped her a little, but affectionately, so to speak.
4. Excuses, ignoring the victim’s voice: The policeman told him to shut and said that the girl should leave and that he should stay and be ashamed of being so drunk.

Medea

TO

Foreigner, women

Prisoner, atheist, emotional indifferent

Violent action, morally condemned by the audience. The empathy for her is eradicated by the end of the play as Medea becomes extremely violent and causes destructive consequences.

Meursault is perceived as an outsider because of his belief in atheism and existentialism of life. This results in his emotional indifference towards the events in his life not understood by others.

Cultural alienation

Passive

opt to be isolated

Because of her external identity

Because of his internal belief, that makes him appear to be isolated.

Medea: Of course a stranger mush conform.

You have this city, your father's home, the enjoyment of your life, and your friends' company. I am alone; I have no city; now my husband insults me. I was taken as plunder from a land at the earth's edge.

Jason’s incredulity when facing the death of his sons: You abomination! Of all women most detested by every god, by me, by the whole human race!

My fate was being decided without anyone even asking my opinion.

[The prosecutor] said that he had tried to look into my soul, Gentlemen of the Jury, but has failed.

Marie—his mistress, to me, she was Marie

All for our Antichrist today.

Medea

TO

Death is tragic in Medea as it represents the irreversible destruction of life, love, and future possibilities. Euripides warns his audience that actions cannot be undone.

Camus argues that since death is inevitable and its inevitability is established since the start of life, the death itself is a neutral event and its meaning is depended on subjective perspectives. For the society's moral system, the death of Meursault is a relief to them as they eradicate the existence of an outsider and are able to maintain their belief in life. On the other hand, death is also not so tragic to the victim Meursault as he realises the meaninglessness of life and immerses in the beauty and tranquillity of the physical environment.

Functional in both texts

Medea: death of the children, sacrifice made by Medea to accomplish her revenge to wound Jason, it symbolises the intensity of Medea's rage fuelled by Jason's betrayal.

The Arab's death: Is not explored morally. Strengthen the text's argument that life is absurd because of its unpredictability. The lack of motive in Meursault's murder of the Arab.

Meursault's ultimate realisation of meaninglessness of life after the announcement of his sentence: You could never change your life, that in any case one life was as good as another and that I wasn't at all dissatisfied with mine here.

Medea sees murder as a powerful tool to punish Jason for his betrayal and to reclaim some sense of agency in a society that has marginalized her. Her actions underscore her calculated decision to wield death as a means of asserting control over her life and circumstances.

This highlights the absurdity of existence and the idea that life is often governed by random, uncontrollable forces. The accidental nature of the death reinforces Camus' existential themes, suggesting that individuals are at the mercy of circumstances beyond their control.

Death of Creusa: was eating her clear flesh. The fiercer the flame burned. Dripped blood mingled with flame.

Chorus: what a miserable mother. Stone and iron you are, as you resolved to be.

Jason and Medea’s stichomythia towards the end: Jason: You suffer too; my loss is yours no less. Medea: It is true. But my pain’s a fair price, to take away your smile.

Now you have loving words, now kisses for them. Then you disowned them, sent them into exile.

I was being burned alive, I knew it was stupid but I took a step forward. The light flashing off the steel of the Arab’s knife, thrusting deep into my forehead.

The sweat rushed down to my eyes because of the heat. The sun crashing like cymbals against my forehead.

“sharp, deafening sound”

The scent of the night, the earth and the salt air cooled my temple.  

Asyndeton: Although I may look like I had nothing, but I was sure of myself, sure of everything, sure of my life, sure of my impending death.

Medea

The Outsider

1. If only they had never gone! If the Argo’s hull never had winged out through the grey-blue jaws of rock and on towards Colchis!

…The neither would Medea be ‘mad with love for Jason’

1. My mother died today. Or maybe yesterday, I don’t know.

2. The dark cloud of her lamentations… soon it will burst aflame as her anger rises.

2. For now, it’s still a little as if Mama hadn’t died. After the funeral, however, it will be a matter that is officially closed.

3. Do I not suffer? Am I not wronged? Should I not weep?

3. When we lived together, Mama spent all her time silently watching me come and go.

M

TO

Dues ex machina: Medea appears above the roof, sitting in a chariot drawn by dragons.

The scent of the night, the earth and the salt air cooled my temples.

Many matters the gods bring to surprising ends. The unexpected God makes possible

I opened myself for the first time to the tender indifference of the world, to feel it so like me, so like a brother, in fact.

Now you have loving words, now kisses for them. Then you disowned them, sent them into exile.

They would greet me with cries of hatred.

M

TO

1. She glares at us like a mad bull or a lioness guarding her cubs.

At the funeral, Camus uses the simile of “the old people sounded like parakeets squawking in the distance” to humourize the scene.  

M

TO

1. Chorus: O miserable mother… stone and iron you are, as you resolved to be

Talk about how metaphor isn’t particularly rare in the text, but is not as prominent as the vivid imagery as Camus conveys the absurdity of life by exposing the reality.

2. Jason is a prisoner in a princess’s bed.

M

TO

Today we see the will of Heaven, blow after blow, bring down on Jason justice and calamity.

I would want his empathy…. But it just seemed like too much trouble.

Chorus: Childless people have no means of knowing whether children are a blessing or a burden.

I poured out all the feelings that surged up from the depths of my heart in waves of anger and joy.

In prison: I didn’t understand how the days can be so long and yet so short.

M

TO

She turns away in a sudden flood of weeping, hyperbolic visual imagery.

Reddish streaks filled the sky high over the hills, …wind carrying the scent of salty air. I though how nice it would be to go for a long walk, if it hadn’t been for Mama.

discharged a stream of unnatural devouring fire; eating her clear flesh; down from her head dripped blood mingled with flame

I was being burned alive, I knew it was stupid but I took a step forward. The light flashing off the steel of the Arab’s knife, thrusting deep into my forehead.

The sweat rushed down to my eyes because of the heat. The sun crashing like cymbals against my forehead.

The scent of the night, the earth and the salt air cooled my temples.

Prison: The sounds of the night rise up throughout the entire prison, accompanied by a cortège of silence.

M

TO

Situational irony: And I who saved your life, is begging beside the road!

Situational irony+ verbal irony: Wait a minute, who's on trial here? It's important to be the person on trial. And I have something to say!

Verbal irony: Dear sons, my blessing on you both--but not here! All blessing here your father has destroyed

Verbal irony: He said that he had tried to look into my soul, Gentleman of the jury, but had failed.

Dramatic irony: Jason: I am here to save my sons before Creon’s family murders them in revenge.

M

TO

The dark cloud of lamentation…will soon burst aflame as her anger rise

One significant example that foreshadows his crime is his habitual reaction to light, sun and heat. Beginning on the first page, Meursault says, "It was a blazing hot afternoon" with a "glare off the road and from the sky.” He then states his reaction to the "blazing" heat and "glare … that made [him] feel so drowsy."

Today three of my enemies I shall strike dead: Father and daughter; and my husband.

The boss: [Meursault] have no ambition and that this was disastrous in business, foreshadowing the jury's and judges' extreme annoyance with him

M

TO

The dress and golden coronet: discharged a stream of unnatural devouring fire; eating her clear flesh; down from her head dripped blood mingled with flame

Sun: I was being burned alive, I knew it was stupid but I took a step forward. The light flashing off the steel of the Arab’s knife, thrusting deep into my forehead.

The sweat rushed down to my eyes because of the heat. The sun crashing like cymbals against my forehead.

The golden chariot: Medea appears above the roof, sitting in a holden chariot carried by two dragons

Guillotine: An immutable mechanism, a forgone conclusion, not open for discussion

Crucifix: “he took out a silver crucifix and brandished at me"

M

TO

You have your father’s home, you have city, the enjoyment of life, companionship of friends. I have none. I was taken as a plunder from a land at the earth’s adge.

Prosecutor vs Meursault

I would rather stand three times in the front line than bear one child.

Salamano + dog:

“Reddish scabs (reddish patches and brown scabs on the dog) on his face and yellowish, thinning hair”

“His coat used to be the most beautiful thing about him”

M

TO

Social setting: Corinth with xenophobia: of course a stranger must conform

Courtroom: I said that it was because of the sun. Laughter rang out in the courtroom.

Social setting of conventional perception of women: we were born women, useless for honest purposes, but in all kinds of evil skilled practitioners.

Prison: The sounds of the night rise up throughout the entire prison, accompanied by a cortège of silence.

I didn’t understand how the days can be so long and yet so short.

“Yesterday” and “tomorrow” were the only two words that meany anything to me.

Stage direction of Medea [still clinging to Creon]

Natural setting, imagery.

Medea

Meursault

Alienated position in the society

Unwillingness to conform

Challenge the flaws of societal moral structures

Proactive and violent

Passive but not resigned

Empathy is destroyed

Empathy is retained, Character is honoured

Xenophobia + misogyny

Brutality of his society demands individuals to express certain emotions at particular time.

Jason

The boss

Pursuit in power and higher social status

Embrace social values, rewarded players in the game

Assertive in their own values

Morally unjustified

Objectify his workers down to their productivity

Ultimately punished for his unjust betrayal

Ending unmentioned, an epitome of businessmen

Chorus

The judge

Representative of the social mundane values

Corinthian women

Justice system

Live vicariously through Medea

Directly confront Meursault

Both shaken by the protagonists in terms of their beliefs.

Jason

The prosecutor

Misogyny

Brutality towards unconforming individual

Defame the outsider, antagonists

Hypocrisy in justifying their actions, blind confidence in their judgments and conclusions

Ultimately punished

Succeed in ending Meursault’s life

Both criticise by the authors