The Stranger - The Stranger 5 - The Surroundings in The Stranger

In The Stranger by Albert Camus, the surroundings in the world around Meursault seem to parallel and/or influence the actions that occur as well as Meursault's feelings. The sun and heat are viewed as bad, while water and coolness are viewed as good. Water is cleansing and pure, and Meursault states that "the water was cold and [he] was glad to be swimming" (50). In contrast, the first time that Meursault encounters the Arabs he is with Masson and Raymond and the sun is said to be "unbearable" (52). It is noted that the "blazing sun [looked] red" to Meursault before the fight broke out, which can be perceived as a sign of anger rising (53). The second time there is almost a fight, and the sun is told to be "overpowering" (55). There is a little spring where the Arabs are resting, and they are blocking the peacefulness of the water. The third time, when Meursault goes back alone, the sun gets even worse, and he feels the "heat [...] pressing down on [him]" (57). The spring is viewed again as an escape from this painful sun, for it is hiding behind the "small, dark mass of rock surrounded by a blinding halo of light and sea spray" (57). The rocks and the spring are described with a "halo", placing them at some kind of angelic or holy status, which has never seemed to appeal to Meursault in the past. While Meursault thinks about turning back after seeing the Arab, he says that "the whole beach, throbbing in the sun, [is] pressing on [his] back" (58). The sun makes him uncomfortable and stops his retreat, pressuring him instead into killing the Arab in his way of the cooling spring. The word "pressing" is repeated often while talking about the sun, which emphasizes just how much the sun is affecting Meursault.