The Stranger

Introduction by Peter Dunwoody; Translation by Matthew Ward

(book Jacket Status: Jacketed)

albert Camus’s Spare, Laconic Masterpiece About A Frenchman Who Murders An Arab In Algeria Is Famous For Having Diagnosed, With A Clarity Almost Scientific, That Condition Of Reckless Alienation And Spiritual Exhaustion That Characterized So Much Of Twentieth-century Life.

possessing Both The Force Of A Parable And The Excitement Of A Perfectly Executed Thriller, the Stranger Is The Work Of One Of The Most Engaged And Intellectually Alert Writers Of The Past Century.

translated By Matthew Ward

library Journal

the New Translation Of Camus's Classic Is A Cultural Event; The Translation Of Cocteau's Diary Is A Literary Event. Both Translations Are Superb, But Ward's Will Affect A Naturalized Narrative, While Browner's Will Strengthen Cocteau's Reemerging Critical Standing. Since 1946 Untold Thousands Of American Students Have Read A Broadly Interpretative, Albeit Beautifully Crafted British Stranger . Such Readers Have Closed Part I On ``door Of Undoing'' And Part Ii On ``howls Of Execration.'' Now With The Domestications Pruned Away From The Text, Students Will Be As Close To The Original As Another Language Will Allow: ``door Of Unhappiness'' And ``cries Of Hate.'' Browner Has No Need To ``write-over'' Another Translation. With Cocteau's Reputation Chiefly As A Cineaste Until Recently, He Has Been Read In French Or Not At All. Further, The Essay Puts A Translator Under Less Pressure To Normalize For Readers' Expectations. Both Translations Show The Current Trend To Stay Closer To The Original. Marilyn Gaddis Rose, Suny At Binghamton

When a young Algerian named Meursault kills a man, his subsequent imprisonment and trial are puzzling and absurd. The apparently amoral Meursault -- who puts little stock in ideas like love and God -- seems to be on trial less for his murderous actions, and more for what the authorities believe is his deficient character A young Algerian, Meursault, afflicted with a sort of aimless inertia, becomes embroiled in the petty intrigues of a local pimp and, somewhat inexplicably, ends up killing a man. His trial is a proceeding of absurd and incidental trivialities which yeild a ridiculous and inevitable outcome *L'Étranger* est le premier roman publié d’Albert Camus, paru en 1942. Il prend place dans la tétralogie que Camus nommera « cycle de l’absurde » qui décrit les fondements de la philosophie camusienne : l’absurde. Le roman a été traduit en soixante-huit langues. Through the story of an ordinary man unwittingly drawn into a senseless murder on an Algerian beach, Camus explored what he termed "the nakedness of man faced with the absurd." First published in 1946; now in a new translation by Matthew Ward Contents......Page 3 I......Page 4 II......Page 14 III......Page 18 IV......Page 24 V......Page 28 VI......Page 32 I......Page 40 II......Page 46 III......Page 52 IV......Page 62 V......Page 68 About the Author......Page 77 Contents 3 Part One 4 I 4 II 14 III 18 IV 24 V 28 VI 32 Part Two 40 I 40 II 46 III 52 IV 62 V 68 About the Author 77