Fan CastingThe Stranger

Description of Meursault:

Meursault is a detached figure who views and describes much of what occurs around him from a removed position. He is emotionally indifferent to others, even to his mother and his lover, Marie. He also refuses to adhere to the accepted moral order of society. After Meursault kills a man, “the Arab,” for no apparent reason, he is put on trial. However, the focus of Meursault’s murder trial quickly shifts away from the murder itself to Meursault’s attitudes and beliefs. Meursault’s atheism and his lack of outward grief at his mother’s funeral represent a serious challenge to the morals of the society in which he lives. Consequently, society brands him an outsider.