I'm Special /// Bug Olsen

 

           Nobody ever thinks something as catastrophic as a plague would ever ruin their life. Perhaps because they are too normal, and those types of things only ever happen in countries with abnormal weather, or overpopulation, or an entirely different culture. Or perhaps it’s because they’re too special, and nothing like that would happen to someone of their status, or wealth, or occupation, or any excuse. Either way, the nature of humanity is to believe that they are an exception. But Albert Camus and absurdism prove otherwise.

One key factor of absurdism is the fact that things happen arbitrarily, with no divine or discernable purpose whatsoever, and no matter how normal or special you think you are, you are not free from the desires of fate. Throughout The Plague, Camus emphasizes how normal the town is and provides no explanation of how or why the plague came upon Oran, which displays the absurdity of the situation. Repeatedly throughout these sections, the narrator goes to great lengths to describe the town in entirely normal terms, with people who had normal interests and led normal lives. Nothing denotes the fact that they are about to suffer one of the greatest epidemics in history.

The townspeople have a difficult time coming to grips with the situation, and once the plague has set it for good, everyone believes they are some type of exception both to the plague and to the rules established during its reign. This is best evidenced in Rambert, who continually tries to escape the town by claiming he does not belong there. However, both absurdism and the plague show that no one is special, and we are all subject to the whims of chance. The plague is an equalizer that brings everyone to the same level, and nothing can save you from its grip.

Everyone wants to think that they are special in some way. However, existentialism proves that we all eventually die, and, since there is nothing after this, life is pointless. Nobody is special and no one has meaning. Once we accept this, we can live better without having the illusion of control over our lives, and thus resigning ourselves to the ever-shifting whims of the universe. Camus brilliantly expresses these ideas through the frame of a town suffering from a massive epidemic, and the characters and their development throughout the narrative is both extremely interesting as well as insightful to the nature of humanity.

I commented on Haylee Lynd and Emmett's posts. 

Comments

  1. Abigale BellFebruary 14, 2022 at 10:08 PM

    Hi Bug! Great post! Camus' work is a great study of human nature. I think we have a unique perspective in that we have experienced something like this plague. I found that each new insight into the human state of mind Camus presents, I have seen lived out firsthand. Faced with death and isolation, a person is really being faced by their own humanity.

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  2. Joshua NaqviFebruary 14, 2022 at 10:17 PM

    Great observation Bug. The fact that the town is considered to be a relatively boring place says a lot about Camus's opinions. This catastrophic event did not happen somewhere people might think of as a major city or historic place. It happened to people in a place that is unimportant. This brings the reader to realize that they too are small compared to the entirety of humanity.

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  3. Song WhittingtonFebruary 14, 2022 at 11:26 PM

    Hi Bug. I like your emphasis on the importance of arbitrary in absurdism. It is true that most people think themself exempt from any of the "normal" happenings. Even with the pandemic today I've heard people talk about how "oh, I'll never get Covid. I have a good immune system," (or some other reason as to why they're exempt.) Overall great post. Good job.

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