The Stranger: Meursault from another character's perspective

  Mersault seems strange to Marie because he acts normally the entire day that they spend at the beach.  Marie does not find out someone died until she sees him wearing a black tie.  When she asks him how long ago Maman died, and finds out it was only yesterday, she "gives a little start but [doesn't] say anything" (Tanner, 20). She is taken back upon learning of his mother's death, and is quiet because she doesn't want to say anything that might offend him.  People usually mourn after someone they were close to dies, but Meursault choses to go to the movies with Marie, instead.   He does not seem like he is affected by the death, which might be why Marie seems to forget about it, too.  Usually when someone has gone through something sad, they aren't fun to be around, and dwell on their misfortune.  Meursault, however, shows no signs of being sad.

Books in translation

       Translators face several challenges when translating books.  They have to try to keep the texts' meanings the same, but as some words don't exist in multiple languages, this can be difficult.  The rhythm and flow of the words also change.  What sounds good in one language might sound bad in another.  In Spanish class, we read a poem that was apparently very touching and romantic, but the literal translation in English was a little inappropriate. Literary works can lose their meaning when they are translated from one language to another.  

     Reading a work in translation can also be challenging.  The reader and writer might come from different cultural backgrounds and have very different experiences.  It can be hard to grasp the full meaning of a text if it contains topics or ideas that you do not understand.