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Reviews tagging 'Colonisation'

The Stranger by Albert Camus

20 reviews

buttercup_8's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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seashanthis's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

it falls short as a story but the writing's good. the message is prioritized above the story, and the theme does a great job at showing the absurdity of all facets of life and societal structures, and that nothing in life matters, and that's ultimately something we can derive happiness or satisfaction from.
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rosenbrook's review against another edition

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challenging slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

This is my second try reading Camus, and I didn’t like this one either.
The book seeks to explore Camus’ philosophy of absurdism through the lens of a man who participates in a non-sensical murder for non-sensical reasons, and endures a non-sensical trial. But the problem is that the characters’ actions could only be seen as absurdist through the lens of Camus’ time. At first, I hated the writing style of Part 1 - so much so that (despite the short page amount) this book was a slog. But by the end, I realized that this book is just a unempathetic look of someone with neurodivergence.

Despite the lack of clinical diagnosis at the time, the MC very much comes across as someone with neurodivergence. He’s very autism coded, and other people have difficulty understanding his perspective. When he commits the murder, despite Camus saying the reason was “the sun”, it reminded me of an episode of overstimulation.
When read from the idea that the book is about a neurodivergent man facing prejudice in the court room, it becomes slightly more interesting. However, without a conscientious decision to write this book as such, it comes across as inauthentic and improperly executed. It was impossible to care about or root for a singular character and the narrative devolves into self-important nihilism that is so prevalent in pretentious media.
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giulidrago's review against another edition

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reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

"Dunque lei non ha alcuna speranza e vive con l'idea di morire del tutto?"

Ero convinta che sarei rimasta folgorata da questa lettura. Ritrovarmi così distaccata nei confronti di essa, così poco impressionata nei confronti del suo personaggio principale è al tempo stesso giustizia poetica e un crudele scherzo del destino, e mi amareggia alquanto. 
Riconosco senza remore tutti i suoi pregi: scorre veloce, la prosa asciutta è gradevole, la storia nella teoria è interessante e offre notevoli spunti di riflessione, la sua brevità lo rende un libro piacevole da divorare in un pomeriggio. Non riesco ad articolare di preciso cosa non mi abbia convinto, ma sicuramente non riesco a liberarmi dalla sensazione di vacuità che mi ha trasmesso, e spero che una rilettura futura mi aiuti a comprendere meglio il libro nel suo complesso. 
Ho vissuto l'apatia di Mersault come una malattia contagiosa, e nonostante un minuscolo grumo onnipresente di pietà e disgusto nei suoi confronti, ha predominato l'indifferenza verso l'uomo che, processato per omicidio, non solo non prova alcun rimorso verso di esso ma passa buona parte del tempo a cercare di convincere il lettore che lo stanno condannando solo perchè non ha pianto al funerale della madre. 
Probabilmente il problema sono io. 
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andyourstruly's review against another edition

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reflective

3.5

Camus had something deeply broken in him.
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mobpsycho100's review against another edition

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challenging reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

most relatable character fr
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julianh's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

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kers_tin's review against another edition

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dark reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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eleni_erato's review against another edition

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mysterious reflective slow-paced
  • Strong character development? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
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m4rtt4's review against another edition

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dark reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

One of the best unreliable narrators I've ever read! It gives you so much to think about when the writing is very objective and emotionless yet everything is still warped by Mr. Mersault's own perspective. There are so many layers that I couldn't possibly fathom everything despite this being my second time reading the book, but it was an interesting experience nonetheless. Marie was my favourite character, I wouldn't mind reading a whole book from her perspective.

extra .25 stars for one of the most iconic opening lines ever :)
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