Silence

“…the presiding judge told me in bizarre language that I was to have my head cut off in a public square in the name of the French people. Then it seemed to me that I suddenly knew what was on everybody’s face. It was a look of consideration, I’m sure. The policemen were very gentle with me. The lawyer put his hand on my wrist. I wasn’t thinking anymore. That’s when they took me away.”(pg.106)

If it wasn’t for the use of first person, the narrator could perfectly be mistaken with a non-omniscient third person narrator, perhaps  a member of the audience observing the happenings. Other than “I wasn’t thinking anymore” there are no indications of what is going on inside Meursault’s mind. The absence of metacognition in the passage is especially significant because it indicates the lack of reasoning in the whole process and therefore recalls the absurdness of it all. Meursault does not express his opinion or reaction to the sentence of his fate, and what we get instead is a description of the situation. Who cares if the policemen were gentle to him! The lack of an expression of feelings in this passage lets us know how detached Meursault is from himself. In fact, the only thing he bothers to tell is he wasn’t thinking anymore, meaning his rational faculties had deceased, and his presence was reduced to that of mere bone and flesh.

The juxtaposition of the sentences “I wasn’t thinking anymore.” And “That’s when they took me away.” Reflect Meursault’s stance in the trial (ironically absent) and the trial’s position toward it. Meursault is absent minded, in fact he seems to be during the entire book, he gives no reasons for anything. The trial on the contrary attempts to impose logic to the otherwise illogical acts Meursault committed. Meursault acknowledges his irrational being, and just then, they take him away.

Altogether, the book lacks expression of feelings from Meursault and reasoning for his actions which together help transmit the absurdity of existence. It is often what is not said that enhances the meaning of the spoken.