ALBERT CAMUS' ABSURDISM AND AMBIVALENT VIEWS ON FRENCH ORIENTALIST PREJUDICE AND REFLECTED IN THE STRANGER.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Alhamdulillahirabbil’alamiiin.FirstandforemostIwouldliketorevealmyGratefulto AllahSWTtheCreatorandtheGuardian,forthewisdom,thegreatestbless,themercyinevery

pieceofmyprayers.Hehasgivenmethepowertobelieveinmyself,inmypassiontothegate

of success to accomplish this thesis and given me an opportunity in finishing this thesis. Furthermore,thegreatinvocationandregardisaddressedtothebelovedProphetMuhammad

SAW,whobringsthislifeintotheenlightenmentandknowledgeuniverse.

IntheveryfirstplaceIwouldliketoexpressmyverygreatappreciationtomybeloved

supervisors:MarlizaYeni,S.S,M.AasmyfirstsupervisorandEdriaSandika,S.S,M.Humas

my second supervisor, especially for the time, suggestion, support, consistent guidance, unparalleledknowledge,encouragementandpatienceduringaccomplishingthisthesis.Without

thekindnessofthem,thisthesiswouldneverhaveexisted.AnotherdeepestgratitudeIconveyto

myproposalsupervisorSeswitaZulvaS.S,M.HumwhogavemethesolutionatthebeginningI

wrotemyproposal. Gratefullythanksto all my beloved lecturersinEnglishDepartment of AndalasUniversitywhohavelearnedmemultitudeofknowledgethatIdidnotknowbefore.To

academicstaffsandalllibrariansintheFaculty,thankyousomuchfortheirassistancesduring

collectingthedataandcompletingtherequirements.

Thegreatgratitudegoestomyfamily.Forgreatparentsaroundtheworld,mydearDad

DjamalSusiloandbelovedMomRosnawati,whatcanIsay?WithoutyouIwouldnotbethe

personIamtoday.Icanbarelyfindthewordstoexpressallthewisdom,love,unconditional

support,patienceandprayeryou’vegiventomethroughoutmylife.Icouldsaynothingbut

thankyou.Mydeepestlovetomyonlyyoungsister,Elly,tomybeloveduncleYonhartoni,aunt

EftetiRiani.OtherspecialthankstoEnglishDepartment’09,especiallyNandha,FennyTrisiah

andOra,thentoSeeSawSeengirls.AspecialappreciationthengoestoBangAdekforgivingme

thesolutionandsuggestion.Thelast,myextraordinarythankyouisaddressedtoReskiKuantan

asmybestlistenerandmytruebestfriend.

Padang,October23th₂₀₁₃

ii

ABSTRAK

Skripsiyangberjudul“Albert Camus’AbsurdismandAmbivalentViewson FrenchOrientalistPrejudiceasReflectedinTheStranger”iniadalahsebuahanalisis terhadap novel absurd berjudul The Stranger karya Albert Camus. Skripsi ini memaparkan sikap ragu-ragu Camus terhadap beragam prasangka negatif bangsa Perancis terhadap bangsa Arab di Aljazair. Dengan memakai pendekatan Paskakolonialisme,khususnyateoriOrientalismeyangdipaparkanolehEdwardSaid, penulis menemukan bahwa novel tersebut menunjukkan adanya prasangka negatif bangsaPerancisyangselalumemandangrendahbangsaArabyangsebenarnyaadalah pendudukaslidiAljazair.Namun,pemikiranabsurdismepengarangyangberpegang teguhpadapenolakanterhadapkonsepnilai,perbedaan,kebenarandankepastianyang ada dialam semesta, justru menunjukkan bahwa Camus sesungguhnya bersikap ambivalen atau ragu-ragu, terhadap sikap bangsa Perancis tersebut. Setelah menganalisis isu-isu Orientalisme didalam novel dengan menggunakan pandangan absurdismesebagaiideologidasarpengarang,hasilanalisismenunjukkanbahwapada akhirnyanilai-nilaidanprasangkaburukyangdiciptakansertadianggapbenaroleh kaumOrientalist(Perancis)terhadapTimursecaratidaklangsungditolak,dibantahdan dipatahkanolehkonsepabsurdismeAlbertCamus.

iii

TABLEOFCONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS……….i

ABSTRAK……….ii

TABLEOFCONTENTS………...…..iii

CHAPTERI:INTRODUCTION 1.1TheBackgroundoftheResearch………..……….1

1.2TheIdentificationoftheProblem………..……6

1.3TheScopeoftheResearch………..……...7

1.4TheObjectiveoftheResearch………..…….8

1.5TheReviewsofPreviousStudies………..……8

1.6TheTheoreticalFramework………...…..…11

1.7TheMethodsoftheResearch………..…....15

CHAPTER II: PRELIMINARY ANALYSIS OF ALBERT CAMUS’ NOVEL THE STRANGER 2.1Characters……….…………...……17

2.3Setting……….…….30

2.3Pointof iew………..…...…..33

2.4Theme………...…...34

CHAPTERIII:ALBERT CAMUS’ ABSURDISMANDAMBIVALENTVIEWSON FRENCHRACIALPREJUDICEASREFLECTEDINTHESTRANGER 3.1TheStranger:AbsurdismandFrenchRacialPrejudice………..……….37

3.1.1.TheStranger’sElementsofAbsurdism…….………..…...37

a.ThroughthePlot………..………..….39

b.ThroughtheCharacter…..………..……..…40

c.ThroughtheAbsurdActions………...…... 44

3.1.2.FrenchRacialPrejudiceinTheStranger……...………..49

a. France Imperialism in Algeria: a History of French Orientalist Prejudice……….52

b. Ableism: the Underestimation of French toward the Disability of ArabsPhysically,MentallyandKnowledge…...……….…... 54

c. Ethnocentrism: the Negative Prejudice towards Civilization and CultureoftheArabs……….59

3.2 TheReflectionofAlbertCamus’AmbivalentViews………..………..……62

3.2.1 AbsurdismRefusesaCertainty:RefusestheValuesofDifference……..65

3.2.3.TheNonExistenceoftheTruth..……….71

3.2.4.LifeisNotReasonable……….………...….74

CHAPTERIV:CONCLUSION………...…..77

Juliyanti |1

CHAPTERI

INTRODUCTION

1.1.TheBackgroundoftheResearch

Takenfromtheterminologyofphilosophy,absurdismisabeliefstandingat

theintersectionofconfusion,hesitance,ignorance,distrust,pessimisticanddespairof

peopletolookforthemeaningandthepurposeoflife.Theword“absurd”refersto

thelostofmeaning,thelackofpurpose,theworldappearsfrighteningillogicallyand

thereisnorationalexplanationtotheuniverse. Thebigconfusionabouttheuseof

runninglifeintheuniversebecomesthebasicmotifofabsurdism.Theconfusion

finallypointstotheignoranceofitsanswer,anditthenmakespeoplelosetheirbelief

abouttheexistenceofmeaningandpurposeoflife.Theideologyofabsurdismshows

thethingswhichareoutofthenormallogicsandseemslikeintentionallydistorted.

Theabsurdistpeoplebelievesthatthebeautifulthingsintheworldarejustanillusion

andthatdarksensessuchasgrief,pain,sorrow,suffering,hurtandmiseryarethereal

things.AsCamusstatesinTheMythofSisyphus(1942)that,“inauniversethatis

suddenlydeprivedofillusionsandlight,manfeelsastranger.Heisanirremediable

exile. This divorce between man and his life, the actor and his setting, is truly

constitutesthefeelingofAbsurdity”(6).

Additionally,M.HAbramsinhisbookAGlossaryofLiteraryTerms(1999)

claims that Eugène Ionesco (French author of several plays and theaters of the

Juliyanti |2

transcendentalroots,manislost;allhisactionsbecomesenseless,absurd,useless”

(1).Inthetermofabsurdism,torunthe“useless”lifewithoutanyresultisnotmuch

differentfromapunishment,sothatpeopleonlybelievethatlifewillalwaysendin

failure,nomatterwhat.Runningthelifeslowlycoincideswithpessimismandrefuses

a certainty, whether it is about God, human destiny, or the others become the

characteristicsofpeoplewhoselivesrelyonabsurdity.

Historically,AbsurdismstartstoappearduringWorldWarII.Thisisaform

of rebellions defying the beliefs and values in the society about the period, in

showinghumanincredulitytothemeaningoflife.Theemergenceofthisideologyis

motivatedbyWorldWarIandWorldWarII,whenpeoplestarttofeeldesperate

aboutthepoorconditionoftheuniversethatinclinedtotheruinedsituations,fullof

crueltyandbrutality.Peopleonlyconcernwiththepowerthathasblindedthem,they

hurteachother,theuncontrolledrageofwar,andmurdersareeverywhere.Thereis

nosenseofhumanityandreconcilementamongpeople.Eventhoughit startedto

exist during World War II, but thosedestructions and violence ofthe world are

certainlytriggeredbyWorldWarthathasalreadyhappenedbefore,theWorldWarI.

TheatomicbombthatsmashesHiroshimaandNagasakiandthepracticeofgenocide

becomes the main causes of turning absurdism ideology. Genocide is the

exterminationoftheJewsandotherpowerlessclansinEuropearound1930-1940by

theAryanraceinGermanyundertheleadershipofHitler.Atthattime,theAryan

raceinEuropefeelthattheyarethebestracearoundtheworldandaimtoseize

Europeancountries,theykilloffsomeraceswhichtheyconsiderasthedangerous

Juliyanti |3

methodsofgenocideisgatheringthevictimsinoneplaceandmurderinginmany

forms,suchasburning,givingeuthanasiainjectionandsoon.

DuringWorldWarII,theruinportraitofthecountriesinvolveinWorldWar

atthattimewhichiscomplicated,craze,andalmostcollapse.Therearenolonger

happinessandreconcilementwithinthelife;there isonlyhumancrueltyhappens

betweeneachother. Ifthereisaflashofhappiness, it issurelyconsideredasan

illusion and impossible thing, because no one believes anymore towards life. It

happensbecauseoftheviciouslifeduringWorldWarIandII.Onthecontrary,the

deathbecomestheonlysolutionforhumanstoescapefromthecruelnatureofthe

world.Therefore,theinhumanityandbrutalityofhumansduringtheearly20th

centuryuntil1945isthemaindriversofthebirthofAbsurdism.

Consequently, the Absurdist literary works come out as a reaction to the

horrorsofWorldWarII.ThegenreoftheAbsurdgrowsoftheModernistLiterature

ofthelate19thandearly20thcenturyinEurope,particularlyFrance.M.HAbramsin

hisbookAGlossaryofLiteraryTerms(1999)arguesaboutabsurdmovementthat

“thecurrentmovement,however,emergedinFranceafterthehorrorsofWorldWar

II, as a rebellion against essential beliefs and values of traditional culture and

traditionalliterature”(1).Theabsurdgenreinsomeliteraryworksisoftenrevealedin

novels,playsorpoems,focusingontheexperiencesofcharactersinasituationwhere

theycannot find any inherent purpose in life. Additionally, it is also most often

representedthroughplot, actionsand events. Absurdist literaryworksarefamous

Juliyanti |4

IonescoandLuigiPirandelloarealsosomepopularabsurdistauthorswhoseworks

knownasthegenreoftheabsurd.Thereisoneofthemostfamousabsurdistnovel

entitledTheStranger.Itiswrittenbyanabsurdistauthor,AlbertCamus.

Albert Camus (1913-1960), an Algerian-born French author, has been

awardedtheNobelPrizeforLiteraturein1957.Heisthesecond-youngestrecipient

oftheNobelPrizeinLiterature,afterRudyardKipling,andthefirstAfrican-born

writer to receive the award. Camus has died in a car accident in Villeblevin on

January5th_{, 1960, just over two years after receiving the award. His father is a}

French,hasbeendiedinearlyWorldWar1andhismotherisaSpanishdescent.His

originand his experiences in Algeria during he settles histhirties over there has

influencedinhisthoughtandwork.Heisoftencitedasaproponentofexistentialism

-thephilosophythatheisassociatedduringhisownlifetime-andspecifically,his

view is contributed to the rise of absurdism. Albert Camus is called as the

Existentialist movement “absurdism”, it is born out of him especially when he

publisheshismanuscriptTheMythofSisyphus.Inhis ‘Myth of Sisyphus’(1942),

Camusdefined humansituationas basically meaninglessand absurd, looking for

clarityandmeaninginaworldthatoffersneither.Hisworks,anovelTheStranger

(1942)hasbecomethequintessentialworkoffictionofthe20thcentury.TheMythof

Sysiphysus(1942)isanessaydedicatedtotheabsurd.Healsopublishestwoplays

with the absurd theme: Cross Purpose (1944) and Caligula (1944). Letters to a

German Friend (1945) is published witha number ofother political essays, The

Juliyanti |5

TheStranger,oneofCamus’influentialliteraryworks,isthenovelusedas

theobjectthisresearch.TheStranger isaphilosophicalnovelpublishedin1942by

Libraire Gallimard, France, it is initially published in French language entitled

L’Etranger(asoriginaltitle).ThenitistranslatedintoEnglishlanguagebyStuard

Gilbertseveralyearslater.Thestyleofthenovel’splotisunusualandseemcontains

thecharacteristicsofabsurdgenre.Ittellsaboutthelifeofthemaincharacter,named

Meursault,whoisalsotheonlynarratorofthenovel.HeisaFrenchwhoalienates

himselffromconcretelifeinAlgiers.Meursaultisexecutedandgetsaguillotineafter

atrialhandledbyFrenchpeople,becauseofthemurdercaseofanArab,whomhe

shootstodeathonthebeach.Meursaultclaimsthatthisisanaccident.Ithappens

because of the dazzling sunlight. Otherwise, in the trial, the case finally be

investigatedisanotherunimportantcase.ItiscausedbyMeursault’sindifferenceand

hislackofemotioninhismother’sfuneral.Hedoesnotshowmourningandfeeling

sadinhermother’sfuneral.Ironically,theArabsarenotevenpresentedinthetrial.

Thenovelpresentscharactersfromtwodifferentraces,theFrenchandthe

Arabswho aretheinhabitantsofAlgeria,theyhavetheirowncivilizationwithin

sociallifeinamulticulturalcountrylikeAlgeria.Inthisnovel,Algeriaisapartof

ThirdWorldcountriesasthegeneralsettingoftheplacearound1940.Atthattime,

AlgeriaisdescribedtobedominatedbytheFrenchcivilization,whichlookslike

totallymasteringAlgeriancivilization.InCultureandImperialism,EdwardW.Said

quotesCamussays:“TherehasneveryetbeenanAlgeriannation….TheFrenchof

Juliyanti |6

AlgeriaseemslikeaFrenchterritoryanditispositionedintheback-partwhenthe

wholestorytotallydominatedbyFrenchcharacters.

Theremustbeareasonwhythetworacesabovearepresentedinthenovel.

Sincethebothracesarefromtwodifferentsidesoftheworldandhavedifferent

cultures, the writer is interested to analyze about them more. Apart from the

discussionaboutthisnovelastheabsurdone,whenitisviewedfromFrenchpointof

view, the writer feels a strong sense of French orientalist assumptions, such as

imperialism, racial discrimination, racial superiority, French’s stereotype,

ethnocentrism,hegemony,slavery,oppression,lostofcultureandidentity,asthebias

thoughts about the orient. On the contrary, the absurdity of the novel seems to

dismantle all the orientalist perspectives about the Arabs. There is a kind of

ambiguitypresentedinthenovel,whetherCamusispromotingorchallengingFrench

orientalism through this absurd novel. The writer assumes that the sense of

ambivalenceoftheauthorisrelatedtothegenreofabsurd.Thus,thewriterentitled

this research “Albert Camus’ Absurdism and Ambivalent Views on French

OrientalistPrejudiceasReflectedin “The Stranger”.

1.2.TheIdentificationoftheProblem

TheStrangeremployscharactersfromtwodifferentraces,theFrenchandthe

Arabs,andthestorysetsinAlgeria.Inthenovel,thetimesettingisaround1940in

AlgeriaandthecountryisunderFrenchcolonization.Inthenovel,itismentioned

Juliyanti |7

dominant,asiftheArabsaretherealnatives.TheFrenchpeoplehavealreadyset

theirunderestimationtowardtheArabsarbitrarily. Automaticallytheyhaveracial

prejudice toward the Arabs. The Arab characters are presented with all negative

representation. Here, under the French perspective, the Arabs are described as

uncivilizedculture,barbarian,illogical,primitive,vulgar,rude,disabledbodies,and

lackofknowledge. However, asanabsurdist,Camusseemsdo notfocus onthe

actualdetailsinbothoftheraces,buthekeepstandingattheabsurdityofhumanlife.

Therefore,allofthosenegativeimagesoftheArabsfromtheFrenchperspectives

become blurred. The writer believes that this absurdism of the author indirectly

reflectshisambivalentviewstowardFrenchracialprejudicewhojudgeallthebad

thingstowardstheArabs,arbitrarily.

1.3.TheScopeoftheResearch

ThetermofOrientalismasthescopeoftheresearchisneededtomakethe

analysisclearandfocusesonthetopicoftheresearch.Here,thewriterconcentrating

onthethreefollowingpoints:

1. BriefelaborationaboutthebasicthoughtsofAlbertCamus’Absurdismby

lookingattheelementsofabsurdisminTheStranger,anditiscompletedwith

the relation of character Meursault in The Stranger with the character

SisyphusinCamus’essayTheMythofSisyphus.

2. ThepresentationofFrenchracialprejudicetowardtheArabiannativeinthe

Juliyanti |8

3. HowbasicthoughtofAbsurdismreflectsAlbertCamus’ambivalentviews

aboutFrenchracialprejudice.

1.4.TheObjectiveoftheResearch

The aims of this research are to shows the absurdity of the author by

examiningtheelementsofabsurdisminTheStranger andlookingattheessayThe

MythofSisyphusasthebirthofCamus’absurdism.ThecharacterMeursaultinThe

Stranger indeedseemsasareflectionofSisyphushero intheessayTheMythof

Sisyphus.Bothofthemexplainedastheabsurdistcharacters.Besides,itisalsoto

reveal the French Orientalist prejudice toward the Arabian people as described

throughthetwodifferentcharactersinthenovelTheStranger.However,themain

objectiveoftheresearchistoprove,examineandshowhowtheabsurdismideology

ofCamus has been used to cover reveal about Camus’ ambivalent stance about

Orientalismitself.

1.5.TheReviewsofPreviousStudies

In conducting the research, the writer provides several researches as

comparisonofher research. The Stranger isone of Albert Camus’ most popular

philosophical novels that reap many overviews and strictures from many literary

criticsandothercommunities.Theresearchaboutthisnovelismultifarious.Some

Juliyanti |9

MatthewH.BowkerfromMedailleCollege,DepartmentofInterdisciplinary

StudiesinBuffalo,NewYork,conductsaresearchentitled“MeursaultandMoral

Freedom:TheStranger’sUniqueChallengetoanEnlightenmentIdeal”(2009).In

this research, Bowker applies a new one, by discussing about multi-disciplinary

interpretationofTheStrangertothephilosophyoftheabsurdandthepoliticsof

modernfreedom.HereMatthewH.BowkerarguesbycontrastingKant’s Grounding

fortheMetaphysicsofMoralswithMeursault’sapparentlackofmoralfreedom,that

Meursault is the main character posing a powerful challenge to modern moral

philosophy,achallengethatisdenied,suppressed,andrebukedwithvaryingdegrees

ofhostility(Bowker:23).BowkerarguesthatbetweenMeursaultandmoralfreedom

issummarizingthecomplexrelationshipbetweenTheStranger andtheabsurditself.

Bowkerexploresthesourcesandconsequencesofthisambivalenceaboutfreedom

whileraisingquestionsaboutcontemporarycriticalreactionstoMeursault.According

to Bowker’s interpretation, Meursault as a controversial character forces his

audiences to contend with an ambivalence of uncomfortable emotional about

freedom.ItseemslikeheismerelyforcedtobefreebecauseMeursaulthaslackof

freedom.Hesaysthen,inthestory,theeffortsthataremadebytheprosecutor,judge

andjuryinthetrialtrytomakesMeursaultandattempttoforceMeursaulttobefree.

ForcingMeursaulttobefreeistointerpretMeursault’slackoffreedomasanillness,

insanity,orevenareflectionofasocialorculturalalienation.

ThesecondresearchcanberelatedtotheresearchisanarticlewrittenbyMd

Juliyanti |10

Godot”(2012).AccordingtoHaque,inTheStranger,CamusportraysMeursault,the

book's narrator and main character is detached and unemotional. Its theme and

outlookareoftencitedasexamplesofexistentialism.Infact,itscontentexplores

various philosophical schools of thought, including absurdism, as well as

determinism,nihilism,andstoicism.ThroughTheStranger,Camusexploreshisown

philosophy:absurd.Inshort,absurdismsaystheworldisdevoidofrationalmeaning.

Whilein WaitingforGodotHaquesays, it isanabsurdist playthat exploresthe

themes of existentialist philosophy. As Haque says the sheer emptiness and

randomnessoftheplotcausestheaudiencesorthereaderstowonderifanythingis

goingtohappenandwhetherthereisanymeaninginanythingplay,orinlife.Inthis

research, Haque compares dissimilaritiesand resemblances betweenThe Stranger

andWaitingfor Godot.Ineachstory,thecharactersareverydissimilarfromtheir

societyandsimultaneously,theyareveryanalogoustoeachother.IfMeursaultin

TheStrangerdoesnothasanyaimtoprayforGodtosavehissoulwhenheisin

prison,contrastingVladimirandEstragoninWaitingForGodot,whohangaround

severalyearsjustfortheirGod.ThenHaquearguesthat,tohangaroundforsomeone

who isnotgoingtoappearisasmeaninglessasdoingnothingbyanymean,just

similartoMersaultwholivesatthesplitlife.Itmeanswedonotfindmakingany

significanttargetsinlifebyanyofthem.

AnotherrelatedstudyisathesisbyRanySyafrina,anEnglishDepartment

studentofAndalasUniversityPadang.Herthesisisentitled“OrientalistDiscoursein

JosephConrad’s Almayer’s Folly:AStoryofanEasternRiver”(2010).Thisresearch

Juliyanti |11

throughthemaincharacterKasparAlmayer.Shealsoshowstherelationshipbetween

thedirectexperiencesoftheauthortowardhisworkandalsotheOrientalismissues.

According to Rany, there are negative images toward Indonesia and Malaysia:

Indonesian and Malaysian people are groups of primitive people, Malaysia and

Indonesia as unpleasant places, Indonesia and Malaysia as “European’s Others”.

Ranyconsidersthat JosephConrad is oneoftheOrientalist writerswho use his

literaryworkasatooltotellanddeliverhisOrientalistideologies.

1.6.TheTheoreticalFramework

Indoingthisresearch,thewriterappliesPost-colonialcriticismfocusingon

EdwardSaid’stheoryofOrientalism.Post-colonialstudiesstandsattheintersection

ofdebates about race, colonialism, gender, politic and language. The term

Post-colonial is used to find out the impact ofcolonization to the present day.

Post-colonialliterarycriticismisamethodofinvestigating,analyzingandevaluatingwork

ofliteraturewrittenbypeoplewhichistalkaboutpost-colonial.Inothersenses,it

dealswiththereadingand writingofliteraturewritteninpreviouslyorcurrently

colonizedcountries,orliteraturewrittenincolonizingcountrieswhichdealswith

colonizationorcolonizedpeoples.Itcanalsodealwiththewayinwhichliteraturein

colonizingcountriesshapethelanguage,images,scenes,traditionsandsoforthin

colonizedcountries.Itfocusesonthewayinwhichcolonizingculturedistortsthe

experience and realities, and inscribes the inferiority, of the colonized people.

Juliyanti |12

consistsofasetoftheoriesinphilosophyandvariousapproachestoliteraryanalysis

concerningwithliteraturewritteninEnglishincountriesthatarestillcoloniesof

othercountries.

Historically, the beginnings of Postcolonialism’s theoretical and social

concernscanbetracedtothe1950s.Thetermspostcolonial and postcolonialism

firstlyappear inscholarly journals inthe mid-1980sassubtitled intextssuchas

Ashcroft,Griffiths,andTiffin’spreviouslymentionedpowerfulwork,andin1990,in

IanAdamandHelenTiffin’s PasttheLastPost: TheorizingPost-Colonialismand

Post-Modernism. According to Ashcroft, Griffith, and Tiffin in their book Key

ConceptsinPost-ColonialStudies,Post-Colonialismincludesdefinitionsofdiaspora,

fanonism, imperialism, manicheanism, mimicry, negritude, orientalism,

settler-colony,transculturation,andhybridity.InTheWretchedoftheEarth,Fanonargues

thatanentirelynewworldmustcometoovercomethebinarysysteminwhichblack

is evil and white is good. This is a work that highlights the tensions or binary

oppositionsofwhiteversusblack,goodversusevil,andrichversuspoor.Oneofthe

major discussions on postcolonial criticism is colonialist ideology. Tyson says,

“Colonialistideologyisascolonialdiscoursetomarkitsrelationshiptothelanguage

inwhichcolonialistthinkingwasexpressed,wasbasedonthecolonizers’assumption

oftheirownsuperiority”(2006:419).Itmeans colonialist ideologycontainingthe

thinkingofcolonizers(Western)towardthecolonized(Eastern).Oneofpostcolonial

issuesthatareoftendiscussedbysomepeopleisOrientalism,anditisthetermwhat

Juliyanti |13

Orientalism

Inthisresearch,theconceptofOrientalismisusedasthebasictorevealand

todismantlethestrongissuesinTheStrangerwhichdirectlypresentscharactersfrom

two different races, the Frenchand the Arabs. Theconcept ofOrientalism is an

importantterminPostcolonialtheory,thisisthetermpopularizedbyEdwardSaid’s

bookOrientalism,inwhichheexaminestheprocessesbywhichthe‘Orient’is,and

continuestobeconstructedinEuropeanthinking.TheconceptofOrientalismisa

studyconceptofthediscussionaroundthedifferencesbetweenWestandEast,where

it startedfromthebirthofWesternPride. PeopleofEuropeansocietyareproud

towardtheircivilizationandknowledge,theyfeelthattheyarecoveredbythewhole

perfectionassuperpowercountries,themajorandtherightonearoundtheworld

theyarealreadyprogressed,prosperousandnevercolonized.Theyhavemorethings

ineverywaysuchasphysical,race,knowledge,class,andallfeaturesoflife.

Thesepridesbringtheminshapingthedarkjudgmentsandimagestoward

Eastinmanyparts,especiallyArabandIslamcountries,whichareconsideredaslow

quality, passive, uncivilized, exotic, uneducated, barbarian, undeveloped, and so

forth. Meanwhile, Europeans automatically become active, rational, civilized and

sophisticated.InhisbookOrientalism,EdwardSaidrevealsthatthereisaverythick

barrierbetweenWestandEast,wherethebarrierisintentionallymadeonthebasicof

theirbeliefindefiningthemselvesandEastern(Oriental)that“wearedifferent”or

“betweenusandthem”.Thisprideandconfidenceareshownthroughtheliterary

Juliyanti |14

Edward Said, a politically active scholar ofPalestian inthe United States

focusing his analysis about the process of Orientalism throughout his book

Orientalism(1978).ThepracticeofOrientalismispioneeredbyFranceandBritainas

theOldconquerorswheretheytryto dominatetheircolonized byusingcolonial

discourse.Accordingto Said(1978), Orientalismisthecreationofnon-European

stereotypes that suggested so-called Orientals were indolent, thoughtless, sexually

immoral,unreliable,anddemented.Saidnotes,theEuropeanconquerorsbelievethat

theyaccuratelydescribetheinhabitantsoftheirnewlyacquiredlandsin“theEast.”

Mostbroadly,SaiddiscussesOrientalismasthecorporateinstitutionfordealingwith

theOrient‘dealingwithitbymakingstatementsaboutit,authorizingviewsofit,

describingit,byteachingit,settlingit,rulingoverit.Inshort,Orientalismisasthe

Westernstylefordominating,restructuringandhavingtheauthorityovertheOrient’

(Said 1978:3). Inthis sense, it is aclassic exampleofFoucault’sdefinitionofa

discourse. It means that Orientalism is about European strategy to dominate the

colonized.

Inthisconcept,SaiddividesOrientalismbecomestwomajorsortswhichare

calledOccidentandOrient. OccidentreferstoEuropeancountriesespeciallytheOld

conquerors that then dominate the Orient. Orient refers to European colonized

countries, and Islam, which is then assumed as the “Others”. Here, Orientalism

constructstheWest(Occident)asabinaryoppositiontowardstheEast(Orient).The

Orientisnotaninertfactofnaturebutitisaphenomenonconstructedbygenerations

of intellectuals, artists, commentators, writers, politicians, and, more importantly,

Juliyanti |15

stereotypes.TherelationshipbetweentheOccidentandtheOrientisarelationshipof

power,domination,varyingdegreesofacomplexhegemony.Asaresult,theOrient

isalwaysconsideredinferior.SaiddiscussOrientalismasthecorporateinstitutionfor

dealingwiththeOrient,whichmeans“makingstatementaboutit,authorizingviews

of it, describing it, teaching it, settling it, ruling over it” (Ashcroft 167).

Consequently,Orientalistdiscourse,forSaid,ismorevaluableasasignofthepower

exertedbytheWestovertheOrientthana‘true’discourseabouttheOrient.

1.7.TheMethodsoftheResearch

Researchisaprocessofcollecting,analyzingandinterpretinginformationto

answerthequestionsandtofindthetruth.Inconductingtheresearch,thewriterwill

followthreesteps.Theyare:

1.7.1. CollectingtheData

Incollectingthedata,thewriteruseslibraryresearchmethodtocollecttwo

kindsofdata.Thefirstistheprimarydataandthesecondisthesecondarydata.The

primarydataaretakenfromtheliteraryworkitself,TheStranger byAlbertCamus

and secondary data is any information taken from literary theory books, some

journals and articles concerning the novel that are available in the libraries and

Juliyanti |16

1.7.2. AnalyzingtheData

Inanalyzingthedata,thewriterusesdescriptivemethodbyusingsomebooks

andothersourcesthat dealswiththeOrientalismliterarytheory,also usingother

sources and books that deals with Post-colonial literary theory. The descriptive

methodisusedtoidentifyOrientalismissues,especiallytheconceptsofArabian’s

darkdepictionsthroughFrenchperspectivewhichisviewedbyOrientalismapproach,

toseehowFrenchpeopleinAlgeria(astheWestoroccident)considerArabsand

Algeria(asEastorOrient),andtoexaminehowtheauthor’sideologyconceptof

Absurdismrevealsthroughhisnovelandinfluencethefindingmeaningsofthenovel.

ThisEdwardSaid’stheoryisusedtoconductthisanalysis.

1.7.3. PresentingtheResultAnalysis

Inpresentingtheresultofanalysis,thedescriptivemethodisappliedsincethe

research is a qualitative one. In Qualitative Research for Education, Robert C.

BodganandBiklensaid,“Qualitativeresearchisdescriptive,thecollecteddataisin

theformwordsorpicturesratherthannumbers.Thewrittenresultoftheresearch

containsquotationfromthedatatoillustrateandsubstantiatethepresentations...”.

(2006:20).Itshowsthatthedataareelaboratedthroughwords,notinformofpictures