Carnival as Self-Help: Discussing a Rebellious Spirit in Camus’ L’Étranger
Abstract
This paper challenges the dominant interpretation of Meursault in L’Étranger as a passive absurdist, arguing instead that he performs a nonverbal, carnivalesque form of existential rebellion. Drawing on Albert Camus’ theory of the absurd and Mikhail Bakhtin’s theory of carnival and grotesque realism, the study proposes a three-stage model of Meursault’s defiance: his initial refusal of symbolic norms, his construction of a second world rooted in bodily sensation, and his final affirmation of death as a meaningful end. The grotesque and sensory elements in Meursault’s perception displace abstract morality, revealing a rebellion enacted not through rhetoric, but through embodied experience. The courtroom, far from subjugating him, becomes a stage for non-cooperation and existential autonomy. Ultimately, Meursault emerges as a carnival figure who says both “no” to imposed meaning and “yes” to the material rhythms of life. His revolt is not rhetorical but visceral—a grotesque affirmation of life under the shadow of death.
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