Joseph Grand in a way personifies the inaudible nature of the plague. He can never find words to express himself in just the right way. His problem is further demonstrated in his inability to write a letter to Jeanne and the creation of his novel, or lack thereof. The people of the town become more withdrawn and silent as the plague moves in because they, like Grand, can't figure out how to explain to others their pain of suffering and loss.
The plague is not only silent in that it causes people to be so, but it also comes and goes without a sound. Grand, near the end of the story, surprisingly contracts the plague, but recovers. Strangely enough, as the plague begins to disappear, not only from the town, but from Grand, Grand becomes more communicative. At the end of the book, he announces that he's sent a letter to Jeanne and he will persevere with his novel.
Grand shows that if the plague, essentially death, didn't silence him, what should keep him from being quiet? His preoccupation with finding the perfect way to convey his thoughts and feelings is no longer as critical as it was. He realizes that by spending so much time agonizing over each word, he almost missed the chance to express his true ideas. By the end, Grand understands that death is subsequent and that simply getting any word out is important before his time is up.
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Father Paneloux
The Father uses the plague to his advantage, much like the theater and café entrepreneurs. He preaches in his infamous sermon during the Week of Prayer that the plague is the result of continuous sin; the punishment is death. However, the Father gets caught up in the means of death and doesn't really understand what the fatality of the plague is.
Death is inevitable no matter how you live your life, whether you get the plague or not. Paneloux knows this as all people do, just subconsciously. It is human instinct to survive, to fight death. Paneloux clearly illustrates this desire to live in the message of his sermon. He tells the people of Oran to repent and live sinless lives; that way they will be saved from the plague and saved from death.
The Father's primal instinct to survive is not unlike the attitude of the rest of the people in the town. Paneloux simply draws heavily on what he knows best, which is religion. The way he presents his method of survival, by ignorantly attempting to elude death completely, causes a shortage in attendance at his next sermon.
Death is inevitable no matter how you live your life, whether you get the plague or not. Paneloux knows this as all people do, just subconsciously. It is human instinct to survive, to fight death. Paneloux clearly illustrates this desire to live in the message of his sermon. He tells the people of Oran to repent and live sinless lives; that way they will be saved from the plague and saved from death.
The Father's primal instinct to survive is not unlike the attitude of the rest of the people in the town. Paneloux simply draws heavily on what he knows best, which is religion. The way he presents his method of survival, by ignorantly attempting to elude death completely, causes a shortage in attendance at his next sermon.
Monday, April 12, 2010
Raymond Rambert
Rambert is almost opposite of Rieux in his understanding of the plague. His extreme attempts to escape the diseased town show his desperate will to live and love. While the story illustrates very clearly in section two that many people feel this way, Rambert sees himself as above the others because he's not a native, he's a journalist, and because the love for his wife is so profound. For a majority of the story, Rambert does not comprehend the unbiased character of the plague.
On the other hand, Rambert realizes how "sneaky" the plague is. It is clear to him that he must get out and go far away if he is to be safe from the plague. He tries every means possible of escape: first the authorities, then he tries to pull strings, and last he turns to illegal methods. Because he is so desperate in his effort to leave the realm of the unpredictable, he views those who know the plague to be unbiased as unsympathetic, hardened people who can't understand his special circumstances.
Only when Rambert learns of Rieux's wife who is 100 miles away and dying does Rambert grasp the disease's nature. Suffering caused by the plague is collective; it does not single out a selective few. It is the same as the sickness itself that can go anywhere it pleases; therefore, everyone must be on alert. Once Rambert comprehends this concept, he puts his newly gained knowledge into action by joining the anti-plague effort, a collective initiative to rid the whole town of the plague, not just himself.
On the other hand, Rambert realizes how "sneaky" the plague is. It is clear to him that he must get out and go far away if he is to be safe from the plague. He tries every means possible of escape: first the authorities, then he tries to pull strings, and last he turns to illegal methods. Because he is so desperate in his effort to leave the realm of the unpredictable, he views those who know the plague to be unbiased as unsympathetic, hardened people who can't understand his special circumstances.
Only when Rambert learns of Rieux's wife who is 100 miles away and dying does Rambert grasp the disease's nature. Suffering caused by the plague is collective; it does not single out a selective few. It is the same as the sickness itself that can go anywhere it pleases; therefore, everyone must be on alert. Once Rambert comprehends this concept, he puts his newly gained knowledge into action by joining the anti-plague effort, a collective initiative to rid the whole town of the plague, not just himself.
Dr. Bernard Rieux
The doctor is an interesting character; he, as the narrator and a character, attempts to be objective in his view of the plague because he understands its unbiased nature. He already is an objective man as a doctor because he sees all sorts of patients and is simply concerned with their health, not their ranking in the hierarchy of man-kind.
His objectivity intensifies with the progression of the plague. He even appears unfeeling according to Raymond Rambert in the middle of the story, but in truth he only tries to hide his personal emotions (regarding the health of his wife) in order to be more sympathetic toward his patients. Eventually this proves to be too overwhelming as the number of cases and deaths increases; in order for him to be successful in helping other people health-wise, he can't also take care of each one emotionally.
The elusive, deadly nature of the plague is what affects Dr. Rieux. Having to push aside his own problems to deal with the unrelenting, unpredictable, ever-growing problem of the masses hardens his heart because he must continually fight the plague for other people's sake. He has to rid himself of the emotion to feel for himself so that he might feel something for others; however, once one can no longer conjure emotion privately, one can no longer conjure it publicly.
His objectivity intensifies with the progression of the plague. He even appears unfeeling according to Raymond Rambert in the middle of the story, but in truth he only tries to hide his personal emotions (regarding the health of his wife) in order to be more sympathetic toward his patients. Eventually this proves to be too overwhelming as the number of cases and deaths increases; in order for him to be successful in helping other people health-wise, he can't also take care of each one emotionally.
The elusive, deadly nature of the plague is what affects Dr. Rieux. Having to push aside his own problems to deal with the unrelenting, unpredictable, ever-growing problem of the masses hardens his heart because he must continually fight the plague for other people's sake. He has to rid himself of the emotion to feel for himself so that he might feel something for others; however, once one can no longer conjure emotion privately, one can no longer conjure it publicly.
Sunday, April 11, 2010
The Plague
First we must describe the plague. Though it's not human nor a concrete object, it still affects the characters in this book as a ghost does the residents of a haunted house.
The plague is unbiased; it attacks rich and poor, black and white, and male and female. It is elusive in more ways than one; it can't be well defined, so no one can really fight it because they don't know what it is. Also, it can't be caught and contained. No one knows when and where it will strike next because it has no bounds. The plague is silent and invisible as well; there is no audible or visible signal that goes off when it hits, making it even harder to detect.
The last, if not most important, characteristic of the plague is that it is fatal. Those who come into contact with it have almost no chance of survival. The combination of these traits is what causes the reactions of the people in the story - the unbiased, elusive, invisible, silent nature of the deadly disease creates emotions of every sort among the characters. And this is what makes the story interesting: because the plague is not really living and is no real being, the characters act the way they do in response to their own primal natures.
The plague is unbiased; it attacks rich and poor, black and white, and male and female. It is elusive in more ways than one; it can't be well defined, so no one can really fight it because they don't know what it is. Also, it can't be caught and contained. No one knows when and where it will strike next because it has no bounds. The plague is silent and invisible as well; there is no audible or visible signal that goes off when it hits, making it even harder to detect.
The last, if not most important, characteristic of the plague is that it is fatal. Those who come into contact with it have almost no chance of survival. The combination of these traits is what causes the reactions of the people in the story - the unbiased, elusive, invisible, silent nature of the deadly disease creates emotions of every sort among the characters. And this is what makes the story interesting: because the plague is not really living and is no real being, the characters act the way they do in response to their own primal natures.
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