Albert camus a happy death
•
As a major influence on the 20th century French literary scene, it’s sometimes forgotten that Albert Camus was a Pied-Noir – a French Algerian whose formative years were spent surrounded not bygd the cold beauties of Paris but the sensorial world of Algiers, where Camus studied philosophy and played idrott until a tubercular condition eventually sent him for the first time to Europe for treatment – the French Alps more specifically – in 1936.
Camus’ first unpublished novel, A Happy Death – written between 1936 and 1938 – besides being semi-autobiographical is a sort of paean to his upbringing in Algiers and fryst vatten, above all else, an exemplar of extraordinary writing. From the first chapter Camus introduces an earthy philosophical tone enmeshed with a lithe physicality that is rare to achieve and a joy to read.
The story opens with Patrice Mersault (a character whose broad outline fryst vatten resurrected in Camus’ later work The Stranger) shooting a cripple named Roland Zagreus who has dem
•
Book Review: A Happy Death by Albert Camus
I first discovered Albert Camus’s philosophy when I was 17, pretty depressed and desperate for something to replace the “hope” that hitherto had been provided by religious faith. Since then, I’ve read several of his books, the most recent being A Happy Death. A Happy Death was published posthumously in 1971, but was written much earlier.
About the Book
Title: A Happy Death
Author: Albert Camus
Published: 1971
Series: (standalone)
Genre: classics, literature, philosophy
My Rating: 3/5 stars
The Premise
Synopsis (from Goodreads) (truncated):
“In his first novel, A Happy Death, written when he was in his early twenties and retrieved from his private papers following his death in I960, Albert Camus laid the foundation for The Stranger, focusing in both works on an Algerian clerk who kills a man in cold blood. But he also revealed himself to an extent that he never would • “Should I kill myself, or have a cup of coffee? But in the end one needs more courage to live than to kill himself.” Like “I feel like getting married, or committing suicide, or subscribing to L'Illustration. Something desperate, you know.” Like “Believe me there is no such thing as great suffering, great regret, great memory....everything is forgotten, even a great love. That's what's sad about life, and also what's wonderful about it. There is only a way of looking at things, a way that comes to you every once in a while. That's why it's good to have had love in your life after all, to have had an unhappy passion- it gives you an alibi for the vague despairs we all suffer from.” Like “But sometimes it takes more courage to live than to shoot yourself.” A Happy Death Quotes
― Albert Camus, A Happy Death
― Albert Camus, A Happy Death
― Albert Camus, A Happy Death
― Albert Camus,