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Michelle Acabado

English IV AP – Eighth

October 9, 2013

Jennings

Justice and Truth

Justice, in the simplest of terms as it is known among humans, is the principle of 

using laws to fairly deal with the crimes of others. In the retrospect of Albert Camus,

however, there is no such way to fairly deal with the crimes of others and to have faith in

the so-called system of justice and truth. Concepts such as self-righteousness of man,

 pragmatism, absurdism and moral revolt show through his writing that Camus believes

that justice and truth are very human and unjustifiable constructs. To him, doling out

 punishment is meaningless, irrelevant, and hypocritical.

Every law written, every piece of sophistication in the branches of judicial

systems, every verdict that has been set upon the head of criminals – those have all come

from the minds of humans. Their creation may have been wrought with good intent, but

in the end, self-righteousness of the human race is what drives punishment. In Camus’

essay “Reflections on the Guillotine”, the topic of debate and disgust is capital

 punishment. Although statistically ineffective, as Camus points out the lack of change in

crime and death, those with authority continue to utilize it, believing it to bring a kind of 

equivalency. The author criticizes this claim, noting that it hurts the families of convicts

 just as much as families of victims. In spite of the sin committed, the convict is still

human, just as his assessors. In “The Fall”, Camus’ protagonist, Jean-Baptiste, discovers

that mortals judge each other to avoid judgment themselves, to preserve their innocence

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(which can be supported by Camus’ “The Rebel”) , and in turn, become hypocrites. There

is no justice in that, according to Camus. Everyone is guilty somehow.

Over the years, humans have been under the impression that all actions have

consequences that legitimize or cancel it. However, pragmatism and absurdism showed

that perspectives and systems of most of society are not necessary and contradict

 punishment. In “The Absurd Man”, Camus refers to his leaning towards absurdism,

saying that everything is permitted and integrity has no need of rules. Additionally, his

essay, “The Myth of Sisyphus”, Sisyphus does not work towards a goal, does not wish for 

his punishment to end, but merely labors for the sake of labor. He sees a different light

through his torment. He negates the gods’ punishment, in a way, by taking his own fate

and does things of his own accord as best as he can.

It is imperative to note the reaction of humans to other beings that react in such a

way that Sisyphus does, especially in the case of Monsieur Meursault, the character of 

interest in The Stranger. A defensive and organized stance caused by absurdity and

injustice brings an almost moral revolt by humans. In the scene where Meursault is on

trial, the prosecutor does not manipulate words directed towards a judge and jury to

convict Meursault of his actual crime so much as his lack of reactions to life. His

 personality becomes a different entity, dissociating from his crime. The prosecutor claims

that he must look above the virtue of tolerance in the face of justice. Meursault’s lack of 

Christian faith and common emotion brings great bias in the court, and though he sinned

through the killing of the Arab, these traits do not favor him.

Camus, through his life’s experiences and travels, gained much knowledge from

 philosophers such as Sartre and Kierkegaard. His pragmatism and absurdism came from a

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humble background and after many encounters with different countries and religious

 beliefs. His various essays and novels dealt with topics that he never ceased to discuss

until his dying day – justice, truth, the absurd. As he witnessed the self-righteousness of 

man and moral revolt as well as the aforementioned pragmatism and absurdism, he began

to lose faith in the mortal system of justice, and realized that it was all for naught.