Friday, May 13, 2022

Existential Crisis & Absurdity in Madame Bovary, The Metamorphosis, The Outsider, A Doll’s House and The Cherry Orchard

 

Madame Bovary

Considering luxury as the essence of life, Madame Bovary faces an existential crisis when she becomes unable to meet the luxuries out of loans as well as doesn’t get a way to come out of the loan. This purposelessness in life leads her to take the absurd action of committing suicide.

The Metamorphosis

Samsa puts more emphasis on his family than on her basic existential needs, be it physical or psychological. He faces existential crisis twice as he turns into some other animal losing the essence of humanity in his life, and as his family throws him away at this metamorphosis taking away his sole purpose of existence.

The Outsider

Meursault’s absurd beliefs are that life is meaningless and without purpose. He doesn’t believe in the essences of life or the afterlife that society and religion attach to humanity. He just aims at moving through whatever comes before him without any moral or other types of reasons or responsibilities or expectations. All his attempts and hardships just turn out to be totally absurd.

A Doll’s House

Nora understands her whole existence as Mrs. Helmer, a mother and wife, vulnerable, and useless, only other than the single success in saving her husband’s life. This image of her identity makes her think that her husband is going to sacrifice to protect her. When just the opposite happens, she faces extreme existential crisis and identity crisis. Her whole life, home, and attempts turned absurd.

The Cherry Orchard

The aristocratic characters simply find their identity in their family’s past glory, and so holding on to the state and the orchard becomes the sole purpose of their existence. As a result, selling the orchard threatens their existence and the meaning of life. Furs are the most affected character as he serves feudalism at the expense of any personal achievement, and now the whole system cannot simply leave him alone. Life without this service as an ultimate truth would be absurd for him.

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