A person is forced to live with a feeling of fear, in a state of hopelessness and despair. This slogan of the existentialists was consonant with the views of Albert Camus. The French writer was in search all his life, seeking to find the support of human existence in a world that was tormented by contradictions.
From the biography of Albert Camus
Camus was born on November 7, 1913. His mother was born in Spain, his father was a native of Alsace. Memories of childhood aroused painful feelings in Albert. The Camus family was not very wealthy. My father worked at a winery. He subsequently died during the First World War at the Battle of the Marne River.
Left without reliable support, the Camus family found themselves on the brink of poverty. This period of his life Albert subsequently reflected in his books "The Wrong Side and the Face" and "Marriage".
Health problems were added to the constant need - Albert suffered from tuberculosis from childhood. However, a serious illness and a sad life did not discourage the boy from the desire for knowledge. He successfully graduated from high school and entered the University of Algiers, the Faculty of Philosophy. The student years had a direct impact on the formation of the life position of the future writer. For a while, he even was a member of the Communist Party.
It was during his studies that Camus created the first collection of his stories. He got the name "Islands". Albert's work was influenced by his acquaintance with the works of Heidegger and Kierkegaard. At one time he was fond of Dostoevsky. And he even played the role of Ivan Karamazov in an amateur production.
After graduating from university, Camus traveled a lot. Camus did not go to the front during World War II due to illness. In this difficult period, he leads an eventful creative life.
In 1934, Camus got married. But the writer's personal life was not happy. His chosen one was Simone Iye, a 19-year-old girl with oddities who turned out to be a morphine addict. In 1939, the marriage broke up.
Subsequently, the second wife of Camus was Francine Faure, a mathematician by training. Two children soon appeared in the writer's family - twins Catherine and Jean.
Camus and his "Plague"
In 1941, Camus lived in Paris and earned a living by private lessons. At the same time, he was a member of an underground group. In the initial period of the war, the writer created one of his most famous works, called "The Plague". The novel was published only in 1947. In the book, Camus reflected the events that took place in Paris during its occupation by the Nazis.
The novel is distinguished by a complex symbolic form. The plague comes suddenly. Residents of the city are forced to leave their homes. However, there are those who believe that the terrible epidemic is punishment sent down from above. You don't need to run and fight, you need to feel humility. This is the position of the pastor, one of the heroes of the book. But the death of an innocent child forces the pastor to reconsider his position. People take action to save themselves. And the terrible plague that symbolizes fascism is receding.
For this work, Albert Camus received the Nobel Prize.
At the center of Camus's work are almost always the problems of human existence, which the writer finds absurd. The author considers attempts to improve society through the use of violence to be the highest embodiment of this absurdity. Camus has a negative attitude towards fascism and Stalinism. Albert Camus's books are imbued with the idea that it is impossible to defeat evil. Any attempt to resist violence breeds more evil.
Camus in the postwar years
After the end of the war against fascism, Camus works as a freelance journalist. However, the writer does not seek to participate in political organizations. In the postwar years, Camus created a number of dramatic works. One of them that has become very popular is The Righteous. The author is occupied with a problem that worried many of his contemporaries: he considers a person's disagreement to live according to the rules of society. At the center of some of his works is the "rebellious man."
Albert Camus died tragically on January 4, 1960 in Provence. His life was cut short by a car accident. Later, researchers of Camus' work put forward a version according to which the writer fell victim to the activities of the Soviet special services. However, experts in his biography consider this version to be absurd.
