ant wrote:Some good thoughts and a great quote from the book.

The real plague actually exists in the heart of the common man.

i need to stop right there because you arent quite finished yet.

i need to ask you your opinion on a few of the characters.

OK man I've finished. Let's hear it!

I'm reading Pandora's Grave, by Stephen M. England. Very good so far! Before that, I read Hunter, by Robert Bidinotto. Really enjoyed that one!

James

James D. Kellogg
Author of Radical Action: A Colt Kelley Thriller

Since I read and write thriller novels dealing with epidemics, I decided to read “The Plague” by Albert Camus. What struck me right off was this was not a thriller novel dealing with the microorganism that causes an epidemic. Instead it was about how the various characters handle a situation where a plague causes the isolation of a city.
Also, I found the writing style quite interesting. The author uses the omniscient point of view to allow a narrator to tell the story. The narrator also uses quotes from the various characters plus referring to a journal of one of the character to move the story along.
But like I said before, the reader is shown how the characters react to being quarantined and cut off from the rest of the world. This allows the author to get in a lot of philosophical and theological ideas to play around with in how his various characters act in response to the plague. With out a doubt this novel is well written. I can see why Albert Camus received a Nobel Prize in Literature in 1957.
I enjoyed reading this novel, even though it was not a thriller like "Outbreak" by Robin Cook.

I've finished listening to it (audiobook) and rather enjoyed it. I'm going to give it a second listen today.

The perceptions at the end of the book - 'real life' verses the superficiality that the general public strive to return was rather apt. It reminds me of the lifeboat scenarios where you had to decide who gets on the boat or not... but my personal perception is that we are always in a lifeboat scenario; but with just a much, much larger boat. So it become an out of sight out of mind condition.

My favorite moment/scene is in which Tarrou and Rieux go for a late night swim.

Gentlemen, hats off!'

Thanks very much Brian for drawing attention to this old thread. Your point on superficiality reflects the existential themes that Camus was famous for - how problems like plague force us to confront reality when we would prefer to live in a comforting fantasy.

As I mentioned on the Coronavirus thread, I would like to discuss the relevance of The Plague to the psychological and social issues arising from the current pandemic. I think it would be a great Booktalk fiction selection.

The Plague is available at this link for free as a pdf.