Life of Camus
By Dominique Pettway
Albert Camus was born in 1913 and raised in the French colony of Algeria. His father was killed shortly after that, so he grew up without a present father figure. He lived alone with his mother who was impoverished and struggled to provide for her children.
Camus was an excellent student and athlete during his childhood and he followed his academic curiosity to a university setting. During his college years at the University of Algiers, his primary focus was on philosophy, of which many aspects are found in his works of literature. Camus was first exposed to theater during this period in his life, which prompted him to begin writing his own plays.
After Camus’ college years, he became very involved politically. He joined the Communist party in 1934, however, he only stayed for about 3 years. He eventually decided that the views of that party were not his own. He began work for the Alger-Republican, an anti-colonialist newspaper, in 1938, reporting on the state of the Muslims in the area, which caught the attention of the local Algerian government. He was advised by the government to leave Algeria, as he was declared a “threat to national security”. This attention prompted his move to Paris in 1940, however he returned to Algeria shortly after due to Germany’s invasion of France during World War II.
Camus was married for a short time before his stay in Paris, but was quickly divorced. Upon Camus’ return, he was married again to a young lady named Francine Faure. He maintained numerous relations with other women during this marriage, though he writes in The Notebooks (a previous work) that he wanted to remain faithful but was unable to do so.
Camus contracted tuberculosis during the time that World War II took place, which disqualified him for the military draft. During this time, Camus took the opportunity to voice his opposition to the war. He adamantly claimed pacifism as the best approach to conflict. During this time, he also very actively wrote many of the works for which he is known for today, and that embrace his absurd philosophy.
In 1942 Camus published The Stranger, and its deep philosophical roots drew the attention of many intellectuals at the time. His philosophical style, absurdism, caused others to put him in the same category as other existentialist philosophers, such as Jean Paul Sartre, but he did not consider himself an existentialist.
Camus continued writing in his later years and won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1957. On January 4th, 1960, he was killed in a fatal car accident.
Works Cited
Bloom, Harold. Albert Camus / Edited And With An Introduction By Harold Bloom. n.p.: Philadelphia : Chelsea House Publishers, 2003., 2003. GrayCat. Web. 18 May 2015.
McLemee, Scott. "Biography Of Albert Camus." Critical Insights: Albert Camus (2011): 18-24. Literary Reference Center. Web. 18 May 2015.
"Albert Camus - Biography." Albert Camus. The European Graduate School, n.d. Web. 18 May 2015.
Camus was an excellent student and athlete during his childhood and he followed his academic curiosity to a university setting. During his college years at the University of Algiers, his primary focus was on philosophy, of which many aspects are found in his works of literature. Camus was first exposed to theater during this period in his life, which prompted him to begin writing his own plays.
After Camus’ college years, he became very involved politically. He joined the Communist party in 1934, however, he only stayed for about 3 years. He eventually decided that the views of that party were not his own. He began work for the Alger-Republican, an anti-colonialist newspaper, in 1938, reporting on the state of the Muslims in the area, which caught the attention of the local Algerian government. He was advised by the government to leave Algeria, as he was declared a “threat to national security”. This attention prompted his move to Paris in 1940, however he returned to Algeria shortly after due to Germany’s invasion of France during World War II.
Camus was married for a short time before his stay in Paris, but was quickly divorced. Upon Camus’ return, he was married again to a young lady named Francine Faure. He maintained numerous relations with other women during this marriage, though he writes in The Notebooks (a previous work) that he wanted to remain faithful but was unable to do so.
Camus contracted tuberculosis during the time that World War II took place, which disqualified him for the military draft. During this time, Camus took the opportunity to voice his opposition to the war. He adamantly claimed pacifism as the best approach to conflict. During this time, he also very actively wrote many of the works for which he is known for today, and that embrace his absurd philosophy.
In 1942 Camus published The Stranger, and its deep philosophical roots drew the attention of many intellectuals at the time. His philosophical style, absurdism, caused others to put him in the same category as other existentialist philosophers, such as Jean Paul Sartre, but he did not consider himself an existentialist.
Camus continued writing in his later years and won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1957. On January 4th, 1960, he was killed in a fatal car accident.
Works Cited
Bloom, Harold. Albert Camus / Edited And With An Introduction By Harold Bloom. n.p.: Philadelphia : Chelsea House Publishers, 2003., 2003. GrayCat. Web. 18 May 2015.
McLemee, Scott. "Biography Of Albert Camus." Critical Insights: Albert Camus (2011): 18-24. Literary Reference Center. Web. 18 May 2015.
"Albert Camus - Biography." Albert Camus. The European Graduate School, n.d. Web. 18 May 2015.