Reviews with content warning for Gun violence - The Plague

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Reviews tagging 'Gun violence'

The Plague by Albert Camus

11 reviews

linashnewer's review against another edition

3.5

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: N/A

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Content Warnings

jataraxia's review against another edition

5.0

dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

Content Warnings

honeyvoiced's review against another edition

3.0

medium-paced

Diverse cast of characters: No

Content Warnings

tisthedamnzuzia's review against another edition

w sensie no to było ok ale nic tam się nie działo

Content Warnings

changbineyeskz's review against another edition

4.5

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

Content Warnings

agnesiana's review against another edition

4.75

dark hopeful medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

Content Warnings

kibiiiariii's review against another edition

4.0

dark emotional informative reflective sad slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

Content Warnings

thevampiremars's review against another edition

4.5

dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Reading The Plague in the midst of a pandemic is an odd experience. It’s hard to say whether it makes the story more impactful or less. The idea of a city going into lockdown isn’t particularly shocking to me now, but, at the same time, I can appreciate the accuracy of the depiction in a way I wouldn’t have been able to previously.

At the heart of the story is Camus’s absurdist philosophy. I’m not being hyperbolic when I say it has genuinely changed my life. I’ve often struggled with hopelessness and pessimism, so the insistence on fighting losing battles – on knowing you can’t fix the world but doing the best you can regardless – was something I took to heart. This philosophy most obviously manifests in the actions and beliefs of the protagonists (“Your victories will always be temporary, that’s all.” [...] “Always, I know that. But that is not a reason to give up the struggle.”) but there’s also something to be said about the way it intertwines with other themes. Take language, for instance. There is initially some debate over whether or not the plague should be called a plague, the citizens of Oran struggle to verbalise their anguish when the city is quarantined, and Grand is stuck writing and rewriting the first line of his novel. Words are not enough to accurately describe the human experience, but we try to communicate with them anyway. The irony of this message being conveyed through a work of literature does not escape me.

Speaking of language, my copy of The Plague features a sub-par translation, and I’m going to attribute the clunky sentence structure and wonky grammar to overly-literal translation from French to English. Nevertheless, Camus’s skill as a writer shines through. Something I picked up on was the way he set the mood through careful pacing. The book starts off slow and meandering when discussing the banality of life in Oran before the plague, then pivots to quick, urgent clauses when the plague strikes. It’s masterful.

There are some aspects of the book which deserve criticism (for example, women exist only in their relationships to men) but there’s also so much to love. I think this is the best novel I’ve ever read? I will definitely be checking out the rest of Camus’s work.

Hats off, gentlemen!

Content Warnings