The Stranger: Part One, Chapter Six (Part Two)
In the second part of chapter six of The Stranger, while Mersault, Raymond and Masson are walking on the beach they notice that the group of Arabs that was staring at them at the bus stop is now following them. The heat seems to be unbearable, illustrated by Mersault’s statement that he couldn’t even think because of the sun beating on his head. Raymond devices a plan in which he’ll handle his ex girlfriend’s brother and Masson and Mersault are to handle the other men if a confrontation were to occur, but Mersault is not paying attention and instead focuses on how the sand looks red. This foreshadows the violence that is to come and will taint the sand with blood. When the Arabs catch up to them, Raymond approaches one of the men and says something to him that Mersault cannot make out but seems offensive. Raymond punches the man, and Masson’s punches the other one. Masson’s guy lays unconscious on the ground, but Raymond’s man pulls out a knife and manages to stab him in the arm. After this, the Arabs stand up, holding the knife before them, and run away. This scene illustrates how, although Raymond has been trying to convince the other men that he is the victim, it is apparent that he is the one who started the confrontation by saying the first words and hitting first. Moreover, this conveys the idea that the Arab stabbed Raymond in self-defense.
Albert Camus and Absurdism 