What does it take to be happy? For centuries philosophers have been puzzling over this essential question. Yet no matter how much thought is put into it, no one has been able to figure out a set formula. Ideas for what it takes to feel fulfilled in life vary not just from person to person, but by time period as well. The common ideas of what happiness looks like and how to achieve it are impacted by the historical events that take place. We can see this through the author's interpretations of what it takes to be happy. Literature gives us a glimpse into the sort of things authors of the time valued and appreciated, such as in The Stranger and The Alchemist, two books written at very different times with very different philosophical ideals. While both Meursault and Santiago, the protagonists of these stories, are ultimately able to reach fulfillment, the ideologies they each follow to get there are starkly different. This changing belief about the path to happiness reflects the sentiments of the time they were written, illustrating how popular philosophy is influenced by the events of the era.
The devastation of WWII changed the world. It changed international relations, political systems, and especially the lives of everyday people in Europe and Asia. It may have also changed the way people viewed their lives and their role on this earth. It was just after this war that the concept of “absurdism” began to be discussed. It saw the rise of absurdist thinkers and artists, such as Albert Camus, and his famous novel, The Stranger, about the seemingly detached and impassive Meursault. This aloof nature is made apparent to the reader in the opening lines as he states: “Maman died today. Or maybe it was yesterday” (Camus 1). From then on, he sets off on a whirlwind journey of revelation, where he commits the murder of the character known as “the Arab” and is sentenced to death for his crime. In his essay, "Reading Camus in an Age of Absurdity: Toward a Constructive Reading of the Stranger,” Brent C. Sleasman calls the story a “character’s failure to engage life in a ‘common sense’ fashion” as Meursault repeatedly fails to respond in traditional ways to the world around him, rejecting all social norms and social graces, even about serious matters like staying awake at his mother’s vigil. The culmination of this story occurs when he makes peace with his inevitable death and is able to rejoice in his life and place in the world, christening the expression of the “gentle indifference of the world” (Camus 122). After all, the pain in his life was not caused by some sort of malevolent god, but “unpredictable chance, “le hasard” (Longstaffe). The path he followed was not a gift or chance to better understand the world, but a series of random occurrences thrust upon him. Yet, he is content with the futility of what he has accomplished, because he realizes that every decision, he made was ultimately pointless, as his death was always approaching anyway. This is a plain example of the absurdist philosophy, essentially the idea that there is no meaning in the universe and to search for it is a waste - rather a person must devote themselves to their existence as it is and finding passion and happiness within it.
Far from the darkness and terror of post WWII, Paulo Coehlo was writing a very different story. The Alchemist, a parable about a man named Santiago who embarks on a quest to accomplish his personal legend, connects with principles of “New Age Spiritualism '' which emerged in the 1970s. Unlike absurdism, new age spiritualism was guided by the central idea of a high power and purpose to life. Known as the “human potential movement”, new age spiritualism is described by Sara Constantakis as “a belief that the ordinary understanding of reality sets artificial limits on the abilities of the individual spirit”. This is in direct contrast with the principles of the absurdist philosophy, where acceptance of reality was necessary to reach any sort of gratification. The alchemist displays this through Santiago's journey to find happiness. He initially is lost within the world, believing himself gratified as a shepherd, yet wishing for more. Unlike The Stranger, Santiago is at once set apart as one of a chosen few. He is not part of the general public, like Meursault. His is not a story of finding happiness in the way things are, but how it could be. He is pushed to find joy through a series of trials. The people Santiago meets on his journey act as a kind of “spiritual guide” for him, a popular concept within new age spiritualism. These all-knowing beings “are willing to lead special, chosen individuals to their own enlightenment”, for example, the Alchemist who trains him in the art of alchemy until he is able to turn himself into the wind (Constantakis). He comes to the understanding that “when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it” (Coehlo 24). Coehlo emphasized the idea that the universe is willing to help you in the pursuit of your personal legend, so long as you are putting in the effort to achieve it and don't give up in the face of adversity. By the end of the story, Santiago has finally become aware of what truly brings him peace and though the treasure he has been working so hard to find is finally his, the love he has found and his new connection with the world around him is truly priceless.
Though it is easy to point out the differences between The Alchemist and The Stranger, we must consider what may have caused this. Why does Camus address the world with indifference and meaninglessness while Coehlo embraces the optimistic view of a fated purpose?
Well not only do they follow different ideologies, but they both have had to face very different worlds. Camus is addressing a world fresh from one of the worst atrocities ever committed. France specifically had been wrenched from its previous way of life and made prisoners in their own country. It’s difficult to imagine there is a greater force out there “conspiring for your happiness” after seeing the pain and loss caused by the largest genocide in human history.
Coelho on the other hand was a child during the aftermath of WWII, halfway across the world from the tragedy. His major life experience was one of peace and prosperity. He was a known “hippie”, reveling in the drug culture of the 70s and spending his days in the tropics of south America. Therefore, his belief in a greater power and the comforting notion of a greater purpose is much easier to maintain than it would’ve been for the war torn peoples of 1940’s Europe (Goodyear).
So why do these two very different authors writing two very different books even matter? Well, as Dana Goodyear writes “Coelho’s narratives and self-help books have the same fundamental effect”, and The Stranger is the same - in a sense. Both books offer examples of successful ideologies that lead their protagonists to happiness, which is generally considered the main objective of life. However, which is the right one to follow? Who is to be believed? Both? Neither? Today, with the covid pandemic and the ever looming issue of climate change, we find ourselves approaching an absurdist society once more. It has become commonplace for adults and teenagers alike to use the rational “we’re just hurtling through space on a floating rock” and “the planet is dying, does any of this really matter anyway?” As Sleasman claims, “If one holds a viewpoint that the world is stable and secure, then moments like the Sandy Hook shooting serve as reminders that human beings are at the mercy of absurd moments”. The comforting ideals of fifty years ago are no longer appealing to the general public. Perhaps, if we were to accept the aimlessness of life and the definiteness of death the way Meursault does, we too could lead fuller and untroubled lives.
Works Cited
"The Alchemist." Novels for Students, edited by Sara Constantakis, vol. 29, Gale, 2009, pp. 20-44. Gale eBooks, link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX2278200013/GVRL?u=lom_troyhs&sid=bookmark-GVRL&xid=7b511a96. Accessed 8 Jan. 2023.
Camus, Albert, and Matthew Ward. The Stranger. New York City, Vintage International, 1989.
Coelho, Paulo, et al. The Alchemist. 25th ed., New York City, HarperOne, 2014.
Feuerlicht, Ignace. "Camus?s L?etranger Reconsidered." Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism, edited by Lawrence J. Trudeau, vol. 356, Farmington Hills, MI, Gale, 2018. Gale Literature Resource Center, link.gale.com/apps/doc/H1420124659/LitRC?u=lom_macombtgps&sid=bookmark-LitRC&xid=007431c4. Accessed 8 Jan. 2023. Originally published in PMLA, vol. 78, no. 5, 1963, pp. 606-21.
Goodyear, Dana. "The Magus: The astonishing appeal of Paulo Coelho." The New Yorker, 30 Apr. 2007, www.newyorker.com/magazine/2007/05/07/the-magus. Accessed 8 Jan. 2023.
Longstaffe, Moya. "A Happy Life and a Happy Death: The Quest of Camus?s Étranger." Short Story Criticism, edited by Rebecca Parks, vol. 297, Farmington Hills, MI, Gale, 2021. Gale Literature Resource Center, link.gale.com/apps/doc/H1420129539/LitRC?u=lom_macombtgps&sid=bookmark-LitRC&xid=c4ffdce4. Accessed 4 Jan. 2023. Originally published in The French Review, vol. 64, no. 1, 1990, pp. 54-68.
Sleasman, Brent C. "Reading Camus in an Age of Absurdity: Toward a Constructive Reading of the Stranger." Short Story Criticism, edited by Rebecca Parks, vol. 297, Farmington Hills, MI, Gale, 2021. Gale Literature Resource Center, link.gale.com/apps/doc/H1420129547/LitRC?u=lom_macombtgps&sid=bookmark-LitRC&xid=1a4622cc. Accessed 8 Jan. 2023. Originally published in Albert Camus?s the Stranger, edited by Peter Francev, Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2014, pp. 170-84.
"The New Spiritualism." American Decades, edited by Judith S. Baughman et al., vol. 10, Gale, 2001. Gale eBooks, link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX3468303476/GVRL?u=lom_troyhs&sid=bookmark-GVRL&xid=9c42ca02. Accessed 9 Jan. 2023.
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