Juniors Dive Into Existential Questions About Novel

MOUNT VERNON – Juniors in Alexandra Sherlock’s International Baccalaureate (IB) Language and Literature class at Mount Vernon High School dove into meaningful conversations with their peers Thursday morning after finishing the novel “The Stranger” by Albert Camus.

The students broke into small groups for their socratic seminars, where they discussed the philosophical novel, which explores themes of existentialism and absurdity as it follows Meursault, a French-Algerian whose indifferent attitude toward life and societal norms leads to his ultimate downfall.

Prior to breaking off into groups to discuss the book, students worked individually on their “do now” assignment, discussing diction. They answered questions such as “What are the connotations of ‘thirsting?’ What feelings are evoked by this diction?”

For homework students had to answer questions based off of the chapter reading, such as “Consider Meursault’s insistence on focusing on the present and his refusal to seek comfort in religion. How does this reflect his alignment with existential and absurdist ideas?”

Discussing the book and questions further in class helps students understand the message and theme of the story. These conversations give students the opportunity to share their views and gain additional insight from their peers.

“Everyone has a different perspective, and I do like learning from other people,” said junior Payton Baxter. “When I am in groups, I’m able to get everybody’s perspective on how they perceive the book because my perception is different from everybody else. So, it helps us build a theme of what the book really was about.”

For the group discussion, Ms. Sherlock graded students based on several criteria, such as building on each other’s ideas, listening to one another, preparation, collaboration and respect.

“I’m trying to get them more comfortable with public speaking and being able to build on one another’s ideas,” she said. “That’s kind of how they’re going to be graded.”

This class activity will prepare students for their next assignment, an analytical essay on the novel, where students will further develop their critical-thinking and writing skills.