The Stark effects of being absurd in society The Outsider Essays

The Stark effects of being absurd in society The Outsider Essays The Stark effects of being absurd in society The Outsider Essay The Stark effects of being absurd in society The Outsider Essay Essay Topic: Literature A long time ago, I summed up The Outsider in a sentence which I realise is extremely paradoxical: In our society any man who doesnt cry at his mothers funeral is liable to be condemned to death. Albert Camus 8th January 1955 The novel The Outsider establishes a being that is a Nomad or existential in a sense of the society he lives in and the wandering on the cliff beside the sea of introversion and poignancy. Meursault is commonly misunderstood and is regarded as a reject. Furthermore he refuses to lie. A lie is a statement made by someone, in the expectation that the hearers may believe it. In the case of the human heart saying more than one feels, Meursault conforms to the existential presuppositions; this is regarding reality as the state of being, the truth, often unheard of in politics and society. Consequently society feels threatened, by Meursaults refusal to satisfy the feelings of others by showing little remorse for his mothers death. His indifference leads him to be condemned by a trial. In the early stages of the book Meursault is seen as an adverse individual towards society, one who speaks his consciousness. Camus creates a paradoxical character against the normality of society, which brings out stark differences through the use of Meursaults ability to state facts. This narrative effect can be seen from the opening passage, Mother died today. Or maybe yesterday; I dont know. I had a telegram from home: Mother passed away. Funeral tomorrow. Yours sincerely. That doesnt mean anything. It may have been yesterday. We see Meursaults inability to conform to humanity in the event of his mothers death, and the use of the short sentence stating quality. He merely retells the dubious facts of her death as mundane as the telegram had stated it. I even had the impression that this dead body in lying there among them, didnt mean anything to them. Referring to his mother to a dead body shows little emotion. Throughout the ordeal of attending the funeral, Meursault treats it with the same destitution of emotion. Conversations are referred to in a chronological order from the catching of the bus to the moment he crawls into bed. Meursault is an anomaly that does not relate directly to others or human experiences, like emotion, affection or love. She asked me again if I love her. I replied much before, that her question meant nothing or next to nothing, but I supposed I didnt. Curious she then asks Suppose another girl had asked you to marry her- mean a girl you liked in the same way as you like me- would you of said yes to her too? He replies with honesty Naturally Meursault enjoys the physical side of his relationship, he likes to drink smoke swim and have sex. When Marie leaves, he lies in bed and tries to get the salty smell of her hair from the pillow. All these things can be pertained. All the secondary characters, contrast to Meursault. Raymond shows anger, Marie shows passion and Salamano shows possessiveness, all these characteristics show that Meursault is detached from society. Albert Camus chose the constituent of heat and sunlight as a metaphor of Meursaults uncorroborated deiscomfort with society. Both of these elements affect Meursault, I could feel my forehead swelling up under the sun. The heat was pushing full against me I set me teeth, closed my fists in my trouser pockets and tensed my whole body in defiance of the sun and of the drunken haze it was pouring into me. These are al connotations of how society affects Meursault drastically. The bright morning sunshine hit me like a slap in the face. This could mean a deliberate rejection from society. Meursault earlier on laments of the effects the sun has on him. I was so tired that I could hardly see or think straight anymore. This quote encompasses the interpretation of the effects and processes of society on Meursault. He finds his mental process is altered, this comment on society shows how it can screen or change the vision of an individual. Again Meursaults estrangement in society is depicted to the reader. The murder of the Arab conforms Meursaults inability to conform to society. The death of the Arab is not the determination of Meursaults fate, around this time Algiers were easily dispensed of because they were considered to be an inferior underclass that had to be tightly controlled. Meursault cannot see any right or wrong with killing the Arab, the action itself was one that is revealed to be caused by the sun in the trial. Meursault is brought to trial; he is not tried for murder, but tried for his virtue. The court system of a Europe institution in North Africa is satirised. The prejudice under French colonial rule would let a man off with a light sentence, however in Meursaults case the jury sees him as a monster for failing to cry at his mothers funeral and commiting unspeakable atrocities while in mourning, swimming, drinking coffee and smoking. The jury fails to recognise personal freedom and choice, which is the fundamental nature of an individuals existence. Society tries to enforce its ideals on Meursault by putting him in jail. Meursault is confused when he realises he is being deprived of his freedom; he tries to understand what is happening to him and therefore tries to understand society. Meursault acts honestly and with no remorse, he feels annoyance towards the magistrate. The frustration Meursault feels leads to more estrangement, which fuels his dislike for society more. In the final chapter, Meursault accepts his fate, which gives him the courage to face his death straight on, and it allows him to come to terms with his position in society. I heard something that I hadnt heard for months. It was the sound of a voice; my own voice, there was no mistaking it. And I recognised it as the voice that for many a day of late had been buzzing in my ears. His voice he hears is the sound of his inner consciousness. This epiphany enables Meurasult to accept his death. He does not wish for his death but in the end invites it its common knowledge that life isnt worth living anyhow. In the last moments of Meursaults doom the prison chaplain tries to convert him. Meursault develops an unsaid philosophy of reality. It gave new meaning to the word life and its true identities. It did not matter to Meursault when or whom committed him to death, he just knew it ended the same. Rejected from society Meursault becomes a martyr in death. When failure seemed imminent Meursaults newly found conscious carries him into a world of discovery. The Outsider is appropriate today as it was when it was first written. Higher powers govern our destiny and if our existence is to mean anything we must find explanation for it ourselves. Camus cardinal rule from a readers interpretation is that society constricts a beings consciousness and indifference, in to the ideals that have been taught since the beginning of time.

Biography of Dorothy Vaughan, Groundbreaking NASA Mathematician

Biography of Dorothy Vaughan, Groundbreaking NASA Mathematician Dorothy Vaughan (September 20, 1910 – November 10, 2008) was an African American mathematician and computer. In her time working for NASA, she became the first African American woman to hold a supervisory position and helped the institution transition to computer programming. Fast Facts: Dorothy Vaughan Full Name: Dorothy Johnson VaughanOccupation: Mathematician and computer programmerBorn: September 20, 1910 in  Kansas City, MissouriDied: November 10, 2008 in Hampton,  VirginiaParents: Leonard and Annie JohnsonSpouse: Howard Vaughan (m. 1932); they had six childrenEducation: Wilberforce University, B.A. in mathematics Early Life Dorothy Vaughan was born in Kansas City, Missouri, the daughter of Leonard and Annie Johnson. The Johnson family soon moved to Morgantown, West Virginia, where they stayed throughout Dorothy’s childhood. She quickly proved to be a talented student, graduating early from high school at the age of 15 as her graduating class’ valedictorian. At Wilberforce University, a historically black college in Ohio, Vaughan studied mathematics. Her tuition was covered by a full-ride scholarship from the West Virginia Conference of the A.M.E. Sunday School Convention. She graduated with her bachelor’s degree in 1929, only 19 years old, cum laude. Three years later, she married Howard Vaughan, and the couple moved to Virginia, where they initially lived with Howard’s wealthy and well-respected family. From Teacher to Computer Although Vaughan was encouraged by her professors at Wilberforce to go to graduate school at Howard University, she declined, instead taking a job at Robert Russa Moton High School in Farmville, Virginia, so that she could help support her family during the Great Depression. During this time, she and her husband Howard had six children: two daughters and four sons. Her position and education placed her as an admired leader in her community. Dorothy Vaughan taught high school for 14 years during the era of racially segregated education. In 1943, during World War II, she took a job at the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA, the predecessor to NASA) as a computer. NACA and the rest of the federal agencies had technically desegregated in 1941 by executive order of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Vaughan was assigned to the West Area Computing group at Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. Despite women of color being recruited actively, they were still segregated into groups separate from their white counterparts.   Nasa.gov The computing group consisted of expert female mathematicians who dealt with complex mathematical calculations, nearly all done by hand. During the war, their work was connected to the war effort, since the government firmly believed that the war would be won on the strength of air forces. The scope of activity at NACA expanded considerably after WWII ended and the space program began in earnest. For the most part, their work involved reading data, analyzing it, and plotting it for use by the scientists and engineers. Although the women- both white and black- often held degrees similar to (or even more advanced than) the men who worked at NASA, they were only hired for lower positions and pay. Women could not be hired as engineers. Supervisor and Innovator In 1949, Dorothy Vaughan was assigned to supervise the West Area Computers, but not in an official supervisory role. Instead, she was given the role as acting head of the group (after their previous supervisor, a white woman, died). This meant the job didn’t come with the expected title and pay bump. It took several years and advocating for herself before she was finally given the role of supervisor in an official capacity and the benefits that came with it. Vaughan did not just advocate for herself, but also worked hard to advocate for more opportunities for women. Her intention was not just to help her West Computing colleagues, but women across the organization, including white women. Eventually, her expertise came to be highly valued by the engineers at NASA, who relied heavily on her recommendations to match projects with the computers whose skills aligned best. In 1958, NACA became NASA and segregated facilities were completely and finally abolished. Vaughan worked in the Numerical Techniques division and, in 1961, shifted her focus to the new frontier of electronic computing. She figured out, earlier than many others, that electronic computers were going to be the future, so she set out to make sure she- and the women in her group- were prepared. During her time at NASA, Vaughan also contributed directly to projects on the space program with her work on the Scout Launch Vehicle Program, a particular type of rocket designed to launch small satellites into orbit around the Earth. Vaughan taught herself the programming language FORTRAN that was used for early computing, and from there, she taught it to many of her colleagues so they would be prepared for the inevitable transition away from manual computing and towards electronics. Eventually, she and several of her West Area Computing colleagues joined the newly formed Analysis and Computation Division, a race- and gender-integrated group working to expand the horizons of electronic computing. Although she tried to receive another management position, she was never granted one again. Photographs from Dorothy Vaughans retirement party. Vaughan retired from NASA in 1971.   Courtesy Vaughan Family /  Nasa.gov Later Life and Legacy Dorothy Vaughan worked at Langley for 28 years while raising six children (one of whom followed in her footsteps and worked at NASA’s Langley facility). In 1971, Vaughan finally retired at the age of 71. She continued to be active in her community and her church throughout retirement, but lived a fairly quiet life. Vaughan died on November 10, 2008 at the age of 98, less than a week after the election of America’s first black president, Barack Obama. Vaughan’s story came to public attention in 2016, when Margot Lee Shetterly published her nonfiction book Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Who Helped Win the Space Race. The book was made into a popular feature film, Hidden Figures, which was nominated for Best Picture at the 2017 Academy Awards and won the 2017 Screen Actors Guild Award for best ensemble (the guild’s equivalent of a best picture award). Vaughan is one of the three main characters in the film, along with colleagues Katherine Johnson and Mary Jackson. She’s portrayed by Oscar-winning actress Octavia Spencer. Sources Dorothy Vaughan. Encyclopaedia Britannica.Shetterly, Margot Lee. Dorothy Vaughan Biography. National Aeronautics and Space Administration.Shetterly, Margot Lee. Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Who Helped Win the Space Race. William Morrow Company, 2016.

Biography of Dorothy Vaughan, Groundbreaking NASA Mathematician

Biography of Dorothy Vaughan, Groundbreaking NASA Mathematician Dorothy Vaughan (September 20, 1910 – November 10, 2008) was an African American mathematician and computer. In her time working for NASA, she became the first African American woman to hold a supervisory position and helped the institution transition to computer programming. Fast Facts: Dorothy Vaughan Full Name: Dorothy Johnson VaughanOccupation: Mathematician and computer programmerBorn: September 20, 1910 in  Kansas City, MissouriDied: November 10, 2008 in Hampton,  VirginiaParents: Leonard and Annie JohnsonSpouse: Howard Vaughan (m. 1932); they had six childrenEducation: Wilberforce University, B.A. in mathematics Early Life Dorothy Vaughan was born in Kansas City, Missouri, the daughter of Leonard and Annie Johnson. The Johnson family soon moved to Morgantown, West Virginia, where they stayed throughout Dorothy’s childhood. She quickly proved to be a talented student, graduating early from high school at the age of 15 as her graduating class’ valedictorian. At Wilberforce University, a historically black college in Ohio, Vaughan studied mathematics. Her tuition was covered by a full-ride scholarship from the West Virginia Conference of the A.M.E. Sunday School Convention. She graduated with her bachelor’s degree in 1929, only 19 years old, cum laude. Three years later, she married Howard Vaughan, and the couple moved to Virginia, where they initially lived with Howard’s wealthy and well-respected family. From Teacher to Computer Although Vaughan was encouraged by her professors at Wilberforce to go to graduate school at Howard University, she declined, instead taking a job at Robert Russa Moton High School in Farmville, Virginia, so that she could help support her family during the Great Depression. During this time, she and her husband Howard had six children: two daughters and four sons. Her position and education placed her as an admired leader in her community. Dorothy Vaughan taught high school for 14 years during the era of racially segregated education. In 1943, during World War II, she took a job at the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA, the predecessor to NASA) as a computer. NACA and the rest of the federal agencies had technically desegregated in 1941 by executive order of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Vaughan was assigned to the West Area Computing group at Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. Despite women of color being recruited actively, they were still segregated into groups separate from their white counterparts.   Nasa.gov The computing group consisted of expert female mathematicians who dealt with complex mathematical calculations, nearly all done by hand. During the war, their work was connected to the war effort, since the government firmly believed that the war would be won on the strength of air forces. The scope of activity at NACA expanded considerably after WWII ended and the space program began in earnest. For the most part, their work involved reading data, analyzing it, and plotting it for use by the scientists and engineers. Although the women- both white and black- often held degrees similar to (or even more advanced than) the men who worked at NASA, they were only hired for lower positions and pay. Women could not be hired as engineers. Supervisor and Innovator In 1949, Dorothy Vaughan was assigned to supervise the West Area Computers, but not in an official supervisory role. Instead, she was given the role as acting head of the group (after their previous supervisor, a white woman, died). This meant the job didn’t come with the expected title and pay bump. It took several years and advocating for herself before she was finally given the role of supervisor in an official capacity and the benefits that came with it. Vaughan did not just advocate for herself, but also worked hard to advocate for more opportunities for women. Her intention was not just to help her West Computing colleagues, but women across the organization, including white women. Eventually, her expertise came to be highly valued by the engineers at NASA, who relied heavily on her recommendations to match projects with the computers whose skills aligned best. In 1958, NACA became NASA and segregated facilities were completely and finally abolished. Vaughan worked in the Numerical Techniques division and, in 1961, shifted her focus to the new frontier of electronic computing. She figured out, earlier than many others, that electronic computers were going to be the future, so she set out to make sure she- and the women in her group- were prepared. During her time at NASA, Vaughan also contributed directly to projects on the space program with her work on the Scout Launch Vehicle Program, a particular type of rocket designed to launch small satellites into orbit around the Earth. Vaughan taught herself the programming language FORTRAN that was used for early computing, and from there, she taught it to many of her colleagues so they would be prepared for the inevitable transition away from manual computing and towards electronics. Eventually, she and several of her West Area Computing colleagues joined the newly formed Analysis and Computation Division, a race- and gender-integrated group working to expand the horizons of electronic computing. Although she tried to receive another management position, she was never granted one again. Photographs from Dorothy Vaughans retirement party. Vaughan retired from NASA in 1971.   Courtesy Vaughan Family /  Nasa.gov Later Life and Legacy Dorothy Vaughan worked at Langley for 28 years while raising six children (one of whom followed in her footsteps and worked at NASA’s Langley facility). In 1971, Vaughan finally retired at the age of 71. She continued to be active in her community and her church throughout retirement, but lived a fairly quiet life. Vaughan died on November 10, 2008 at the age of 98, less than a week after the election of America’s first black president, Barack Obama. Vaughan’s story came to public attention in 2016, when Margot Lee Shetterly published her nonfiction book Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Who Helped Win the Space Race. The book was made into a popular feature film, Hidden Figures, which was nominated for Best Picture at the 2017 Academy Awards and won the 2017 Screen Actors Guild Award for best ensemble (the guild’s equivalent of a best picture award). Vaughan is one of the three main characters in the film, along with colleagues Katherine Johnson and Mary Jackson. She’s portrayed by Oscar-winning actress Octavia Spencer. Sources Dorothy Vaughan. Encyclopaedia Britannica.Shetterly, Margot Lee. Dorothy Vaughan Biography. National Aeronautics and Space Administration.Shetterly, Margot Lee. Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Who Helped Win the Space Race. William Morrow Company, 2016.

Biography of Dorothy Vaughan, Groundbreaking NASA Mathematician

Biography of Dorothy Vaughan, Groundbreaking NASA Mathematician Dorothy Vaughan (September 20, 1910 – November 10, 2008) was an African American mathematician and computer. In her time working for NASA, she became the first African American woman to hold a supervisory position and helped the institution transition to computer programming. Fast Facts: Dorothy Vaughan Full Name: Dorothy Johnson VaughanOccupation: Mathematician and computer programmerBorn: September 20, 1910 in  Kansas City, MissouriDied: November 10, 2008 in Hampton,  VirginiaParents: Leonard and Annie JohnsonSpouse: Howard Vaughan (m. 1932); they had six childrenEducation: Wilberforce University, B.A. in mathematics Early Life Dorothy Vaughan was born in Kansas City, Missouri, the daughter of Leonard and Annie Johnson. The Johnson family soon moved to Morgantown, West Virginia, where they stayed throughout Dorothy’s childhood. She quickly proved to be a talented student, graduating early from high school at the age of 15 as her graduating class’ valedictorian. At Wilberforce University, a historically black college in Ohio, Vaughan studied mathematics. Her tuition was covered by a full-ride scholarship from the West Virginia Conference of the A.M.E. Sunday School Convention. She graduated with her bachelor’s degree in 1929, only 19 years old, cum laude. Three years later, she married Howard Vaughan, and the couple moved to Virginia, where they initially lived with Howard’s wealthy and well-respected family. From Teacher to Computer Although Vaughan was encouraged by her professors at Wilberforce to go to graduate school at Howard University, she declined, instead taking a job at Robert Russa Moton High School in Farmville, Virginia, so that she could help support her family during the Great Depression. During this time, she and her husband Howard had six children: two daughters and four sons. Her position and education placed her as an admired leader in her community. Dorothy Vaughan taught high school for 14 years during the era of racially segregated education. In 1943, during World War II, she took a job at the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA, the predecessor to NASA) as a computer. NACA and the rest of the federal agencies had technically desegregated in 1941 by executive order of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Vaughan was assigned to the West Area Computing group at Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. Despite women of color being recruited actively, they were still segregated into groups separate from their white counterparts.   Nasa.gov The computing group consisted of expert female mathematicians who dealt with complex mathematical calculations, nearly all done by hand. During the war, their work was connected to the war effort, since the government firmly believed that the war would be won on the strength of air forces. The scope of activity at NACA expanded considerably after WWII ended and the space program began in earnest. For the most part, their work involved reading data, analyzing it, and plotting it for use by the scientists and engineers. Although the women- both white and black- often held degrees similar to (or even more advanced than) the men who worked at NASA, they were only hired for lower positions and pay. Women could not be hired as engineers. Supervisor and Innovator In 1949, Dorothy Vaughan was assigned to supervise the West Area Computers, but not in an official supervisory role. Instead, she was given the role as acting head of the group (after their previous supervisor, a white woman, died). This meant the job didn’t come with the expected title and pay bump. It took several years and advocating for herself before she was finally given the role of supervisor in an official capacity and the benefits that came with it. Vaughan did not just advocate for herself, but also worked hard to advocate for more opportunities for women. Her intention was not just to help her West Computing colleagues, but women across the organization, including white women. Eventually, her expertise came to be highly valued by the engineers at NASA, who relied heavily on her recommendations to match projects with the computers whose skills aligned best. In 1958, NACA became NASA and segregated facilities were completely and finally abolished. Vaughan worked in the Numerical Techniques division and, in 1961, shifted her focus to the new frontier of electronic computing. She figured out, earlier than many others, that electronic computers were going to be the future, so she set out to make sure she- and the women in her group- were prepared. During her time at NASA, Vaughan also contributed directly to projects on the space program with her work on the Scout Launch Vehicle Program, a particular type of rocket designed to launch small satellites into orbit around the Earth. Vaughan taught herself the programming language FORTRAN that was used for early computing, and from there, she taught it to many of her colleagues so they would be prepared for the inevitable transition away from manual computing and towards electronics. Eventually, she and several of her West Area Computing colleagues joined the newly formed Analysis and Computation Division, a race- and gender-integrated group working to expand the horizons of electronic computing. Although she tried to receive another management position, she was never granted one again. Photographs from Dorothy Vaughans retirement party. Vaughan retired from NASA in 1971.   Courtesy Vaughan Family /  Nasa.gov Later Life and Legacy Dorothy Vaughan worked at Langley for 28 years while raising six children (one of whom followed in her footsteps and worked at NASA’s Langley facility). In 1971, Vaughan finally retired at the age of 71. She continued to be active in her community and her church throughout retirement, but lived a fairly quiet life. Vaughan died on November 10, 2008 at the age of 98, less than a week after the election of America’s first black president, Barack Obama. Vaughan’s story came to public attention in 2016, when Margot Lee Shetterly published her nonfiction book Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Who Helped Win the Space Race. The book was made into a popular feature film, Hidden Figures, which was nominated for Best Picture at the 2017 Academy Awards and won the 2017 Screen Actors Guild Award for best ensemble (the guild’s equivalent of a best picture award). Vaughan is one of the three main characters in the film, along with colleagues Katherine Johnson and Mary Jackson. She’s portrayed by Oscar-winning actress Octavia Spencer. Sources Dorothy Vaughan. Encyclopaedia Britannica.Shetterly, Margot Lee. Dorothy Vaughan Biography. National Aeronautics and Space Administration.Shetterly, Margot Lee. Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Who Helped Win the Space Race. William Morrow Company, 2016.