Deidre Muirhead

English 12AP
Ms. Schwartz
February 10, 2014

The Stranger Post-Essay

There is a belief that the most authentic moment in one’s life is death, and Albert

Camus’s The Stranger supports this claim. The main character Mersault only stops to

reflect on his life moments before his death. Despite reading the book, I disagree with

this idea. I believe that the most authentic moments in our lives are any time that we stop

to reflect on everything that around us, whether it’s to be thankful, regretful, or any other

appropriate feeling for the time. We determine the authenticity of our lives by both our

thoughts and actions.

Let’s start with the holidays, such as Thanksgiving and Christmas. These are

times when we stop and think about everything we have been blessed with in our lives,

from family and friends, to a home and other possessions, to intangible thinks like health

and talents. We may take the time to say, “Thank you” or “I love you” to God or others

to show our appreciation, or we may exchange gifts. These can be considered authentic

moments because we take the time to acknowledge everything we have. We stop to think

about the people who have an impact on our lives and thank them for all they have done,

and the home and other gifts we have and truly appreciate them. This time of reflection

and gratitude is a moment of authenticity that we create ourselves.

There are other, more personal moments that can be authentic to us, such as a

graduation, personal achievement, or even the birth or death of a loved one. There have

been some of these moments in my life that have made me stop and think about my life.

One of these was my graduation from St. William the Abbot school in 2010. As I
received by diploma, walked out of the church and threw my cap in the air with the other

63 people in my grade, most of whom I had known since kindergarten, I realized that a

significant phase of my life was coming to an end. I admit, I did cry, and while I was

crying I thought about all of the memories I had made in that school, and the people I had

met. Of course, there were some people whom I hoped never to see again, but for every

one of those there was someone I was going to miss dearly, both teachers and classmates

who had taught me important lessons about academics and life itself. There were the

spelling and math bees I had participated in and maybe won, there were the drama

productions and the talent shows. These had created memories that I will cherish for the

rest of my life. I sat there and thought about all of these people and moments, and how

grateful I was for each and every one. Another moment was when I found out that I was

the Class of 2014 Salutatorian. I opened the letter from the school and screamed with

happiness and excitement. The first thing I did was tell my mom and sister, who were

right next to me, and I called my dad at work, and then I texted my relatives and close

friends. I was proud of myself, but I also stopped and thought about how I had gotten

there, every class, every teacher, and every individual who helped me along the way. I

consider my graduation and being named salutatorian authentic moments in my life

because they were times of raw emotion and reflection. I looked back on the rest of my

life and thought, “Wow, how did I get here?” and actually appreciated everyone and

everything that was there for me.

This is not to say that death is not authentic. If one’s life truly does “flash before

one’s eyes,” then this is also a moment of reflection. However, there can be many more

moments of reflection, and it all depends on what we do. We can be like Mersault and
simply go through the motions of living, or we can take the time to reflect on ourselves

and evaluate or lives. If we do this, every moment can be authentic.