The stranger foil characters

1. Foil Characters Literary Discussion By: Alisha Punjwani

2. Definition! metal hammered or rolled into a thin flexible sheet, used chiefly for covering or wrapping food a person or thing that contrasts with and so emphasizes and enhances the qualities of another

3. Background Knowledge Bassoon Clarinet English Horn

4. Igor Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring http://www.youtube.com/watch?v= f76eZfI5pOM 6:10-8:15

5. Interactive Activity! Who are potential foil characters of each character and why?

6. Raymond Sintes “But he wanted to punish her. First he’d thought of taking her to a hotel and calling the vice squad to cause a scandal and have her listed as a common prostitute ” –Camus 31 “…he’d go to bed with her and right at the last minute he’d spit in her face and throw her out” –Camus 32

7. The Chaplain “I explained to him that I wasn’t desperate. I was just afraid, which was only natural. ‘Then God can help you,’ he said. ‘Every man I have known in your position has turned to him.’ I acknowledged that that was their right… I didn’t want anybody’s help…” –Camus 116-117

8. Salamano “Then he beats the dog and swears at it. The dog cowers and trails behind.” –Camus 27

9. Woman a t the Restaurant “…he was going to proceed with the calling of witnesses…I recognized next to him the little woman from the restaurant, with her jacket and her stiff and determined manner.” – Camus 86

10. Thomas Perez “…Perez seemed to be way back there, fading in the shimmering heat. Then I lost sight of him altogether. I looked around and saw that he’d left the road and cut out across the fields. I also noticed there was a bend in the road up ahead. I realized that Perez, who knew the country, was taking a short cut to catch up with us.” –Camus 17

11. Literary Criticism “Within the story Camus creates scenes of explicit parallel and contrast. The tears and fainting of Thomas Pérez at the funeral, for example, offer a foil to Meursault's lack of emotion. The noise of Salamano cursing his dog directly precedes the screams of the Moorish woman as Raymond beats her; both relationships share qualities of physical love and abuse. One might argue that Camus's sense of literary balance is an attempt to put into practice an existential philosophy: the only order in a disordered world is the one we create for ourselves. “ Critic: Patrick J. Moser Source: Exploring Novels , Gale, 1998

12. Take Away Almost every character can foil the main character in some aspect By analyzing other characters and their strengths, we can understand the main character even more

13. Discussion Questions Are there any other characters that can potentially foil Meursault? What are some foil relationships in IB required books that we have read? Explain the foil relationship. Without foil characters for contrast, would a main character’s actions be undermined? Are there any other pieces of music where a foil character is obviously present? Other than music and literature, where else is a foil relationship conspicuous?