The Plague pt. 1 by Albert Camus: Literary Analysis

The Plague by Albert Camus is a 1948 novel which follows a doctor, Bernard Rieux, through a small Algerian town that serves as a French port. It is described as “ugly” and having a “smaug, placid air” (Camus 3), although its citizens are initially content with its “ordinariness” (Camus 3). This setting, the town of Oran, is very similar to the environment in which Camus grew up in Algeria and later Nazi-occupied France. Part one of the novel closely parallels the German takeover of France through the slow, seemingly inconsequential appearance of the plagued rats, and the conclusion can be compared to the final stages where Germany has almost fully taken power. Camus's works and the theme of this novel closely align with his anti-Nazi, revolutionary views during WWII while living in France, and the reaction of the citizens of Oran can be compared to the reaction of the citizens of France, and Camus, during this time.

Camus begins by explaining the doctor's encounter with the first rat, where he states “Dr. Bernard Rieux felt something soft under his foot. It was a dead rat lying in the middle of the landing. On the spur of the moment he kicked it to one side and, without giving it a further thought…only when he was stepping out into the street did it occur to him that a dead rat had no business to be on his landing…” (Camus 7). This quote is later followed by explaining the gradual uptick in dead rats being found in the streets, “From April 18 onwards, quantities of dead or dying rats were found in factories and warehouses…The situation worsened in the following days. There were more and more dead vermin in the streets…On the fourth day, the rats began to come out and die in batches. From basements, cellars, and sewers they emerged. At night, in passages in alleys, their shrill little death-cries could be clearly heard. In the mornings the bodies were found lining the gutters…in the busy heart of the town you found them piled in little heaps on landings and in backyards. Some stole forth to die singly in the halls of public offices, in school playgrounds, and even on cafe terraces. Our townsfolk were amazed to find such busy centers as the Place d'Armes, the boulevards, the promenade along the waterfront, dotted with repulsive man named Micheal passes away under Dr. Rieux's care. Camus depicts the weight of Micheal's death by stating that the event “marked, one might say, the end of the first period, that of bewildering portents, and the beginning of another, relatively more trying, in which the perplexity of the early days gradually gave place to panic” (Camus 23). The increasing death rates cause concern and a sense of dread within the community, “on the town…a mood of listlessness descended. Hemmed in by lines and lines of whitewashed walls, walking between rows of dusty shops, or riding in dingy yellow streetcars, you felt, as it were, trapped by the climate” (Camus 31). This part of the novel concludes with the introduction of the town's quarantined isolation, stating “Moreover,  the epidemic seemed to be on the wane; on some days only ten or so deaths were notified. Then, all of a sudden, the figure shot up again, vertically. On the day when the death-roll touched thirty, Dr. Rieux read an official telegram that the Prefect had just handed him, remarking: ‘So they've got alarmed at last.’ The telegram ran: Proclaim a state of plague close the town.” (Camus 63). 

There is a close connection to be made between the events of part one of The Plague and Albert Camus’s time living in occupied France during WWII. When Camus is describing the doctor's reaction to the dead rat under his foot, it is possible he is describing his own reaction to the early invasion of the southern zone of France. It was probably not unlikely to see the military during wartime, initially having no reaction, but raising concern when it was realized that these German soldiers were invading. He then describes the gradual increase of plagued rats, appearing in each and every space. The doctor observes as rats appear in homes, schools, and everywhere in the streets, just as Camus observed Nazis taking over French towns and apprehending Jewish people. The “death-cries” from the rats that are described could be the sounds of these people being taken from their home at night. These events are distressing to the citizens of Oran, but truly begin to panic following Micheal's death. These events and reactions correspond with the initial invasion of Nazi soldiers, the implementation of anti-jewish policies, and the event of Micheal's death representing the first mass deportation out of Western Europe to Auschwitz, France's reaction, and Camus’ observations. Following Micheal's death is the mass extermination of the rats, also seen in the increase of up to 3 mass deportations per week. Finally, the eventual shutdown of Oran and the doctor's unease can be compared to the Nazi's full takeover of France, as well as Camus’ apprehension and feelings of powerlessness.  

References

Hazikaron, H. (n.d.). The German occupation of France. Yad Vashem: The World Holocost Rememberance Center. https://www.yadvashem.org/holocaust/france/german-occupation.html

Simpson, D. (n.d.). Albert Camus (1913-1960). Internet encyclopedia of philosophy. https://iep.utm.edu/albert-camus/#SH5a