40 Albert Camus Quotes On Love, Absurdism From The Plague & More
Last updated on January 3rd, 2024 at 12:10 pm
“French philosopher Albert Camus” by “Jared Enos“, licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
The work of famous French writer, Albert Camus is known around the world and there have been many translations of his works into English throughout the years. He was also a playwright, moralist, and political theorist in addition to being a novelist and journalist. Although he’s best recognized for his works, Camus was also an anti-Nazi activist and philosopher. His work introduced the concept of Absurdism and Revolt. Many people associate Albert Camus with these concepts, which helped cement his reputation as an important philosopher.
In his writings, he examined a wide range of thought-provoking subjects, such as good and evil, man’s isolation, death, and post-war realisations. Many of these ideas can be seen in his writings and quotes, and they provide readers with a unique perspective on life. If this piqued your interest, check out these Albert Camus quotes below.
Albert Camus Quotes From The Plague
The Plague was released in 1947, depicting a plague outbreak in the Algerian city of Oran. The Plague is used as an example of humankind’s devastation from a catastrophe like this. Throughout most of his work, Camus enjoys revealing to his audience the absurdities of human nature, for the better or, the worse. Here are some Albert Camus quotes from The Plague.
“But what does it mean, the Plague? It’s life, that’s all.”
Albert Camus
Source: The Plague
“I have no idea what’s awaiting me, or what will happen when this all ends. For the moment I know this: there are sick people and they need curing.”
Albert Camus
Source: The Plague
“Orders!… When what’s needed is imagination.”
Albert Camus
Source: The Plague
“There’s no question of heroism in all this. It’s a matter of common decency. That’s an idea which may make some people smile, but the only means of fighting a plague is — common decency.”
Albert Camus
Source: The Plague
“Yes, there was an element of abstraction and unreality in misfortune. But when an abstraction starts to kill you, you have to get to work on it.”
Albert Camus
Source: The Plague
Source: The Plague
“Once the faintest stirring of hope became possible, the dominion of plague was ended.”
Albert Camus
Source: The Plague
“The truth is that everyone is bored, and devotes himself to cultivating habits.”
Albert Camus
Source: The Plague
“I know that man is capable of great deeds. But if he isn’t capable of great emotion, well, he leaves me cold.”
Albert Camus
Source: The Plague
“What’s true of all the evils in the world is true of the Plague as well. It helps men to rise above themselves. All the same, when you see the misery it brings, you’d need to be a madman, or a coward, or stone blind, to give in tamely to the Plague.”
Albert Camus
Source: The Plague
Albert Camus Quotes On Love
Albert Camus wrote a lot about Absurdism and understanding how to live a struggle-filled life. He believed that reflecting upon life, enjoying art, beauty and love, are in itself acts of rebellion, and that, in his opinion, was how we could survive this absurd world. Let’s take a look at some of Albert Camus quotes on love.
“A loveless world is a dead world.“
Albert Camus
Source: The Plague
“I would like to be able to breathe— to be able to love her by memory or fidelity. But my heart aches. I love you continuously, intensely.”
Albert Camus
Source: Notebooks 1951-1959
“Nothing in the world is worth turning one’s back on what one loves.“
Albert Camus
Source: The Plague
“The act of love… is a confession. Selfishness screams aloud, vanity shows off, or else true generosity reveals itself.”
Albert Camus
“That is love, to give away everything, to sacrifice everything, without the slightest desire to get anything in return.”
Albert Camus
“I’ve been thinking it over for years. While we loved each other we didn’t need words to make ourselves understood. But people don’t love forever. A time came when I should have found the words to keep her with me, only I couldn’t.”
Albert Camus
Source: The Plague
“How unbearable, for women, is the tenderness which a man can give them without love. For men, how bittersweet this is.”
Albert Camus
Source: Notebooks 1935-1942
“Well, personally, I’ve seen enough of people who die for an idea. I don’t believe in heroism; I know it’s easy and I’ve learned that it can be murderous. What interests me is living and dying for what one loves.”
Albert Camus
Source: The Plague
Albert Camus Absurd Quotes
Albert Camus explored “What is the meaning of existence?” – throughout his works of fiction, plays, and essays. Camus spent a lot of time thinking about the three responses to Absurdism, and he came to varied conclusions about how to overcome the tension it highlights. Let’s read some of Albert Camus absurd quotes to gain more insight.
“Freedom is nothing but a chance to be better.”
Albert Camus
“Man stands face to face with the irrational. He feels within him his longing for happiness and for reason. The absurd is born of this confrontation between the human need and the unreasonable silence of the world.“
Albert Camus
Source: The Myth of Sisyphus and Other Essays
“The absurd is the essential concept and the first truth.”
Albert Camus
Source: The Myth of Sisyphus and Other Essays
“In the next few years, the struggle will not be between utopia and reality, but between different utopias, each trying to impose itself on reality… we can no longer hope to save everything, but… we can at least try to save lives, so that some kind of future, if perhaps not the ideal one, will remain possible.”
Albert Camus
Source: Between Hell and Reason
“Beginning to think is beginning to be undermined. Society has but little connection with such beginnings. The worm is in man’s heart. That is where it must be sought. One must follow and understand this fatal game that leads from lucidity in the face of existence to flight from light.”
Albert Camus
Source: The Myth of Sisyphus and Other Essays
“You will never be happy if you continue to search for what happiness consists of. You will never live if you are looking for the meaning of life.“
Albert Camus
“All healthy men have thought of their own suicide, it can be seen, without further explanation, that there is a direct connection between this feeling and the longing for death.”
Albert Camus
“If there is meaning to the history we tell and the corruption (both moral and physical) we suffer, surely it is in (as well as in spite of) fragmentation. Bodily resurrection at the end of time is, in a technical sense, a comic — that is, a contrived and brave — happy ending.”
Albert Camus
Source: The Myth of Sisyphus and Other Essays
Albert Camus The Stranger Quotes
The Stranger, a 1942 novel by Albert Camus, is the author’s best-known work. His own personal experiences certainly influenced the book’s writing. Also, the book touches on the philosophy of Absurdism, which is the belief that our existence is a product of our attempts to find purpose in our life and the futility of trying to find that meaning because it doesn’t exist.
“Since we’re all going to die, it’s obvious that when and how don’t matter.”
Albert Camus
Source: The Stranger
“I would rather not have upset him, but I couldn’t see any reason to change my life. Looking back on it, I wasn’t unhappy. When I was a student, I had lots of ambitions like that. But when I had to give up my studies I learned very quickly that none of it really mattered.”
Albert Camus
Source: The Stranger
“She said, “If you go slowly, you risk getting sunstroke. But if you go too fast, you work up a sweat and then catch a chill inside the church.” She was right. There was no way out.”
Albert Camus
Source: The Stranger
“I said that people never change their lives, that in any case one life was as good as another and that I wasn’t dissatisfied with mine here at all.”
Albert Camus
Source: The Stranger
“As if that blind rage had washed me clean, rid me of hope; for the first time, in that night alive with signs and stars, I opened myself to the gentle indifference of the world. Finding it so much like myself—so like a brother, really—I felt that I had been happy and that I was happy again.”
Albert Camus
Source: The Stranger
Source: The Stranger
“But all the long speeches, all the interminable days and hours that people had spent talking about my soul, had left me with the impression of a colorless swirling river that was making me dizzy.”
Albert Camus
Source: The Stranger
“He wanted to talk to me about God again, but I went up to him and made one last attempt to explain to him that I only had a little time left, and I didn’t want to waste it on God.”
Albert Camus
Source: The Stranger
“I may not have been sure about what really did interest me, but I was absolutely sure about what didn’t.”
Albert Camus
Source: The Stranger
“If something is going to happen to me, I want to be there.”
Albert Camus
Source: The Stranger
Hopefully, this collection of Albert Camus quotes offers you interesting perspectives to reflect on. Albert Camus was truly a man of immense passion, vision, and talent, and his words will live on, in our minds.
If you liked reading these Albert Camus quotes then you can also check out these 35 Frederick Douglass Quotes About Freedom, Education, Slavery & More!
Sahil Sangidwar
Sahil Sangidwar is a marketer who studied computer science. He loves marketing and keeps up with the changing tech world. Outside of work, he plays Battle Royale games, reads books, and really enjoys food. Sahil brings together his interest in technology and his personal hobbies.
Thanks for sharing one of my favorite voices in Albert Camus. His timeless view of the world around us is filled with such relevant words, which will never grow old.
You’re welcome! Enjoy your day!