The just; (Penguin plays) [Paperback]

Albert Camus (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Language Notes

Text: English (translation)
Original Language: French

Product Details

• Paperback: 223 pages
• Publisher: Penguin (1970)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140481052
• ISBN-13: 978-0140481051
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,097,093 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars you aren't right or wrong, you have an opinion, September 24, 1997

By 

[e-mail] (Paris, France) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The just; (Penguin plays) (Paperback)

A leader implements policies that you believe to be deadly : is there a justification to kill him to prevent disaster? Can anyone justify imposing his views on others? Can society be built if no one does so ? A great story, suspense, love, tragedy to cover a fundamental moral and social issue. The best of Camus, Shakespearian in its multiple layers, from entertainment to fundamental reflection.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Justice Without Violence, October 2, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The just; (Penguin plays) (Paperback)

The Just is a play based upon real events. To convey his concept of moral revolutionaries, Camus fictionalized the 1905 Moscow assassination of Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovitch, the uncle of Czar Nicholas II.

The assassin, in real life and in the play, is a man named Kaliayev. Camus' characterization is of a man dedicated to political change, but not through blind or senseless violence. Camus never endorsed or accepted the need for violence against "civilians" during a revolution, so he endows his characters with the same value. The small cell to which Kaliayev belongs in the play in dedicated to "justice* for the Russian people. They see their actions as self-sacrifice.

At the start of the play, Kaliayev is selected to throw the bomb that will assassinate the Grand Duke. His first attempt ends in what might be considered failure--Kaliayev does not throw the bomb. The Duke was with his niece and nephew. Kaliayev cannot harm innocent children, and the group agrees with his decision. Camus' account is, according to most, historically accurate; the real Kaliayev was not interested in harming those whom he considered to be innocent.

Breaking with history, Camus introduces a fictional character to illustrate the wrongs of the Communist Party. The character of Stepan Federov is a victim of the Czarist state. Due to his experiences under the Czar's legal system, he has become an extremist. Camus illustrates that some revolutionaries are acting upon emotion, not concern for their fellow citizens. Stepan tells the other terrorists that he would have killed children "if the organization commanded it."

Stepan is the archetype of a Stalinist--the type of supporter of the Soviet Union that prevented Camus from supporting the Communist Party. Camus was a socialist and supported the idea of change, but not the idea that any means can be justified by the anticipated ends. What happens when a revolution fails? The innocent die for nothing, according to Camus.

In the play, Kaliayev succeeds and assassinates the Grand Duke on the third try. The Grand Duchess Ella, sister of the Empress Alexandra, visits Kaliayev in prison; she is a kind and compassionate person. Again, Camus' account is based upon history. The Duchess even considers sparing the assassin's life. Kaliayev tells her that he wants to die--to avoid being a "murderer." At this moment in the play, Kaliayev adheres to basic existential ethics...he accepts the consequences of his actions.

Camus even ends the play with another insult to communists. Dora, a woman, is selected for the next bombing. Historically, women were not allowed to be active in most revolutionary movements, not even the French Resistance. Camus always wondered why "the people" never included women, although it is no wonder, considering how difficult were his own relationships with the women in his life.

The Just constitutes the third and final of Camus' works known as The Revolts; the first was the novel, Le Peste, or The Plague and the third, the essay, L'Homme Révolté, or The Rebel.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Dramatic Philosophy at it's very best!, March 28, 2000

By 

Jacob Lautrup Kristensen (Aarhus N Denmark) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The just; (Penguin plays) (Paperback)

I first read, The Just, during a student exchange program in Australia and was immediately captured by Camus' captivating style. The plot is so simple and yet raises some extremely serious questions. A small rebel groop in pre-revolutionary Russia plan to assasin a member of the aristocracy, yet must face that the justification of their deed is by no means a simple one. In a world deprived of unambiguous moral standards, the rebels find that no judgement about anything in the real world can be absolutely justified. Camus is sublime in his quest to rebel and install moral values in an otherwise absurd universe, and his literary skills give his brand of existencial philosophy the atmosphere, which not only conveys it to literally everyone, but also gives it an atmosphere quite unique for philosophical fiction. Camus truly belongs among such greats as Dostoyevski, Kafka and Sartre.