Meursault has been sent to prison. He has committed the ultimate crime, murder, by shooting an Arab man five times.

This mirrors Sisyphus’s position of eternal punishment, being bound to roll a rock up a mountain, only for it to fall back down, in a continuous loop forever.

But writer Albert Camus insists that Sisyphus is actually happier than most humans ever will be. That, because his life is confined to suffering, by changing his mindset and accepting his reality, living as a prisoner instead of a free man, Sisyphus can live in eternal bliss.

“All Sisyphus’ silent joy is contained therein. His fate belongs to him. His rock is a thing. (Camus)”

Meursault, rather than wallowing in his own pity and desiring the outside world, he adapts to the state of his life and accepts his punishment, achieving a morbid sense of comfort in his suffering. Meursault is the model prisoner, his life is carved out for him and he accepts it, rather than dreading it. He has his small fixes, but ultimately understands that his life is only punishment, and in his trademark boring and detached way, he’s accepted it. Only time will tell what awaits him next. How will what comes next tie into The Myth of Sisyphus, if at all?

At face value, existentialist philosophy is the philosophy of aloof scorn towards societal values and human problems. That middle-age “existential crisis”, questioning, “What could it all MEAN?” For most characterizations of such philosophy, the answer is nothing. All of society, human institutions, experiences, and emotions are for naught, at least as far as the universe and life itself is concerned- we are all just a part of a big floating rock in space where stuff happens, with no rhyme or reason as to when it happens or who it happens to. It is all absurd.

Yet, a deeper look into existentialism produces a different outlook, for which we may consider Albert Camus’ “The Myth of Sisyphus”. In his essay, Camus argues that the old Greek mythological figure condemned to rolling a boulder up a mountain for eternity has been severely misrepresented in his emotional state. Rather than becoming discouraged at the futility of his fate, Sisyphus finds meaning and fulfillment in the brief moments walking down the mountain to retrieve his rock; for then, he can appreciate his momentary triumph and very existence. The act of living becomes his meaning of life, and he is fully present. Therefore, rather than being sad and longing of his old life, Sisyphus is actually happy.

This idea about finding meaning in existence results in an important modification to the common portrayal of existentialism. Nothing matters except for existence, and therefore, everything matters. The meaning of life is not found in emotions, or institutions, or goals; it is found in the very existence of the mundane. Everything simply is, and nothing lies beyond- there is nowhere in between.

The myth of Sisyphus describes what is supposedly the harshest of all punishments: the Gods condemn him to a lifetime of futile servitude for the crime of disdain for the Gods and disdain the procession of death. Sisyphus’s punishment is to roll a boulder up a hill which immediately falls down once reaching the top. Sisyphus will do this for eternity; the supposed torture in this act being the meaninglessness of it all. 

Although an eternal torment, Camus’s genius is to highlight the ironic fact that Sisyphus’s tasks are no different than those carried out in modern everyday life. We (as humans, not mythical creatures) perform repetitive tasks, some undertaken with imaginary purpose, all of which in turn appear in and of themselves as devoid of meaning. Any value taken away from a human task is merely what we imagine it to be. The wafer taken during communion is meaningless to most; for those believers, it is imparted with a great deal of imagined significance. Or social popularity which truly manifests solely as idols in an individual mind. 

            Sisyphus keeps pushing the boulder; every step up the hill serving as an inspiration for the next. There is no change in this routine, the same results are produced, and the same hardships are endured. Like Sisyphus, Man creates a purpose for these repetitive tasks no matter how meaningless the task, such as pushing a boulder up a hill. 

          It is the pursuit for purpose in one’s life which in itself gives meaning to mans’ lives. “This universe henceforth without a master seems to him neither sterile nor futile. Each atom of that stone, each mineral flake of that night filled mountain, in itself forms a world. The struggle itself toward the heights is enough to fill a man’s heart. One must imagine Sisyphus happy.”