There have been as many plagues in the world as there have been wars, yet plagues and wars always find people equally unprepared.
I knew what I was getting myself into here, thus the title, but this was truly grim, and it surely wasn't an easy read. As early as when the description of the huge rats emerged, I was actually sitting here shuddering.
Once the plague is detected in the quiet town of Oran, humans have no option but to confront death directly. This is something that no individual is likely to desire, as we humans strive to avoid such a path. The fact that society is compelled to encounter and face death is rather interesting to read, as we observe people reacting in rather diverse ways. Some rush to their homes and seclude themselves from the community, some carry on with their daily chores oblivious to what is happening around them, and some flee. Yes, they abandon their loved ones and run.
If you are seeking something thrilling, this book is not the way to go. This book is a philosophical work that examines what occurs when disaster strikes and, inevitably, what transpires afterwards.
At the conclusion of the book, Camus tells us that the bacillus can lie dormant for a time, before it is roused and can then commence killing off unsuspecting mice in what would be regarded as a quiet and peaceful town. This alone has made this one of the most terrifying and thought-provoking books that I have read to this day.

Dear Virus!

These days I think of you.

I think of you who spoiled me two years ago and I took a half-year break.

I think of a man who had collected a lot of cans and died due to the virus, and his cans probably reached a life that surely disgusts him.

Here, in Iran, the corona has taken over all of our lives, and today I understand you.

Here, too, probably the people who are not cans, but masks and disinfectants, are stockpiling in their homes.

Here, all of us are afraid.

Dear Virus!

The days when I wanted to find a representative of a nation with a problem that had taken over each of its individuals, but today, when I think of you, I myself have also become a part of the same nation that has been taken over by the virus.

Today, the world is submerged in corona, and China and Iran are even more submerged.

Today, as I write here, I look at the chaotic and unknown future.

Finally, after a few years, probably the corona will take root and the people of the future will read about us. But until the virus does not take over their lives, they will not understand the virus...

These days I am really scared.

I am scared that the corona is not like cancer.

When you are with people every day who spend hours in the hospital, in addition to the fear of the disease, you also have the fear of transmitting the disease to others, and this is the worst aspect of infectious diseases.

Today, on the 4th of Esfand, 1399, I am writing this review and it will be recorded here.

Maybe a few years from now someone will read my review today, so it was necessary to write down our conditions today.

Unique

Feb 23, 2020

Das persönliche Geschmäckle muss sich wieder hinten anstellen. Ansonsten wären es 3 Sterne geworden. The personal idiosyncrasy has to take a back seat again. Otherwise, it would have become 3 stars.

Die Berichtform großer Teile "der Pest", in der Vogelperspektive zu kreisen, global, distanziert, dokumentarisch, im Versuch der Objektivität, hat mir fast das Genick gebrochen. The reporting style of large parts of "The Plague", circling in the bird's-eye perspective, global, distant, documentary, in the attempt at objectivity, has almost broken my neck.

Kann mich auch nicht des Eindrucks erwehren, sehr viele hochwertige Kalendersprüche präsentiert zu bekommen. I also can't resist the impression of getting presented with a great many high-quality calendar sayings.

Insgesamt ist mir das Buch durch die Art der Zusammensetzung und sprachlichen Mittel zu lang gewesen. Overall, the book has been too long for me because of the way it is composed and the language means used.

"Eine völlige Übermüdung, von der sie nichts mehr befreien wird als der Tod.... " "A complete exhaustion from which nothing will free them but death.... "

Durch Der Fremde war ich von Camus reinsten Nihilismus gewohnt. Through The Stranger, I was used to Camus' purest nihilism.

Umso überraschender, dass Camus hier das Thema Liebe ins Zentrum rückt [ Der Mensch ist eine Idee, eine beschränkte, sobald er sich von der Liebe abwendet"], stellenweise pathetisch und rührselig wird. All the more surprising, then, that Camus here puts the theme of love at the center [ Man is an idea, a limited one, as soon as he turns away from love"], and becomes at times pathetic and touching.

" Ich habe genug von Leuten die für eine Idee sterben. Was mich interessiert ist von dem zu leben und an dem zu sterben was man liebt" "I have had enough of people who die for an idea. What interests me is to live and die for what one loves"

Was sagt dieser Satz? Ein bedeutungsvolles Leben in einer sonst absurden Welt. Das Leben in seiner rohesten, ehrlichsten Form zu umarmen und sich gegen die Versuchungen des Dogmatismus oder des blinden Glaubens zu wehren. What does this sentence say? A meaningful life in an otherwise absurd world. To embrace life in its most raw, honest form and to defend oneself against the temptations of dogmatism or blind faith.

Oh man, bei so was bekomme ich Gänsehaut. Oh man, with something like this, I get goosebumps.

Wie er die "Monotonie der Gefühle" herausarbeitet, die "Gewöhnung an die Verzweiflung", toll! How he works out the "monotony of feelings", the "getting used to despair", great!

Die Details der Themen, die er anspricht begeistern mich: The details of the themes he addresses excite me:

Hoffnung, Illusionen, Erinnerungen, Vorstellungskraft, Ethik- Utilitarismus, Solidarität, Empathie, Ablenkungen, praktisches Handeln vs. Wissen und Erkenntnis, Leere, Religion, Verhaltensweisen in Krisen und insbesondere die ambivalente Figur Cottard's: Außenseiter, Profiteuer der Plage mit anschließender Angst vor der Normalität. Hope, illusions, memories, imagination, ethics - utilitarianism, solidarity, empathy, distractions, practical action vs. knowledge and cognition, emptiness, religion, behavior in crises and especially the ambivalent figure of Cottard's: Outsider, profiteer of the plague with subsequent fear of normality.

Meine Lieblingsaussage des Romans: " Vielleicht kann man sich der Heiligkeit nur annähern. In dem Fall müsste man sich mit einem bescheidenen, barmherzigen Satanismus begnügen" My favorite statement of the novel: "Perhaps one can only approach holiness. In that case, one would have to be content with a modest, merciful satanism"

Geben wir uns doch einfach damit ab Mängelexemplare zu sein und versuchen beim lesen nicht komplett auseinanderzufallen. Let's just be content with being flawed specimens and try not to completely fall apart when reading.

Rats have brought the plague to an Algerian town, which has had a significant impact on the people, both individually and as a society.

Individually, the people are facing the threat of illness and death. The plague is a highly contagious and deadly disease, and those who are infected may experience symptoms such as fever, chills, weakness, and swollen lymph nodes. The fear and anxiety caused by the possibility of contracting the disease can also have a negative impact on people's mental health.

Socially, the plague has disrupted the normal functioning of the town. Businesses have closed, schools have been shut down, and people are staying at home to avoid contact with others. This has led to a significant economic downturn and a breakdown in social order. The government has had to take measures to control the spread of the disease, such as quarantining infected areas and providing medical treatment to those who are sick.

Despite the detachment of the study, the situation in the Algerian town is truly compelling. The impact of the plague on the people and the town is a reminder of the power of nature and the importance of public health measures in preventing the spread of disease.

This book has truly been one of the most influential in my life.

Camus ingeniously uses the premise of a town infected by the plague and quarantined from the rest of the world to delve deep into some of the profound philosophical questions. His exploration of religion is particularly astute. He posits that either God is not able to prevent evil and thus is not omnipotent, or God is all-powerful and yet condones evil. For Camus, either option presents a God who is not worthy of worship.

Many people, after reading The Stranger, assume that Camus is a pessimist, believing that he has taken the thought experiment of everything being absurd to the extreme and adheres to nothing. However, The Plague, which was written after The Stranger, serves as a shining example of how optimistic Camus actually was. Although he may not believe in God or a higher meaning, he and his characters cannot deny their love for humanity, nature, and the inherent need to assist others. The scene of the two friends swimming still vividly sticks in my mind as the perfect illustration of this.

Overall, this book has held great significance for me, and it may very well resonate with others who are in search of a philosophy that is not derived from religion or dogmas. It is a powerful and captivating story that contains an abundance of elements that will keep you thinking long after you have turned the last page.

The evil that prevails in the world predominantly stems from ignorance. Even goodwill, when not enlightened, can inflict as much harm as ill-will. People are generally more inclined towards goodness than badness, yet this is not the core issue. Instead, they are more or less ignorant, and this is what we term as vice or virtue. The most heinous vice is the kind of ignorance that believes it knows everything and, as a result, authorizes itself to kill. The soul of a murderer is blinded by this ignorance. There can be no true goodness or fine love without the highest possible degree of clear-sightedness.

It is essential to recognize that ignorance is a powerful force that can lead to disastrous consequences. We must strive to educate ourselves and others, to break free from the shackles of ignorance and embrace knowledge and understanding. Only then can we hope to reduce the amount of evil in the world and create a more just and peaceful society.

Goodwill alone is not enough; it must be accompanied by wisdom and awareness. We need to be able to see the world as it truly is, to understand the consequences of our actions, and to make informed decisions. This requires us to constantly seek knowledge, to question our assumptions, and to be open to new ideas.

In conclusion, the battle against evil begins with the battle against ignorance. We must all do our part to promote education, to spread awareness, and to encourage clear thinking. Only by doing so can we hope to create a better world for ourselves and for future generations.

In the world, as much as there has been war, there has also been pestilence. Despite these pestilences and wars, they surprise us.

Surprise is completely natural for us humans who have driven nature outside the walls of our cities. In the city, people have all great goals. "A good day will come": a slogan that is heard from the solid walls of the city. We have written a lot about hope in our books. History is basically the history of hope. The most hopeful stands on a height, looking into the eyes of the people, and shouts like this: O hopeful ones! A day of stability will come! Do not despair! Nothing is lost. We will regain everything. Everything is for tomorrow. Now is for tomorrow. The meaning is in the group of tomorrow!

Today, like the past, nature has awakened from sleep. The smell of hope has been inhaled by it. No wall is so high and no door is so solid that nature, which is relentlessly digging, cannot have the ability to stand in front of it. Today, it has again entered the city to remind us of what we have forgotten: it is very easy to be lost. Nature shakes the precious life that it has raised under its wing. The future is no longer bright. Thinking about the consequences is ridiculous. Before this, the hopeful in the city wanted to graduate one day. One day get married, one day become a father and mother. Those who had the most hope wanted to change the world; one day be successful. The most hopeful one speaks of peace on the last day of history. Of a justice that spreads across the earth on that day. But nature whispers one thing in the ears of all of them: first stay alive. I will return. Again and again. Alongside death.

The reality of nature is in opposition to every kind of hope attached to the future. Nature does not bring any last day. Death is a solar eclipse for an individual. People of the city! How carefree the flame of life burns in our hearts! How much lighter we are without the chains of the future! But how strange that the sky is bright! Look up! The dawn has come!

I read “The Plague” right after reading “Swann’s Way”. Of course, it wasn't a deliberate move.

But as I delved deeper, I realized that reading “The Plague” had brought about something quite remarkable in the way I understood and cherished both works.

Both works embody a reality. “Swann’s Way” speaks of a reality long past, one that we wish to remember and cherish.

Whereas, “The Plague” makes us more acutely aware of the bleakness of actual reality when imposed through an epidemic like the plague.

This book focuses on the things that are, rather than things that were. “Swann’s way” left me completely spellbound, longing for the bygones.

But “The Plague” made me assess the actual approach that governs human beings when faced with hardships in life.

The first thing that stands out in the work is the people of Oran's avoidance of accepting the pestilence. Albert says, “Pestilence is in fact very common, but we find it hard to believe in a pestilence when it descends upon us. There have been as many plagues in the world as there have been wars, yet plagues and wars always find people equally unprepared.”

He further adds that because pestilence lacks human dimensions, people refuse to believe it, thinking of it as a bad dream that will end soon.

Perhaps people don't want to accept its onset because they have far greater faith in life itself. But when they have to, it results in utter misery for them.

The beauty of the work lies in the portrayal of the different approaches taken by different individuals during the plague.

While some people engage in serving the sick, others try to make more money by smuggling liquor and other desired goods.

Some people are melancholic, while others try to find happiness in the midst of it all.

What I found even more fascinating were the words Camus used to express the thoughts of the Priest regarding religion and God during the plague.

Consider the two addresses delivered by Father Paneloux; one at the beginning of the epidemic and the other after months of suffering.

The first one starts as: “My brethren, a calamity has befallen you; my brethren, you have deserved it……Since the beginning of history, the scourge of God has brought down the proud and the blind beneath His feet. Think of this and fall on your knees.”

The second one ends as: “My brethren, the love of God is a difficult love. It assumes a total abandonment of oneself and contempt for one’s person. But it alone can wipe away the suffering and death of children, it alone makes them necessary because it is impossible to understand such things, so we have no alternative except to desire them. This is the faith- cruel in the eyes of man, decisive in the eyes of God-which we must try to reach. We must try to make ourselves equal to this awful image.”

In the first address, the Priest is so certain about the ways of God, but the second address clearly shows the uncertainty as a result of the severe suffering due to the pestilence.

How little does religion/God matter when humanity faces such a pandemic! Camus has skillfully captured the inner turmoil that the Priest went through while coming to terms with the harsh reality.

The reading was quite overwhelming. It was further enhanced by the reference to Bois de Boulogne in some places during the narration.

Grand, an assistant to Rieux, read the first line of his writing to Rieux. What was beautiful was the effect it created, evoking in the mind the consequences of anxiety and the desperation to escape.

Rieux was listening at the same time to a sort of vague humming sound in the town, as if replying to the whistling flail of the Plague. At this particular moment he had an extraordinarily acute perception of the town spread out at his feet, the enclosed world that it formed and the dreadful cries stifled in its night. He heard Grand’s muffled voice: “On a fine morning in the month of May, an elegant woman was riding a magnificent sorrel mare through the flowered avenues of the Bois de Boulogne.”

I think that Camus, who is regarded as an absurdist for his writings on this subject, has very profoundly articulated the idea of absurdity through this work as well.

The idea that he presented in “The Myth of Sisyphus”, that of the need to seek clarity and meaning within a world that offers neither, has been expressed in these lines for me.

“All that a man could win in the game of plague and life was knowledge and memory. Perhaps that was what Tarrou called winning the game!...But if that is what it meant to win the game, how hard it must be to live only with what one knows and what one remembers, and deprived of what one hopes.”

Treeless, glamourless, soulless, the town of Oran ends by seeming restful, and after a while, you go complacently to sleep there. The Plague is set in this very Oran, a city in Algeria that suddenly experiences a breakout of the Bubonic plague. Soon, it is placed under quarantine. We witness the profound changes among this community as they are abruptly cut off from the outside world. They experience a gamut of emotions, from hysteria and despondency to avarice, uncertainty, self-reflection, and fear.

The Plague is definitely a depressing book. Given the subject matter discussed, it couldn't be otherwise. I, in general, am a squeamish person, so some of the plague descriptions were hard to take. However, I have to say that they made me even more impressed by Camus' writing style. His ability to vividly描绘 the horrors and the human condition in the face of such a crisis is truly remarkable.

I also liked the structure of the book. The story is told by an anonymous narrator, who promised to reveal himself at the end of the book. This adds an element of mystery and keeps the reader engaged. Moreover, the fact that he used another plague-witness' diary in this story definitely adds richness to the narrative. It gives different perspectives and makes the story more believable.

One of the most exciting parts in the book for me was when the narrator mentioned the court case from "The Stranger" in passing. It was a nice little彩蛋 for those who are familiar with Camus' other works.

So, once again, I am very impressed by Camus. Definitely not an easy read, but a rewarding one. It makes you think about life, death, and the human spirit in the face of adversity.

I read the book several years ago. How could I forget it?

I still remember that it was night and I was alone in the room. The space was relatively dark with little light. The book was very fascinating, and I was moving forward. Sometimes, it would suddenly grip me.

It was a very strange feeling.

Then I went out in front of the others and tried to distract my mind so that a breeze could blow on my head, so to speak, and the mood and atmosphere could pass away from me.

I think that such conditions have never occurred to me when reading any other book until now.

And if this isn't good space creation, then what is?

**"A Thoughtful Review of 'La Peste' by Albert Camus"**

Buen libro, afortunadamente leído después de la pandemia.

En realidad 3,5

I haven't written a review in a long time, so I confess I feel a bit nervous at this moment. When you go a long time without doing something that you previously did almost daily, it's inevitable to have doubts and anxiety because you don't know if you're really capable of doing it again as before. However, fears are faced, crises are overcome, and blocks are left behind: not to forget them, but to remind ourselves that even if problems have managed to crush us with great force, we can take a second breath, regain our strength, and rise from the ashes like the phoenixes so often mentioned in fantasy stories. And what better story to represent that descent into misfortune and subsequent ascent to good fortune than this book by Albert Camus.

In "La Peste", a classic book over seventy years old, we are told a story that has happened and will probably happen again throughout time in any period of human civilization. Whether it's the plague, the coronavirus, tuberculosis, or any other disease, the fact is that pandemics are unexpected visitors that no one wants to receive in their home. Fortunately, they don't occur so often, and we believe that with our current science and technology, something like this will never happen again. But the truth is that regardless of scientific advances, certain generations will have to live through these unfortunate situations again in the future. Perhaps, if I had known this book before the pandemic we had to live through, my conception of the topic would have been different, possibly with indifference because I would have believed that it was only part of the past, like when I read about World War II, the Roman Empire, or others. However, reading it after the pandemic has given me the opportunity to have a different point of view, especially considering the number of similarities between the Covid-19 pandemic and the one the author describes in his story.

I was impressed by the related similarities because I felt as if I were reading a story based on Covid-19. The way of burying the dead, isolation, the attempts to create a vaccine, the sacrifice of doctors, the fear, the disorientation of the population, the daily death toll statistics, the superstitions... so many, but so many details are so similar that they led me to two conclusions. The first is that despite the changes in people's customs, professions, and beliefs, history inevitably repeats itself in an endless cycle that cannot be predicted. The second is that Albert Camus is a very good writer: it must not be easy to give so many details and create such a richly detailed atmosphere of something that has not been lived. What he has managed to build is truly impressive.

At the beginning, the reading was not easy because I couldn't quite get used to the author's style. Possibly, my problem was that I tried to read too fast because I thought the book would be different. I don't know, maybe I believed that the disease would arrive mysteriously, little by little, and that the confusion and chaos due to the danger would spread among the population; but, that wasn't the case. Nevertheless, I continued reading and understood that the objective of the book was not to show the panic of the population due to the disease, but the emotional and moral change that everyone was gradually feeling due to the arrival of this misfortune in their lives. Reading this book was like being a witness to the extraction of energy and positivism that a human being can suffer in their life when living through a pandemic. I accompanied characters who day after day were more tired, without illusions or hopes, as if feeling that everything would get worse, that there was no way out, that their misfortunes would have no end. I was able to understand that a single act of kindness, like a hug or a kiss, when we don't receive it for a long time can seriously affect our spirit, making us feel even more unfortunate. Fortunately, or unfortunately, we are very social beings, so when we can't be part of a community or share with others, our hope of life decays completely, to the point of not being able to find a reason to keep living. Therefore, I felt a lot of pity for most of the characters in the book, even though I didn't manage to develop a true affection for them.

In my opinion, sadness and misfortune would be the two key words that can perfectly describe this work. Naturally, there are other important themes dealt with in this work, such as the question of whether it is better in difficulties to ask for help from God through our prayers, or instead try to solve the problems ourselves without expecting divine help. Likewise, the characters offer us great lessons. Characters that make you ask yourself, for example: Is it better to conclude something even if it's not perfect, or try to make it perfect but not conclude it? Is it better to flee to a safe place, or try to perform a community service in a place where it is needed? Is it better to have a recognized career, or respect our values? Can religion and science work together? Can euphoria make us forget the heroes who took care of us in times of crisis? I like to answer questions, but sometimes it's also interesting to just formulate them, and this book, precisely, offers us the opportunity to do something similar.

If I have to find any defect, surely I would mention how excessively long the chapters are, the scarcity of conversations between the characters, and how confusing it can sometimes be to understand the thoughts of the protagonists. Naturally, it's an old book, and at that time, it wasn't necessary to explain something obvious for then. But since I didn't live in that era, the truth is that it was a bit difficult for me to understand the true meaning of the words and conversations of the characters. This is not the author's fault, nor mine, but perhaps it could help us a little when reading to investigate a bit about Albert Camus' ideology to understand it better.

Well, although I liked the book and I finished satisfied with the content found, my rating oscillates between 3.5 and 4. In the end, the difficulties mentioned in the previous paragraph are a convincing reason not to dare to rate it with a higher score. In addition, not feeling much affection for any character also has a significant influence when it comes to giving a "number". That said, I thought it was a very interesting text with reflections and good descriptions related to the pandemic. No me arrepiento de leerlo.

Three stories of three great writers and their dramatic encounters with death while working on their literary characters:

Tolstoy and Anna Karenina: For three days, Leo Tolstoy refused to eat, and the servant, who didn't dare to enter his room, went to tell his acquaintances that Tolstoy said until he finished his book, they had no right to bother him. The servant would put the food in front of the door, but for three days, Tolstoy didn't touch any of it. Worried, the acquaintances finally forced their way into the room and saw that Tolstoy was lying on the floor, crying with his pen in his arms. They were scared and asked what had happened. He said, "Anna Karenina is dead!"

Camus and The Plague: The French philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre lived with Camus in the house of a mutual friend for a while, and at that time, Camus was writing the novel The Plague. Apparently, during dinner, no matter how long they waited, there was no sign of Camus. So the maid went to his room to see what was going on. The maid saw that Camus kept repeating this sentence: "I killed a child! I killed a child and before dying, he screamed in pain! I killed him and he screamed until he died!"

Emily Brontë and Wuthering Heights: According to the memoirs of Charlotte Brontë, Emily Brontë's younger sister, as quoted by William Hale, the publisher of the Brontë sisters' books, for several days, Emily, without showing any signs of illness, had locked herself in her room, rarely came out, and refused to eat. At first, they weren't too worried, but after seeing that Emily was almost fainting from chronic hunger, they called a doctor. The doctor didn't diagnose any illness and said she just had to eat, but Emily still insisted on not eating until, through the efforts of her brother Branwell, she ate a little. When they asked her the reason for this, she replied, "How can I eat when Catherine Earnshaw, in order to relieve the great pain of unrequited love, is starving herself to death?"

......

I heard a voice.

.......

I took the first story from a Telegram group.

The second one from a review about this book.

The third one I made up myself.