The Stranger 2

When speaking to his neighbor Raymond, Mersault hints at his casual racism and dislike of the Arab race. Raymond intends to write a letter to his mistress, begging her to come back so he can ultimately beat her. He asks Mersault for preform this task for him, however, Mersault declines. It is not until the race of the mistress is revealed when Mersault changes his mind; "When [Raymond] told me the woman's name I realized she was Moorish. I wrote the letter" (32). While Mersault makes no direct connection to the woman's race and the beating, his sudden change of heart and willingness to write the letter (which leads to a beating) implies his dislike for the Moorish race. By casually slipping in his racist thoughts, Mersault foreshadows a much larger racist conflict inside of himself.