The Rebel: Camus

The rebel undoubtedly demands a certain degree of freedom for himself; but in no case, if he is consistent, does he demand the right to destroy the existence and the freedom of others. He humiliates no one. The freedom he claims, he claims for all; the freedom he refuses, he forbids everyone to enjoy. He is not only the slave against the master, but also man against the world of master and slave. Therefore, thanks to rebellion, there is something more in history than the relation between mastery and servitude. Unlimited power is not the only law. It is in the name of another value that the rebel aAffirms the impossibility of total freedom while he claims for himself the relative freedom necessary to recognize this impossibility.
The Rebel
Albert Camus


MAKING SENSE OF THE PASSAGE

Camus uses a complicated style to argue that the true rebel (in Camus' own conception) does not pursue total freedom. He takes restrictions to freedom because he has recognized the Other.

Declaring that one prays so that someone 'finds God in his/her heart' or 'converts him/herself' is to hurt such principle of freedom. Claiming, as a justification, that one cares about the other person, that one is 'compassionate', is actually hypocrisy and fanaticism.

It turns out to be fundamental to understand that the one who acts like that has not conquered freedom for him/herself - he/she is a servant, failing to recognize it.
Therefore, we should, at least in the guise of logical argumentation, admit that a servant, as here defined, cannot allege he behaves in the name of freedom.

In other words, there is no free human being whenever, e.g., that human being, who says to be a believer, does not accept that another one believes not in God. And then, if those who claim that they can outspeak their thoughts since the freedom of expression is granted, they have not understood Camus, neither have they understood Jesus. One can be a Christian. Following Jesus is another thing.

Having said all that, it is not so difficult to see why Camus' concept of rebel seems strange to many. According to that concept, there are limits to freedom of expression that are voluntarily accepted. Also, there is no freedom in claiming 'rights' that challenge the existence of others, such as the 'right' to smoke, to make an abortion, to say that an atheist is 'lost' or the like.
Mariangela Pedro
mariangelapedro @ yahoo.com