The philosophy of Albert Camus in The Plague Knowing we are sick is half of our cure. - Alexander PopeAs the title clearly suggests, the novel The Plague is, in fact, a story of illness. On the surface, the novel The Plague may be an account of events detailing the bubonic plague epidemic in the city of Oran. But on a deeper level, it is a novel that reveals an awareness and acceptance of the limits of human existence. And it is also a reminder of our absurd freedom and the choices we make in life, especially in the face of death. In writing The Plague we are told that Camus "tried to convey [...] the feeling of suffocation from which we all suffered and the atmosphere of threat and exile in which we lived" (Bree, 1964: 128). Of course he was referring to the horrors of the Second World War. But "at the same time [he wanted] to extend [his] interpretation to the notion of existence in general" (Bree, 1964: 128). Camus' interpretation of existence is revealed in his philosophical essay The Myth of Sisyphus in which he discusses the absurd and its consequences, revolt, freedom and passion. Some interesting connections can be made between the philosophical discussion in The Myth of Sisyphus and the existential themes present in The Plague. In The Myth Camus outlines his notion of the absurd and its consequences; in La Peste he gives life to his philosophy. This story of life and death is told by Dr. Rieux, who claims that his "job is only to say 'this is what happened,' when he knows that it really happened, [and] that it closely affected the life of an entire people [...]" (Camus, The Plague, p.7). Of the novel, Germaine Bree says, "considered in its totality [The Plague] conveys a personal experience... in the middle of the paper.. ., one way or another, and The Plague is a reminder of that absurd fact. The quote at the beginning of this article, “Knowing ourselves sick is half the cure” has its relevance in the ultimate lesson we learn from The Plague. But there is another lesson to learn and Camus reminds us of it in The Myth of Sisyphus: "the point is to live" (Camus, The Myth of Sisyphus, p.65). As they face the horrors of death, the characters in The Plague do a great job of bringing that philosophical point to life. Works Cited Bree, Germaine. (ed.), Camus: Collection of Critical Essays. Prentice-Hall: Englewood, NJ 1962. Camus, Albert. 1991.Camus, Albert, The Plague Vintage: NY, 1991.Ellison, David R. Understanding Albert Camus Columbia, SC: University of South Carolina Press, 1990.