He had sought divine judgment by shooting the Arab, but when he was given judgment in the name of something greater than himself, he did not accept it. A man spoke on behalf of an entire population who had no say in his decision, and he chose to take a man's life. Meursault rejected the judge's decision to execute him and felt that every element of the case "seemed to distract from the seriousness of the decision" (109). Suddenly, while it is his life that is in question, whether the judge decides to “shoot or not to shoot” (56) is no longer “the same thing” (57). There are three simple ways to be connected to death: someone you know dies, you kill someone, or you die. Meursault experienced all three possible associations with death, but he never felt the depth of death until he faced it personally. Death finally had meaning if it meant he could no longer live. As Meursault struggled with empathy, he quickly felt the absolute nature of death upon hearing his sentence. This time again, Meursault had uninterrupted days to reflect on the meaning of death. He ultimately concluded that “since we are all going to die, it is obvious that when and how do not matter” (114). Even if he came to this conclusion, Meursault still hoped for a miraculous pardon or guillotine failure; so it is clear that he was not entirely convinced of his own conclusion. He was on the verge of losing his life and could not live his last days freely. Meursault finally understands why his father went to witness an execution. By watching a man's life be taken in this way, a person learns to appreciate his own time in life. Meursault, much to the chaplain's dismay, refused to believe in life after death, and although he stated that when and how a person dies does not matter, Meursault lived out his last days in a