The Plague is an exploration of caricatures and how they react in desperate situations. Albert Camus does this by putting several characters in the same situation, the controlled variable, but changing the philosophies each represents, the manipulated variable. This experience judges the philosophical tenacity of each caricature through adversity. More specifically, Camus is interested in the tenacity of existentialism in relation to religion. To deal with the plague, Dr. Rieux and Father Paneloux both create goals based on their beliefs, their abilities and the needs of society; however, their contrasting ideologies ultimately determine which caricatures survive philosophically. In The Plague, Camus develops the idea that in desperate situations, individuals will create a goal for themselves based on their philosophies: those whose philosophies depend solely on the individual and are separated from higher powers survive philosophically; in contrast, individuals whose philosophy depends on a higher power will have their beliefs shattered by adversity and will not survive philosophically. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an Original Essay To philosophically survive the plague, cartoonists must develop a purpose for themselves based on their niches and beliefs. Father Paneloux and Dr. Rieux do it. Paneloux, a well-respected Jesuit priest from Oran, delivers sermons to give the plague a purpose in the eyes of the city's residents: the plague is a trial and punishment from God, and he will spare the faithful and kill sinners. At first, the sermons and the Week of Prayer attracted a lot of people because many of these individuals were wondering, “Why us? or “Why is this happening?” during this adversity. Paneloux assigns a function to the plague and gives the audience a guide to surviving the plague. By practicing Christian virtues and repenting of their sins, it gives some townspeople hope of surviving the plague and finding purpose. Additionally, Paneloux engages and unites city dwellers in an activity to survive the monotony of a quarantined city with the Week of Prayer. At the onset of the plague, Paneloux's philosophical beliefs help him and the townspeople deal with the plague by providing them with purpose, hope, and unity. However, the unity under Paneloux's philosophy is only effective on the surface. Because many city dwellers are not religious and participation in sermons has been met with an attitude of "It can't hurt anyway" (89), the hope and goal proposed by Paneloux only resonate with some and the unity lasts temporarily, drying up when the plague times get worse and the reality that the plague is here to stay takes hold in the city. At the height of the plague, with extreme summer heat, strong winds and man-made fires in a desperate attempt to destroy the infection, the city "retained an attitude of sadness and suffering, but it stopped feeling the sting” (175). At this time, city dwellers retained a desperate “habit of despair” (175), submitting to separation from loved ones, the monotony of a quarantined city, fear of the plague, and daily deaths. At Paneloux's last sermon, there was only a group of men left in the church, and the crowds that the Week of Prayer attracted had disappeared. Paneloux's philosophical goal only helps the city temporarily and superficially, until it experiences the worst difficulties, a direct reflection of how his philosophiesonly help him until he experiences the worst difficulties. Rieux's goal contrasts with that of Paneloux both in terms of ideology and effectiveness. With the help of his friends, Rieux uses his medical abilities to help the sick, and the group organizes and creates health groups to deal with the plague in a practical way, attempting to restore order using a systematic approach to prevent the spread of disease, help those struck by the plague, and care for the dead. Furthermore, this order imposed by Rieux and his friends is a fight against the disorder of the plague. Rieux's niche and the purpose he created for himself encouraged others to fight back by participating in health groups: "These groups allowed [the] city dwellers to cope with the disease and convinced them that, now that the plague was among [them], it was up to them to fight back” (128). Furthermore, the groups unite the townspeople by showing that, because it is "the duty of some men" (128) to fight back, it is "everyone's business" (128). The systematic approach to the plague used by Rieux reflects his philosophy and personality: he approaches his life objectively and is an atheist because he logically thinks that the existence of a God is invalid given the amount of suffering that he saw as a doctor. While Paneloux uses His ideology and niche to help the townspeople superficially at first, Rieux's niche effectively helps the townspeople throughout the plague. Rieux provides an objective solution and objective to the health groups, helping the city accept the fact that the plague is here to stay and that the townspeople must therefore combat disorder with order. This goal appeals to most; he realistically struggles against monotony and despair. On the other hand, Paneloux's ideology is not as attractive to the majority, and the temporary unity it provides disappears in the worst of times. As a controlled variable, Paneloux and Rieux are similar in the rigidity of their philosophies. When Paneloux feels the suffering of Mr. Othon’s son, he begs him: “My God, spare this child…! (206), but the child dies in pain. He then reflects on the child's death: “This kind of thing is revolting because it is beyond our human understanding. But perhaps we should love what we cannot understand” (208). In this reflection, he essentially states that individuals must love the suffering of a child, because it cannot be understood; a grotesque and immoral statement. His unyielding beliefs cause Paneloux to go to extremes to justify why God would allow such suffering to occur. Paneloux is unable to understand this and he argues in his final sermon that because of the incomprehensible injustice of a child's suffering, one must choose to believe entirely in God or not believe at all, emphasizing that he You have to believe completely in God. This is in an attempt to philosophically justify the child's suffering, emphasizing his rigidity. Instead of losing his faith, Paneloux “consents to having his eyes destroyed” (219). Rieux is a rigid character, and this is reflected in his attitude towards his beliefs. Camus shows this through Rambert’s reaction to Rieux’s coldness: “You use the language of reason, not that of the heart; you live in a world of… abstractions” (82). Moreover, his rigidity is reflected in the smallest particularities: “When he crosses a street, he leaves the sidewalk without changing his pace” (27). This detail shows Rieux's predominant attitude: as soon as he has an idea in mind, he persists in seeing it through to the end. Rieux's indifference seems almost superhuman, as evidenced by his dazed reaction after receiving the telegram announcing the death of his.