The Fall (novel)

The Fall (La Chute) is a novel by Albert Camus, first published in 1956. Set in Amsterdam, The Fall can perhaps be seen as the counterpart to Camus' earlier novel The Outsider. Whereas The Outsider consists of a hero who enjoys the sensual experience of life but is unreflective on this experience, The Fall consists of a hero who has given up on the experience of life and lives entirely in his reflections on the past and the mistakes that he has made in his life.

Together the two novels perhaps point towards a central tenet of Camus' philosophy; that individuals have to experience the sensual joy of life but also have to reflect on the nature and consequences of experience as well.