The last two paragraphs of The Plague emphasize Camus' belief that even during a crisis, humans must still fight against death, even if that battle will be a struggle constant without victory. no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get Original Essay Rieux views man's stubborn, communal struggle against death as the most essential element of the human response to crises. In closing his account, he emphasizes that his story was not that of his seemingly heroic decision to fight the plague, but rather "only the account of what had to be done, and of what should certainly be done again in the future." . the endless fight against terrorism” (308). The emphasis on "only" indicates that he believes that his response to the plague, and in a broader sense, crises, is not exceptionally heroic, but is only natural, appropriate and simply "of common decency” (163). Furthermore, by choosing to use “had had” instead of simply “had”, which would not have changed the apparent meaning of the phrase, Rieux further underlines the need for a persistent struggle against death. He continues his sentence with additional words, “certainly” and “would have” which also emphasize his conviction to fight against death. Although he knows that the battle against death will be "endless" (308), he nevertheless urges humans to put aside "their personal afflictions" (308) and "[refuse] to bow down before pestilences" (308). By “personal afflictions,” Rieux means trials that only affect the individual; therefore, according to Rieux, in times of crisis, humans should not worry greatly about their individual suffering, but about the suffering of humanity. The fight against death requires the effort of the entire community and the desire of each individual to help others. His use of “bow” conjures up the image of a tyrannical ruler, the plague, attempting to suppress his people. The natural human response to such a ruler is not one of submission, but rather one of resistance, and through this image, Rieux further emphasizes the need for humans to resist domination and domination. omnipresent oppression of crises. Rieux believes that times of crisis and terror are inevitable in life, regardless of the strength of human resistance. Throughout the novel and particularly in the last paragraph, the plague served as a metaphor for the crisis and all the pain, death, and fear associated with it. The plague, like the crisis, “never dies or disappears for good” (308), but is only repressed. Rieux's use of such an extreme word, "never," suggests that he firmly views the plague as an omnipresent horror that can suddenly invade human society and just as suddenly recede. The plague can hide in any ordinary object and "sleep for years and years in furniture and linen chests, [waiting] its time in bedrooms, cellars, trunks and shelves » (308). The long list of household furnishings accentuates the multitude of places in human society where plague can lurk and how omnipresent the plague is. In the same way, crisis can lurk in any facet of society, until something brings it out of hiding. Rieux also describes the plague as "[biding] its time", almost giving it the image of a calculating monstrosity. The humans, however, are completely unaware of the nature of the plague's calculations, until "it [wakes] up its rats again and sends them to die in a happy city." The irony.