Sometimes it is common to look at someone who is not like you or who doesn't adhere to social norms and automaticaly strike them as "strange" and move on. That's what I feel like is happening when Meursault is analyzed.

I don't think it is accurate to say that you can just take the emotions out of everything all of the time. If that were the case life would be a lot easier for a lot more people. When it comes to Meursault I think he is feeling more over the course of the whole book than is let on. Just the fact that it seems like Meursault aims to please and that takes away from the idealogy that you should live for yourself and yourself alone. When Raymond asked Meursault to write the letter for him, he justified writing it as "I didn't have any reason not to please him" (32)

The fact that he did things for others before the murder and the murder itself was him doing Raymond another favor so obviously he was never completely heartless and emotionless. Everyone has emotions it is immpossible to stop them but not everyone shows them in the same ways. Everyone has their own emotional outlets and maybe Meursault's outlet is simply not letting his emotions break him down, so he puts on an indifferent facade to cope. It's hard to pinpoint why people do the things they do so no matter how much you try to analyze Meursault one direct answer is probably not going to be found.