Conrad, empire and exile

Joseph Conrad was an exceptionally talented writer who emerged as a novelist and storyteller in the late 19th century. Born in Poland and fluent in French by the age of 20, he embarked on sea voyages, journeying through the jungles of Africa and East Asia, and sailed up rivers to discover the “hearts of darkness.” Conrad passed away at the age of 67 in 1924.

From 1878 to 1894, Conrad spent sixteen years in the British Merchant Service and under various Eastern flags. His voyages took him from Australia and Borneo to the coasts of China, and from India and Java to Malaya and the Philippines, as well as to the Mediterranean and beyond. A keen observer and quick learner, he mastered the English language to the extent that he could comfortably chronicle his experiences with remarkable detail in lucid English prose. The art and stylistic mastery of Conrad’s works have astonished both critics and readers alike.

Conrad became a naturalized British citizen in 1886 and wrote his first story, ‘Almayer’s Folly’, in 1895 when he was in his late 30s. For the next 30 years, he devoted himself entirely to writing, with his books appearing in quick succession. After ‘Almayer’s Folly’, his second novel, ‘An Outcast of the Islands’, appeared in 1896, both works narrating tales of Eastern kingdoms and European exiles who met their fates there. While ‘Almayer’s Folly’ centred on the life of the Dutch trader Kaspar Almayer in the Borneo jungle and his relationship with his mixed-heritage daughter Nina, ‘An Outcast of the Islands’ was inspired by Conrad’s experience as mate of a steamer, the Vidar.

For those who have not read ‘An Outcast of the Islands’, it was adapted into a film in 1951 by director Carol Reed, featuring Trevor Howard, Ralph Richardson, and Robert Morley. The novel tells the story of Peter Willems, a man who occupies a position of trust with a merchant in an East Asian port but proves to be disreputable and immoral. After stealing from his employer and being dismissed, he pretends to commit suicide and seeks refuge in a hidden native village, only to betray his benefactors out of lust for the tribal chief’s daughter.

Conrad tends to use some recurring characters, such as Tom Lingard, who appears in his first two novels and then in ‘The Rescue’ (1920). Conrad demonstrates his mastery of romanticizing the jungle environment and its inhabitants, as he does in other novels like ‘Lord Jim’ and ‘Heart of Darkness’, which appeared in quick succession in 1900 and 1902, respectively. But before those, another novella deserves mention: ‘The Nigger of the Narcissus’ (1897). Based on Conrad’s experiences while serving in the British merchant navy, the novella revolves around James Wait, a dying black sailor aboard the ship Narcissus.

The novella also features other interesting characters, such as an Irish religious fanatic and an arrogant, lazy Cockney. It highlights the superstitions prevalent among sailors as they care for the dying Wait, even stealing food for him. When the ship capsizes during a fierce storm, they rescue him as well. There are also dissensions on board, leading to a near-mutiny. This novella established Conrad as a notable writer who could vividly depict life at sea while exploring evolving relationships between men in extreme circumstances.

From 1900 to 1907, Conrad produced a flurry of literary works, including some of his best novels such as ‘Lord Jim’ (1900), ‘Heart of Darkness’ (1902), ‘Typhoon’ (1903), ‘Nostromo’ (1904) – my personal favorite – and ‘The Secret Agent’ (1907). ‘Lord Jim’ reads like a semi-autobiographical novel in which Jim becomes a political and spiritual leader of a remote colonial territory to escape the guilt of abandoning the Patna and leaving its passengers to face a terrible fate. If you have not read the novel, you can watch the 1965 film adaptation by Richard Brooks, starring Peter O’Toole as Jim and James Mason as Gentleman Brown.

‘Heart of Darkness’ is no doubt a masterpiece and a brilliant critique of imperialism. It shows the attempts to increase a country’s power by force, in the Belgian Congo. Marlow is another character that Conrad uses to narrate the stories in ‘Lord Jim’ and ‘Heart of Darkness’. The story traces a lone man’s descent into darkness that wild natural forces represent with hidden intentions and impenetrable secrets. Absolute power and its corruptive influence are faces of evil personified in the character of Kurtz, one of the Company’s agents who is not answerable to anyone in the Congo.

Marlon Brando delivers an excellent performance as Colonel Kurtz in the film adaptation of the novel by Francis Ford Coppola in ‘Apocalypse Now’ (1979). ‘Nostromo: A Tale of the Seaboard’ is set in the fictional South American republic of Costaguana. What I admire most about the novel is its brilliant narration of events and the way Conrad delineates economic, political, and social issues, placing them in their proper perspective. The novel still resonates with me, as some of its details seem applicable to Pakistan, even in the 21st century: a long history of tyranny and warfare with only occasional and short-lived stability.

Edward Said, in his collection of essays, ‘Culture and Imperialism’, deconstructs some of Conrad’s works with a sharp perspective. As an innovator of postcolonial theory, Said examined Conrad with an academic and cultural lens. Interestingly, Said’s doctoral dissertation, ‘Joseph Conrad and the Fiction of Autobiography’, published in 1966, was groundbreaking work. Said explored Conrad’s fear of personal disintegration, reflected in his constant re-narration of the past. To Said, Conrad’s projection of political dimensions mirrors a colonial obsession with the urge to "civilize" native peoples.

Said’s take on Conrad is highly instructive, as he suggests that critics and readers must consider all dimensions when engaging with Western literature. Said’s book ‘Orientalism’ remains a cornerstone of postcolonial studies, even in the 21st century. Both Conrad and Said left their homelands, becoming writers in exile, and they explained to their readers how an uprooted individual – especially a writer – feels detached from their past as identities fade and a new language becomes their primary mode of expression. Said focuses not only on the culture of domination and language but also on the narrative of power and violence present in Conrad’s works.

In Said’s critique, Conrad emerges as an author who both informs and contradicts himself simultaneously. The paradoxical nature of the European narrative – whether from Conrad or Dickens before him – has both negative and positive aspects and Said unpacks them layer by layer, giving the reader a new perspective on Conrad and other writers.

Anyone who has read Conrad but has not studied Said’s ‘Culture and Imperialism’ and ‘Orientalism’ remains unaware of the underlying meanings in Conrad’s writings. On this centenary of Conrad’s death, students of English literature would benefit from an in-depth study of Said, especially concerning Conrad and other European writers.

Reformulation and redefinition of established writers should always be an ongoing process. As Said noted, "What makes Conrad different from the other colonial writers who were his contemporaries is that, for reasons partly related to the colonialism that turned him, a Polish expatriate, into an employee of the imperial system, he was so self-conscious about what he did."

The writer holds a PhD from the University of Birmingham, UK. He tweets/posts @NaazirMahmood and can be reached at: mnazir1964@yahoo.co.uk