Joseph Conrad - The Mirror of the Sea and A Personal Record (Wordsworth Literary Lives) - Softcover

Joseph Conrad

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1840225726 ISBN 13: 9781840225723

Publisher: Wordsworth Editions Ltd, 2008

Synopsis

Introductions by Dr. Keith Carabine, Chairperson of the Joseph Conrad Society (U.K.). I have tried with an almost filial regard to render the vibration of life in the great world of waters, in the hearts of simple men who have traversed its solitudes, and also that something sentient which seems to dwell in ships--the creatures of their hands and the objects of their care. Joseph Conrad on The Mirror of the Sea An imaginative and exact rendering of authentic memories may serve worthily that spirit of piety towards all things human which sanctions the conceptions of a writer of tales, and the emotions of a man reviewing his own experience. A Personal Record These two autobiographical works differ greatly in scope and form. In The Mirror (1906) Conrad draws upon his career as a mariner in France and then in the British Merchant Service to consider and dramatise the relationships between men, ships and the sea in an era when his beloved sailing ships gave way to the age of steam. A Personal Record (1912) pivots on two crucial turning points in Conrad s amazing life: his decision as a sixteen year old to leave Poland for the call of the sea, and his decision fifteen years later to begin his first novel, Almayer s Folly, in English, his third language. The Mirror has been called the epic of the sailing ship and The Bible of the Sea . A Personal Record is a humorous, moving account of a young man s struggle, against all the odds, to create a coherent, justifiable personality both in its origin and its action .

About this title

Synopsis:

This book features introductions by Dr. Keith Carabine, Chairperson of the Joseph Conrad Society (U.K.). 'I have tried with an almost filial regard to render the vibration of life in the great world of waters, in the hearts of simple men who have traversed its solitudes, and also that something sentient which seems to dwell in ships - the creatures of their hands and the objects of their care' - Joseph Conrad on "The Mirror of the Sea". 'An imaginative and exact rendering of authentic memories may serve worthily that spirit of piety towards all things human which sanctions the conceptions of a writer of tales, and the emotions of a man reviewing his own experience' - "A Personal Record".These two autobiographical works differ greatly in scope and form. In "The Mirror" (1906) Conrad draws upon his career as a mariner in France and then in the British Merchant Service to consider and dramatise the relationships between men, ships and the sea in an era when his beloved sailing ships gave way to the age of steam.

"A Personal Record" (1912) pivots on two crucial turning points in Conrad's amazing life: his decision as a sixteen year old to leave Poland for the 'call' of the sea, and his decision fifteen years later to begin his first novel, "Almayer's Folly", in English, his third language. "The Mirror" has been called 'the epic of the sailing ship' and 'The Bible of the Sea'. "A Personal Record" is a humorous, moving account of a young man's struggle, against all the odds, to create 'a coherent, justifiable personality both in its origin and its action'.

About the Author:

Joseph Conrad, (1857-1924) born JOzef Teodor Konrad Korzeniowski, was a Polish-born English novelist. Most of his works featured a nautical setting and depicted trials of the human spirit by the demands of duty and honor. Before he started writing, Conrad joined the French merchant marines and later joined the British navy. Some of his numerous works include, Heart of Darkness, The Arrow of Gold, The Secret Agent, An Outcast of the Islands, and Lord Jim.

About this edition

• Publisher: Wordsworth Editions Ltd
• Publication date: 2008
• ISBN 10: 1840225726
• ISBN 13: 9781840225723
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 304