History Creator / JosephConrad

* EvilCounterpart: Many of Conrad's protagonists are characters who engage in ethically questionable conduct while still retaining some moral compass. During the course of the story, these individuals eventually encounter their nihilistic and often outright criminal counterparts who reject morality altogether. Examples of this trope are renegade Kurtz vs. company man Marlow in ''Literature/HeartOfDarkness'', pirate Gentleman Brown to troubled would-be hero Jim in ''Literature/LordJim'', and the bandit Mr. Jones to passive social outcast Axel Heyst in '''Victory'', and many others.

* DownerEnding: If you ever find a happy ending in a Conrad story, it’s like winning a lottery.

A polyglot who spoke Polish and French from childhood, Conrad eventually made the rare transition of writing solely in English, despite it being a "third language" at best. He became fluent only in his teenage years and for the rest of his life, he spoke English with a pronounced accent, anticipating the more radical transitions made by the likes of Creator/VladimirNabokov and Creator/SamuelBeckett.[[note]]Nabokov disagreed. "I differ from Joseph [[{{pun}} Conradically]]," he argued, noting that Conrad only ever wrote books in English, which was less of a transition than Nabokov who went from writing novels in Russian to novels in English, being accomplished in both languages. It should be noted, however, that English was actually Nabokov's first language.[[/note]]

Conrad’s youth as a merchant sailor on French and British vessels provides [[WriteWhatYouKnow the background]] for most of his seafaring works. Most of his time at sea was working trade routes around Africa and India at the height of UsefulNotes/TheBritishEmpire, which informs most of his other works. In his lifetime, he was regarded as a great talent by the likes of Creator/HenryJames, Creator/RudyardKipling and he later influenced artists like Creator/{{Graham Greene|Author}}, Creator/TSEliot, Creator/OrsonWelles, Creator/ThomasPynchon, Creator/ErnestHemingway, Creator/FScottFitzgerald, and Creator/WilliamFaulkner.

* YourTerroristsAreOurFreedomFighters: Averted. Conrad was deeply unsympathetic to revolutionaries, he sees self-calling freedom fighters who use violence as thrill-seekers who use ideology to justify taking innocent lives. His novels ''The Secret Agent'' and ''Under Western Eyes'' both depict terrorist attacks that condemn these actions in no uncertain terms as senseless and brutal.

Conrad’s youth as a merchant sailor on French and British vessels provides [[WriteWhatYouKnow the background]] for most of his seafaring works. Most of his time at sea was working trade routes around Africa and India at the height of UsefulNotes/TheBritishEmpire, which informs most of his other works. In his lifetime, he was regarded as a great talent by the likes of Creator/HenryJames, Creator/RudyardKipling and he later influenced artists like Creator/{{Graham Greene|Author}}, Creator/TSEliot, Creator/OrsonWelles, Creator/ThomasPynchon, Creator/ErnestHemingway and Creator/FScottFitzgerald.

A polyglot who spoke Polish and French from childhood, Conrad eventually made the rare transition of writing solely in English, despite it being a "third language" at best. He became fluent only in his teenage years and for the rest of his life, he spoke English with a pronounced accent, anticipating the more radical transitions made by the likes of Creator/VladimirNabokov and Creator/SamuelBeckett.[[note]]Nabokov disagreed. "I differ from Joseph [[{{pun}} Conradically]]," he argued, noting that Conrad only ever wrote books in English, which was less of a transition than Nabokov who went from writing novels in Russian to novels in English, being accomplished in both languages.[[/note]]

For reasons such as this, Conrad is perennially part of SchoolStudyMedia as well as a popular author to this day.

A polyglot who spoke Polish and French from childhood, Conrad eventually made the rare transition of writing solely in English, despite it being a "third language" at best. He became fluent only in his teenage years and for the rest of his life, he spoke English with a pronounced accent, anticipating the more radical transitions made by the likes of Creator/VladimirNabokov.[[note]]Nabokov disagreed. "I differ from Joseph [[{{pun}} Conradically]]," he argued, noting that Conrad only ever wrote books in English, which was less of a transition than Nabokov who went from writing novels in Russian to novels in English, being accomplished in both languages.[[/note]]

Several of his books have been adapted to films. Most notable examples are ''Film/{{Sabotage|1936}}'' (1936) by Creator/AlfredHitchcock which adapts ''The Secret Agent'' [[note]]Not to be confused by the Hitchcock film ''Film/{{Secret Agent|1936}}'' which adapts W. Somerset Maugham's ''Ashenden''[[/note]], Carol Reed's adaptation of ''An Outcast on the Islands'' and Richard Brooks' adaptation of ''Literature/LordJim''. The most famous one of course is ''Film/ApocalypseNow'' which adapts his 1899 novella ''Literature/HeartOfDarkness'' through SettingUpdate from the Belgian Congo to the Vietnam War. Likewise, Creator/DavidLean planned to adapt ''Nostromo'' for his last film but [[AuthorExistenceFailure he died before production began]]. In addition, numerous ships in ''Franchise/{{Alien}}'' are [[ShoutOut named after]] elements of Conrad's book, including the Nostromo and its shuttle Narcissus, and later the Sulaco, after the town in ''Nostromo''.

Several of his books have been adapted to films. Most notable examples are ''Film/{{Sabotage|1936}}'' (1936) by Creator/AlfredHitchcock which adapts ''The Secret Agent'' [[note]]Not to be confused by the Hitchcock film ''Film/{{Secret Agent|1936}}'' which adapts W. Somerset Maugham's ''Ashenden''[[/note]], Carol Reed's adaptation of ''An Outcast on the Islands'' and Richard Brooks' adaptation of ''Literature/LordJim''. The most famous one of course is ''Film/ApocalypseNow'' which adapts his 1899 novella ''Literature/HeartOfDarkness'' through SettingUpdate from the Belgian Congo to the Vietnam War. Likewise, Creator/DavidLean planned to adapt ''Nostromo'' for his last film but [[AuthorExistenceFailure he died before production began]]. In addition, Ripley's ship in ''Film/{{Alien}}'' is called "Nostromo" as a ShoutOut.

Several of his books have been adapted to films. Most notable examples are ''Film/{{Sabotage|1936}}'' (1936) by Creator/AlfredHitchcock which adapts ''The Secret Agent'' [[note]]Not to be confused by the Hitchcock film ''Film/{{Secret Agent|1936}}'' which adapts W. Somerset Maugham's ''Ashenden''[[/note]], Carol Reed's adaptation of ''An Outcast on the Islands'' and Richard Brooks' adaptation of ''Film/LordJim''. The most famous one of course is ''Film/ApocalypseNow'' which adapts his 1899 novella ''Literature/HeartOfDarkness'' through SettingUpdate from the Belgian Congo to the Vietnam War. Likewise, Creator/DavidLean planned to adapt ''Nostromo'' for his last film but [[AuthorExistenceFailure he died before production began]]. In addition, Ripley's ship in ''Film/{{Alien}}'' is called "Nostromo" as a ShoutOut.

A polyglot who spoke Polish and French from childhood, Conrad eventually made the rare transition of writing solely in English, despite it being a "third language" at best. He became fluent only in his teenage years and for the rest of his life, he spoke English with a pronounced accent, anticipating the more radical transitions made by the likes of Creator/VladimirNabokov.[[note]]Nabokov disagreed. "I differ from Joseph [[{{pun}} Conradically]]," he argued, noting that Conrad only ever wrote books in English, which was less of a transition than Nabokov who went from writing novels in Russian to novels in English, being accomplished in both languages[[/note]]

* EvilCounterpart: Many of Conrad's protagonists are characters who engage in ethically questionable conduct while still retaining some moral compass, who go on to meet their nihilistic and often outright criminal counterparts who reject morality altogether. Examples of this trope are renegade Kurtz vs. company man Marlow in ''Literature/HeartOfDarkness'', pirate Gentleman Brown to troubled would-be hero Jim in ''Literature/LordJim'', and the bandit Mr. Jones to passive social outcast Axel Heyst in '''Victory'', and many others.

* EvilCounterpart: Many of Conrad's protagonists are characters who engage in ethically questionable conduct while still retaining some moral compass, who go on to meet their nihilistic and often outright criminal counterparts who reject morality altogether. Examples of this trope are renegade Kurtz vs. company man Marlow in ''Literature/HeartOfDarkness'', pirate Gentleman Brown to troubled would-be hero Jim in ''Literature/LordJim'', and the bandit Mr. Jones to passive social outcast Axel Heyst in ''Literature/Victory'', and many others.

* EvilCounterpart: Many of Conrad's protagonists are characters who engage in ethically questionable conduct while still retaining some moral compass, who go on to meet their nihilistic and often outright criminal counterparts who reject morality altogether. Examples are company man Marlowe vs. renegade Kurtz in ''Literature/HeartOfDarkness'', social outcast Heyst vs. bandit Jones in ''Literature/Victory'', troubled would-be hero Jim vs. pirate Gentleman Brown in ''Literature/LordJim'', and many others.

* AntiHero: Axel Heyst and Lena in ''Victory''.

* GoMadFromTheRevelation: Many of his characters go nuts when they confront their illusions and failed hopes. It happens to all the terrorists in ''The Secret Agent'', as well as Razumov in ''Under Western Eyes''. In ''Nostromo'', Decoud is driven to madness and suicide by being forced to spend a few days alone on an island with nothing but his self-doubt to keep him company.

* GoMadFromTheRevelation: Many of his characters go nuts when they confront their illusions and failed hopes. It happens to all the terrorists in ''The Secret Agent'', as well as Razumov in ''Under Western Eyes''.

* SpyFiction: ''The Secret Agent'' and ''Under Western Eyes'' codify some of the tropes in modern spy stories and he indeed influenced the likes of Creator/GrahamGreene.

Conrad’s youth as a merchant sailor on French and British vessels provides [[WriteWhatYouKnow the background]] for most of his seafaring works. Most of his time at sea was working trade routes around Africa and India at the height of UsefulNotes/TheBritishEmpire, which informs most of his other works. In his lifetime, he was regarded as a great talent by the likes of Creator/HenryJames, Creator/RudyardKipling and he later influenced artists like Creator/GrahamGreene, Creator/TSEliot, Creator/OrsonWelles, Creator/ThomasPynchon, Creator/ErnestHemingway and Creator/FScottFitzgerald.

!!Novels by Joseph Conrad with their own page include:

* DownerEnding: If you ever find a happy ending in a Conrad story, it's like winning a lottery. Indeed his novel titled ''Victory'' [[spoiler:still ends with all the characters dead and the phrase invoked]] as an EsotericHappyEnding.

* ''Nostromo'' (1904)
* ''The Secret Agent'' (1907)

* ''Literature/TheSecretAgent''
* ''{{Literature/Typhoon}}''
* ''The End of the Tether'' (1902)
* ''Romance'' (co-written with Ford Madox Ford) (1903)