Joseph_Conrad约瑟夫_康拉德

JosephConrad,(1857-1924)oneofthegreatestnovelistsintheEnglishlanguage,HisLife,JosephConradwasborninBerdyczw(nowinUkraine)intoanimpoverished,highlypatrioticPolishnoblefamily.HisfatherApolloKorzeniowskiwasawriterofpolitically-themedplaysandatranslatorofAlfreddeVigny,VictorHugo,CharlesDickensandShakespearefromtheFrenchandEnglish.HeencouragedhissonConradtoreadwidelyinPolishandFrench.Conradsfamilyshowedsimilarpatrioticbeliefs.Bobrowski,anothermaternaluncle,resignedhiscommissioninthearmyandwasimprisoned,whileRobertandHilaryKorzeniowski,twofraternaluncles,alsoassistedinplanningtherebellion.(Robertdiedin1863andHilarywasimprisonedandexiled.)AllofthispoliticalturmoilwouldprovetobepredictablydisturbingtoyoungJosef,whocouldonlystandidlybyashewatchedhisfamilyinvolvedinsuchdangerouscontroversy.ThenotionofthestrongoppressingtheweakandtheweakpowerlesstorevoltsurfacesinHeartofDarkness,wheretheWhitetraderswantonlymurdertheCongoleseinpursuitofrichesandpower.,TheFamily,Earlyyearsasasailor,Duringhisearlyteenageyears,Conradreadagreatdeal,particularlytranslationsCharlesDickensnovelsandCaptainFrederickMarryat,anEnglishnovelistwhowrotepopularadventureyarnsaboutlifeatsea.Attheageof16,ConradwenttoMarseilleandbeginacareerasaseaman.In1878hepassedhisexaminationsformastermariner,thesameyearhebecameaBritishcitizen.,Voyage,In1878,Conradsufferedfromdepression,causedinpartbygamblingdebtsandhisbeingforbiddentoworkonanyFrenchshipsduetohislyingabouthavingtheproperpermits.Hemadeanunsuccessfulattemptatsuicide,shootinghimselfthroughtheshoulderandmissinghisvitalorgans.,HisDeath,ConraddiedofheartfailureonAugust3,1924.HewasburiedinCanterburyCemeteryandsurvivedbyhiswifeandsons.Stillhonoredbymillionsofreadersasoneofthegreatestmodernwriters,Conradleftbehindalargebodyofworkwhosenaturehedefined(inhisPrefacetoTheNiggeroftheNarcissus)asasingle-mindedattempttorenderthehighestkindofjusticetothevisibleuniverse,bybringingtolightthetruth,manifoldandone,underlyingitseveryaspect.,JosephConradSquare,Literarycareer,TheNiggerofthe“Narcissus”(1897)concernsatubercular（患结核病的）Blacksailorwhoseimpendingdeathaffectshisfellowcrewmeninanumberofprofoundways.LordJim(1900)examinestheeffectsofacowardlyactandhowthisactsmoralrepercussions（反应，影响）hauntamanuntilhisdeath.(LordJimsstoryistoldbyMarlow,thenarratorofHeartofDarkness.)In1902,ConradpublishedTheSecretAgent(1907)concernsagroupofanarchists（无政府主义者）whoplantoblowuptheGreenwichObservatory,UnderWesternEyes(1911),setinnineteenth-centuryCzaristRussia,followsthelifeofastudentwhobetrayshisfriendtheassassin(刺客）ofagovernmentofficialtotheauthorities.TheSecretSharer(1912)usestheDoppelgangertheme(whereamanmeetshisfigurativedouble)toexaminewhatConradviewedastheshiftingnatureofhumanidentityandtheessentialisolationofallhumanbeings.OthernovelsmarkedbytheessentialConradianthemesincludeTheInheritors(cowrittenwithFordMaddoxFord,1901),Victory(1915),andTheShadow-Line(1917).Conradalsoturnedtoautobiography:TheMirroroftheSea(1906),APersonalRecord(1912),andNotesonLifeandLetters(1921).,Influence,SomeofConradsworksincludingHeartofDarknesshaveinspiredfilmmakersandsuchauthorsasF.ScottFitzgerald,GabrielGarcaMrquez,D.H.Lawrence,andVirginiaWoolf.HehasalsobeengroupedwithothersuchesteemedauthorsashisfriendStephenCraneandRobertLouisStevenson.,Coppolathedirector,RevisedfromHeartofDarkness,Heartofdarkness-oneofthe100bestnovels,ThestoryreflectsthephysicalandpsychologicalshockConradhimselfexperiencedin1890,whenheworkedbrieflyintheBelgianCongo.Thenarrator,Marlow,describesajourneyhetookonanAfricanriver.Assignedbyanivorycompanytotakecommandofacargoboatstranded（搁浅）intheinterior,Marlowmakeshiswaythroughthetreacherous（危险的）forest,witnessingthebrutalization（残忍）ofthenativesbywhitetradersandhearingtantalizing(挑逗性的）storiesofaMr.Kurtz,thecompanysmostsuccessfulrepresentative.HereachesKurtzscompoundinaremoteoutpost(前哨）onlytoseearowofhumanheadsmountedonpoles.Inthisaliencontext,unboundbythestrictures（谴责）ofhisownculture,Kurtzhasexchangedhissoulforabloodysovereignty,butamortalillnessisbringinghisreignofterrortoaclose.AsMarlowtransportshimdownriver,Kurtzdeliversanarrogantandemptyexplanationofhisdeedsasavisionaryquest.TothenarratorKurtzsdyingwords,“Thehorror!Thehorror!”representdespairattheencounterwithhumandepravity（堕落）-theheartofdarkness.,Thisbolicstoryisastorywithinastoryorframenarrative.ItfollowsMarlowasherecountsfromduskthroughtolatenight,toagroupofmenaboardashipanchoredintheThamesEstuary,hisCongoleseadventure.Thepassageoftimeandthedarkeningskyduringthefictitious（虚构的）narrative-within-the-narrativeparalleltheatmosphereofthestory.,ConradsUseoftheFrameTale,First-timereadersofHeartofDarknessmaybeinitiallypuzzledbyConradsdecisiontohaveMarlowsstorytoldtothereaderbytheanonymousnarratorwholistenstoMarlowonthedeckoftheNellie.SuchareadermaywonderwhyConradwouldmakeHeartofDarknessaframetaleatallandnotsimplybeginwithMarlowtellingthestory,asmanyfirst-personnarrativesdo.ThereasonisthatConradsframenarrator,likethereader,learnsthathisideasaboutEuropeanimperialism（帝国主义）arefoundedonanumberofliesthathehaswholeheartedlybelieved.Bytheendofthenovel,Marlowstalesignificantlychangesthenarratorsattitudetowardtheshipsandmenofthepast.,HeartofDarknessisachillingtaleofhorrorsetintheCongoduringtheperiodofrapid