Joseph Conrad: A Biography

I happen to think that Joseph Conrad was one of the ten greatest authors writing in English in the 20th Century (although his first works were published in the 1890s). Among other things that strike me every time I read him, I marvel that English was not his native language. I finally got around to reading this now 17-year-old biography, and among the things I learned was that throughout Conrad's life, both writing and speaking English were quite difficult for him; he had to work at it. (The book also tells us that at the time, Conrad's decision to write in "an alien language was unique," although later Nabokov, Koestler, Dinesen, Beckett, and Ionesco achieved similar distinction writing in a foreign language.) On balance, this is a serviceable biography, but not a distinguished one. According to the credits at the front of the book, the author, Jeffrey Meyers, had written seven biographies previously, and at times JOSEPH CONRAD, his eighth, shows signs of being the product of a biography hack. Occasionally, the narrative flow is mildly jerky or disjointed; the book is larded with a few too many quotations from other sources; and several fatuous remarks escaped the editor's blue pencil. The book conveys no sense of enthusiasm or passion on the part of the author, either for the subject or the craft of biography. In addition, Meyers is not shy about tooting his own horn about the "new" information he adds to our collective picture of Conrad (see the Preface), including, in particular, Conrad's affair during WWI with a femme fatale, Jane Anderson (who, in her own right, led a rather remarkable if not admirable life, going from a star-crossed childhood in Georgia and Arizona to paramour of noted literati and nobles in Britain to being charged by the U.S. for treason in connection with WWII activities in Nazi Germany). Meyers does not devote much discussion to literary analysis of most of Conrad's work, with the exceptions of "Nostromo", "Victory", and "The Rescue." Rather than a literary biography, this is more a straightforward biography. In workmanlike and acceptably readable fashion, it covers the significant people and events of Conrad's remarkable life and limns a very complex and surprisingly insecure novelist.

There's a lot of detail here about his life, too much, perhaps, but certainly among the great 20th century writers conrad led one of the more interesting lives. I was more interested in a study of his works, what inspired him to write stories like lord jim and the secret agent (incidentally victory, one of conrad's best, overlooked works does get this sort of detailed inspection - but it is the exception) but for the most part meyers speeds through these parts. But if you have an interest in conrad, have read a number of his stories and would like to know more, then I certainly recommend this biography.

I bought this book after reading Heart of Darkness, Victory, and the Secret Sharer. I wanted to know more about the man who wrote such haunting fiction. The beginning of this book gives an excellent and riveting account of Conrad's parents and their political exile. After Conrad's mother dies he remains with his father in severe and isolated conditions. A detailed account of Conrad's early life helped me to understand how he wrote what he did. Quite fascinating. Also, he did visit the Congo and had experiences there that give great insight into Heart of Darkness. Including marking people he met that are models for characters in the story. Plus he was a seaman, so we learn how he could write realistically on this subject. And we learn about Conrad's psyche, his strengths and weaknesses. I loved learning about his life, but this bio also goes into some detail about all of Conrad's novels. If you haven't read them you may become lost. If you have read all his works this bio will definitely increase your appreciation and add to your understanding of this great writer.