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4.06 AVERAGE
4.06 AVERAGE
Over-rated and too much in love with itself. Analysis is weak, but biography is pretty good. Fans only.
A fascinating blend of history, biography, and literary analysis. It brings to life a writer who lived in a world startlingly familiar to our own, and saw through much of the facade of that world. There are some truly profound insights here, not just for devotees of Conrad, but for those people who can see the paths made by our predecessors. Conrad saw a lot of what was coming, both in the literary world and in the real world. He belonged to a grand tradition of figures who never quite belonged, regardless of where they were. That outsider viewpoint lent something unique to his writing that has kept him relevant almost a century after his death.
Turned out to be rather good, this critical biography of Joseph Conrad. Jasanoff treads new ground when she sees Conrad's work as the first hint in literature of a tendency to globalization in literature, meaning that Conrad, an immigrant, non-native speaker of English, whose appeal deals with the falling away of national identity in favor of worldwide commonality of experience, provides a beacon to the globalized transnational world of the 21st century. I'm not sure I agree with that. And it would be an irony that Jasanoff would come up with that interpretation just as the world is retreating from globalization in 2022. But it's a bold idea. And I like academics who stake out bold new positions about established icons such as Conrad. As a result, she deftly skewers Chinua Achebe's view of him in the most polite but effective way imaginable--through a well written contextualized study of Conrad and four of his major works: The Secret Agent, Almayer's Folly/Lord Jim, Heart of Darkness, and Nostromo. Her nuanced reading of Conrad all but puts paid to Achebe's inability to see Conrad as nothing more than a racist. According to Jasanoff, in fact, he's quite the opposite, despite the harsh language of race and ethnicity the author used in common with the culture of his time.
The weak point of the study is her use of plot summaries of those works. The summary of The Secret Agent is almost unbearable, a short story sized rehash that strings together book quotes unendingly. Fortunately, things improve with the other works, especially Nostromo, whose summary is well integrated into the analysis of the story. Jasanoff also does a solid job of providing historical context, although discussion of English anarchists went on a bit too long, I think. The one thing that does concern me is her citing in the acknowledgments William Dalrymple as "inspiring" in his writing and discussions with her.
The weak point of the study is her use of plot summaries of those works. The summary of The Secret Agent is almost unbearable, a short story sized rehash that strings together book quotes unendingly. Fortunately, things improve with the other works, especially Nostromo, whose summary is well integrated into the analysis of the story. Jasanoff also does a solid job of providing historical context, although discussion of English anarchists went on a bit too long, I think. The one thing that does concern me is her citing in the acknowledgments William Dalrymple as "inspiring" in his writing and discussions with her.
An absorbing biography of a complex and contradictory author whose life, as Jasanoff deftly shows, brings together the deeply interconnected world of the belle epoque world.
A marvel of a book; fascinating insight into the world at the turn of the 20th century. Beautiful prose as well, though at times the cleverness of word phrasing gets tiresome. The final section, on Latin America and Nostromo, seems less rich and complex than earlier chapters. The discussion of Panama, for example is quite one-dimensional; no Panamanian or Colombian sources cited there. Still, a book that I highly recommend and now I must go read more Conrad!
An excellent and readable literary biography grounded in Conrad’s major work but written with an eye towards his relevance as a writer of global capitalism.
A superb biography that weaves Conrad's life, novels, and historical context into a single fascinating narrative. Jasanoff also does an elegant job of bringing out the many ways in which Conrad was a prescient observer of the beginnings of a global world order dominated by American capitalism.
I was curious about this book for a few reasons: Jasanoff is an excellent writer and historian; Conrad was formative in my undergraduate and graduate studies; I believe historians should travel, like Jasanoff, in a similar way to those they write about.
Globalization, immigration, terrorism, and technology are all present in Conrad's writing, which Jasanoff highlights throughout the book. Even though writers like Conrad sometimes lapsed into the racist imperialist ideologies of 19th century, Jasanoff makes an excellent case for why they are still relevant and must not be ignored.
Globalization, immigration, terrorism, and technology are all present in Conrad's writing, which Jasanoff highlights throughout the book. Even though writers like Conrad sometimes lapsed into the racist imperialist ideologies of 19th century, Jasanoff makes an excellent case for why they are still relevant and must not be ignored.
informative
medium-paced
This book is fine. It doesn't provide a ton of new information or reframing of Conrad's work. A reader familiar with Conrad's work and place within the history of empire will find much familiar here. For anyone who wants a primer on Conrad's background and the significance of his work, this book is a good place to start
A marvel of a book; fascinating insight into the world at the turn of the 20th century. Beautiful prose as well, though at times the cleverness of word phrasing gets tiresome. The final section, on Latin America and Nostromo, seems less rich and complex than earlier chapters. The discussion of Panama, for example is quite one-dimensional; no Panamanian or Colombian sources cited there. Still, a book that I highly recommend and now I must go read more Conrad!