Showing results by author "Joseph Conrad" in All Categories

In these two magnificent novellas Conrad explores the question of self-discovery through powerful and exciting narratives: in Youth, the experienced seaman Marlow tells the story of a young man's coming of age on his first voyage to the East, while in Heart of Darkness he describes with terrifying depth and vividness the slide into corruption of an idealistic trader.

William Collins Books and Decca Records are proud to present ARGO Classics, a historic catalogue of classic fiction read by some of the world’s most renowned voices. Originally released as vinyl records, these expertly abridged and remastered stories are now available to download for the first...

Born Józef Teodor Konrad Korzeniowski in 1857 in Poland, Joseph Conrad had a difficult childhood due to his family's involvement in Polish nationalism, which led to their persecution by the Russian authorities. Conrad started his career as a sailor and traveled extensively, which inspired his literary work. In 1895, he published his first novel "Almayer's Folly," which was followed by a string of successful works, including "Heart of Darkness," which was published in 1899.

This is a pre-1923 historical reproduction that was curated for quality. Quality assurance was conducted on each of these books in an attempt to remove books with imperfections introduced by the digitization process. Though we have made best efforts - the books may have occasional errors that do not impede the reading experience. We believe this work is culturally important and have elected to bring the book back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide.

Marlow—the narrator of Lord Jim and Heart of Darkness—tells the story of his first voyage to the exotic, romantic East, as a 20-year-old second officer of the ancient barque Judea. It is a story of almost comical disaster—and of the resilience of youthful hope and enthusiasm.

The Nigger of the Narcissus: A Tale of the Forecastle (1897; also subtitled A Tale of the Sea and published in the US as The Children of the Sea) is a novella by Joseph Conrad. Because of its quality compared to earlier works, some have described it as marking the start of Conrad's major, or middle, period; others have placed it as the best work of his early, or first, period. This is the first professionally recorded and produced audiobook version of this work.

The Secret Agent is a Victorian terrorist tale that has found a new audience with today's audiences. Set in 1866 London, this book tells the story of Adolf Verloc, a shopkeeper turned anarchist.

Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness tells a story based on Conrad's own experiences in the Congo Free State during the 1890s. Set in Africa, the main character, Marlow, is asked to find and bring back the ivory trader, Mr. Kurtz. However, the deeper Marlow travels, the more ominous and depressing his surroundings become.

Today, we're likely to react to the title of this novella, on whose 'sincerity of expression' Conrad was willing to stake his artisitic reputation, with visceral disgust. There is a sad irony in this, for Conrad's title originally alluded to a rather complex set of meanings, implying that, by virtue of our human nature, we all carry within the fragile vessel that is our idealised image of ourselves a darker being we find troubling, even despicable, but with whom we must eventually come to terms.

Almayer’s Folly, Joseph Conrad’s first novel, is a tale of personal tragedy as well as a broader meditation on the evils of colonialism. Set in the lush jungle of Borneo in the late 1800s, it tells of the Dutch merchant Kaspar Almayer, whose dreams of riches for his beloved daughter, Nina, collapse under the weight of his own greed and prejudice. Nadine Gordimer writes in her Introduction, “Conrad’s writing is lifelong questioning.

Heart of Darkness' is a small, but perhaps the most famous adventure story written by Joseph Conrad. The narrative is written on behalf of the sailor Marlowe, who tells the reader about his past adventures. In the African wilds, there is an illegally operating elephant bone mining company. While crossing the continent, Marlowe travels to one of its divisions. As he is getting closer to his destination, the main character hears more and more stories about some almighty Kurtz, an agent of the company, whom the locals mention with fear and hatred.

Nostromo is a colorful and adventurous tale set in the fictional South American country of Costaguana. In the midst of a revolution, the citizens of Costaguana live under a brutal dictatorship of Ribiera, a ruthless leader kept in power through foreigners and their dark money. The oligarch government has become so corrupt that the citizens of Costaguana have had enough. In fear of losing his wealth, Charles Gould, the leader of a wealthy family, asks Nostromo for help in getting his vast silver fortune out of the city.

Peter Willems is the outcast of the islands, in this, Joseph Conrad’s second novel published in 1896, inspired by his experience as ship’s mate on the trading vessel Vidar. Willems is confidential clerk to Hudig, a powerful merchant trading out of Macassar, in the Dutch East Indies, on the island of Sulawesi. But very soon Willems is on the run from a scandal and finds himself up-river at Almayer’s remote trading post. An all-consuming liaison ensues between Willems and Aissa, the local chief’s daughter.

Short stories have always been a sort of instant access into an author’s brain, their soul and heart. They can lift our lives into locations, people and experiences with a sweep of landscape, narration, feelings and emotions that is difficult to achieve elsewhere. Some you may disagree with but they will get you thinking; about our choices and about those you would have made. If this volume takes you on a path to discover more of these miniature masterpieces then we have all gained something.

Jim, the first mate aboard a small steamer named the Patna, travels from port to port in the Pacific Ocean. When the ship hits floating wreckage, Jim and the crew are forced to abandon it, leaving hundreds of ethnic travelers onboard. However, Jim's reprehensible actions are soon discovered by the court, and he is compelled to face his guilt and redeem himself - a journey that leads him to a remote exotic location where he is revered as the Lord, "Tuan Jim".

An astonishing collection of fifty of the greatest short stories ever written by some of literature's most highly acclaimed writers. 1. "Odour of Chrysanthemums" by D. H. Lawrence; 2. "Miss Harriet" by Guy de Maupassant; 3. "Twenty-six Men and a Girl" by Maxim Gorky; 4. "Hot Potatoes" by Arnold Bennett; 5. "Rats" by M. R. James; 6. "Zodomirsky’s Duel" by Alexandre Dumas; 7. "The Story of an Hour" by Kate Chopin; 8. "The Cask of Amontillado" by Edgar Allan Poe; 9. "The Encased Man" by Anton Chekhov.

In “A Smile of Fortune”, a ship’s captain meets the seemingly genial Mr. Jacobus and his irritable brother while embarking in the tropics. One a respectable businessman with a considerable reputation, the other a confessed rogue and entrepreneur with no reputation left to lose, the captain is at a loss to determine which he should befriend. In this masterly tale of misplaced loyalty, family feuds, and illicit bargaining, the captain finds himself the unwitting partner in a deeply unorthodox transaction.

In Conrad's haunting novella, narrator Marlow recounts his experiences in the Congo Free State, and his chilling and perilous quest upriver in search of visionary ivory trader, the enigmatic Mr Kurtz. His journey, culminating in his eventual encounter with Kurtz, horrify and perplex Marlow, and lead him to question his own nature and values, and the whole concept of "civilization".

FNH Audio presents an unabridged reading of this classic tale. Charles Marlow sits with is friends upon the Thames and tells the story of his time when he followed a similar watercourse up into the depths of Africa. That trip was intended for the relief of the mysterious Mr Kurtz, a man powerful and frightening. In the dark jungle the truth of mankind’s depravity is to be discovered, the very heart of darkness.

In fading light on the Thames Estuary near London, as Charles Marlow and his companions relax on deck, waiting for the turn of the tide, he tells of the time he turned ‘freshwater sailor’ on the River Congo. His perilous journey upriver in a little steamboat with a band of white colonialists and a group of cannibals takes him closer to the coveted ivory, closer to Kurtz the rogue agent, closer to certain unspeakable rites and the heart of darkness.