The Rescue by Joseph Conrad
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Ahoy, Matey
"Joseph Conrad has generally been regarded as a novelist with "dual" Polish and English national affinities. This study argues for a triple identity by introducing the French face of Conrad's work, demonstrating that his knowledge of the French language and its literature has profound implications for the study of the novels. Yves Hervouet documents chronologically the influence of French authors including Flaubert, Maupassant and Anatole France, building up a picture of Conrad at work. This first large-scale account of Conrad's involvement with a French literary, aesthetic and philosophical tradition provokes an important reassessment of his creative originality. It should have a major impact on Conrad scholarship, and as a study of cross-cultural influence, it will be of interest to all students of comparative literature in the period."
Surprise! After 2 1/2 years of Zola in Les Deux Magots, we jump to Conrad. Francophiles can use the above as a loose connection.
I want to jump to a trilogy, something manageable, that fits snuggly into our expanded literary canon. For those who read "The End of the Tether", the next three Conrad tales we cover all take place in the Malaysian archipelago.
Be warned; this trilogy of raw Joseph Conrad novels is not for everyone. It is for those who appreciate Conrad's sublime writing, precise description, otherworldly vocabulary, and impeccable prose. As confounding as some of the colonialist themes/stereotypical characters are to the modern reader, if you see the Conrad oeuvre as worthy of reading in its entirety, join us!
We embark with the Lingard Trilogy (to be clear, we will read 3 Conrad novels and then jump, not all of them now). Conrad wrote three novels with the gregarious Captain Thomas Lingard. This character played a role in his first and second published novels, Almayer's Folly, and An Outcast of the Islands. But first, we read the prequel, The Rescue, which Conrad started in 1898, but laid aside, and ultimately completed in 1920 (the setting is before Almayer's Folly). The Rescue tells the tale of Tom Lingard encountering a stranded English yacht with a beautiful female protagonist, Mrs Travers.
Here is a link to a paperback version of The Rescue. This has been in and out of print over the decades, and the novel is largely forgotten today. Part of the fun will be seeing what vintage copy you can stumble across in readable condition.
Also available on Gutenberg:
https://www.gutenberg.org/files/1712/1712-h/1712-h.htm
The Rescue by Joseph Conrad