Joseph Conrad and the fiction of autobiography / Edward W. Said.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Said, Edward W.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Conrad, Joseph, 1857-1924--Criticism and interpretation.

Conrad, Joseph.

Autobiographical fiction, English--History and criticism.

Autobiographical fiction, English.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (xxiv, 219 p. )

Place of Publication:

New York : Columbia University Press, c2008.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Edward W. Said locates Joseph Conrad's fear of personal disintegration in his constant re-narration of the past. Using the author's personal letters as a guide to understanding his fiction, Said draws an important parallel between Conrad's view of his own life and the manner and form of his stories. The critic also argues that the author, who set his fiction in exotic locations like East Asia and Africa, projects political dimensions in his work that mirror a colonialist preoccupation with "civilizing" native peoples. Said then suggests that this dimension should be considered when reading all of Western literature. First published in 1966, Said's critique of the Western self's struggle with modernity signaled the beginnings of his groundbreaking work, Orientalism, and remains a cornerstone of postcolonial studies today.

Contents:

Part one: Conrad's letters

The claims of individuality

Character and the Knitting machine, 1896-1912

The claims of fiction, 1896-1912

Worlds at war, 1912-1918

The new order, 1918-1924

Part two: Conrad's shorter fiction

The past and the present

The craft of the present

Truth, idea, and image

The shadow line

Chronology, 1889-1924

Letter to R.B. Cunninghame Graham, February 8, 1899.

Notes:

Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph

Includes bibliographical references (p. [204]-207) and index.

ISBN:

9780231511544

023151154X