Author Description

Two novellas by Joseph Conrad. Both the stories in this book sprang from Conrad's own experience sailing in the Far East with the Merchant Navy, 'before I ever thought of putting pen to paper.' But they are far from being mere reminiscences, expressing as they do so intensely the two sides of Conrad's personality. In the first story, Youth, Conrad captures a storm-wracked voyage to Bangkok all the young man's exhilaration in the face of danger and the unknown. The second, and longer story is in bold contrast to the optimism of 'Youth". Captain Whalley, an upright old sea-captain, compromises with his own rectitude without understanding the ubiquity of the evil that surrounds him. As his ship sails through the islands of the South Pacific, his own falsehoods and the ambitions and obsessions of his crew combine to bring on disaster.