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The Life of Joseph Conrad: A Critical Biography (Wiley Blackwell Critical Biographies)

The Life of Joseph Conrad: A Critical Biography (Wiley Blackwell Critical Biographies)

by JohnBatchelor (Author)

  • Used

    Paperback 1996

    $12.00
Synopsis

Joseph Conrad was born in the Ukraine in 1857 and died near Canterbury in 1924, having become one of the major British novelists of his time. This biography of this enigmatic figure uses archive material, as well as published sources, to reveal the especially close relationship, at every stage of Conrad's writing career, between his life and work. Conrad was both depressive and delinquent. He manipulated friends, such as Ford Madox Ford, Edward Garnett and John Galsworthy, into relationships that went at least some way to meeting his urgent psychological needs. He suffered from virulent writer's block, and would accept substantial advances from publishers and his agent, J.B. Pinker, for works which he then found himself unable or unwilling to write. Many of his best-known works, Heart of Darkness , Lord Jim and Nostromo , for example, can be seen as forms of escape from congenial duties. This study gives an account of the background of Joseph Conrad. It reveals Conrad to ba a tormented and self-defeating figure.

$12.00

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More Information

Format: Paperback
 Pages: 368
 Edition: New edition
 Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell
Published: 18 Feb 1996
ISBN 10: 0631199128
ISBN 13: 9780631199120

Media Reviews
I cannot think of a better introduction to Conrad as a total phenomenon - the man, the artist, the ensemble of texts - than John Batchelor's new critical biography. In a deft, lively, and imaginative way, the book interweaves a narrative of Conrad's life, a concise view of his fiction, and a critical discussion of the scholarly response to his writings. The three strands interconnect in revealing ways and illuminate one another, yielding an argument that is varied, wide-ranging, and rich in detail... it is a real treat to turn to a book that is thought-provoking yet sensible; well-informed yet unpretentious, and, as an added bonus, highly readable. Batchelor's critical biography will enrich the perspective of those who are already familiar with Conrad, and send to the library shelves those who are not. Andrzej Busza, University of British Columbia

Professor Batchelor, with compassionate fairness of mind, exposes all the weaknesses, all the evasions in Conrad the man, but at the same time leaves the reader in no doubt as to the greatness of the work. His account of the death of this great sceptic, who wrote about fidelity and was buried in a Roman Catholic graveyard, is especially moving. A. D. Nuttall, New College, Oxford

Batchelor is a sound critic, but Blackwell's series format requires him to cover too many topics, leaving him with no space in which to develop original perceptions. D. Kramer, Book Review Digest.

Author Bio
John Batchelor is Joseph Cowen Professor and Head of the Department of English Literature at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne. He was formerly Fellow and Senior Tutor of New College, Oxford. His previous books include Mervyn Peake: A Biographical and Critical Exploration (1974), The Edwardian Novelists (1982), H.G. Wells (1985), a full-length study of Conrad's Lord Jim (1983) and an edition of Victory (1986).