Victory: An Island TaleIn Victory (1915) Conrad returns to the Malay Archipelago, to the setting of his first mature novel, Lord Jim, and in Axel Heyst he creates a hero who is in many ways similar to Jim, a noble altruist destroyed by his ideals. Heyst is emotionally crippled by the influence of his dead father, a sceptical philosopher who has bequeathed to Heyst an attitude to life summed up in the father's dying words: 'Look on - make no sound.' Despite this injunction Heyst allows himself to become inextricably involved with an English Cockney girl whom he rescues from Giancomo's Travelling Ladies' Orchestra and carries off to his isolated retreat on the island of Samburan. His action incurs the fatal wrath of Schomberg, the island's innkeeper, who sends in pursuit of Heyst three demonic strangers whose invasion of his island paradise leads rapidly to the novel's violent and tragic close. Victory was the first of Conrad's novels to be completed after the commercial success of Chance (1914) had transformed Conrad's fortunes and made him internationally famous. It is a more complex example of the literary form which Conrad evolved for Lord Jim: a story of action and high adventure coexisting with an exhaustive study of the psychology of the central character. |
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Page 36
... asked in a distant , Officer - of - the - Reserve * manner : " You desire ? ” The good Davidson still sponging his wet neck , de- clared with simplicity that he had come to fetch away Heyst , as agreed . " Not here ! " A Chinaman ...
... asked in a distant , Officer - of - the - Reserve * manner : " You desire ? ” The good Davidson still sponging his wet neck , de- clared with simplicity that he had come to fetch away Heyst , as agreed . " Not here ! " A Chinaman ...
Page 43
... asked him if he had passed that way lately . " Oh , yes . I always do - about half a mile off . " " Seen anybody about ? " " No , not a soul . Not a shadow . " " Did you blow your whistle ? " " Blow the whistle ? You think I would do ...
... asked him if he had passed that way lately . " Oh , yes . I always do - about half a mile off . " " Seen anybody about ? " " No , not a soul . Not a shadow . " " Did you blow your whistle ? " " Blow the whistle ? You think I would do ...
Page 159
... asked Ricardo with genuine surprise . " What is it ? " Schomberg , without looking up , made an impatient gesture . His face was crimson , and he kept it lowered . Ricardo went back to the point . " Well , but how do you account for it ...
... asked Ricardo with genuine surprise . " What is it ? " Schomberg , without looking up , made an impatient gesture . His face was crimson , and he kept it lowered . Ricardo went back to the point . " Well , but how do you account for it ...
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Common terms and phrases
Alfuro arms asked believe boat breath bungalow chair Chinaman Chink Conrad course dark Davidson door doorway dream eyes face faint feeling fellow felt Flores Sea Ford Madox Ford frightened gaze gentleman girl glance gleam gone governor hand head heard Heyst hotel-keeper island Java Sea jetty JOHN BATCHELOR Jones Joseph Conrad Lena light lips looked Lord Jim Martin matter mean mind Morrison moved murmured mysterious never night Norman Sherry Nostromo Number once Pedro perhaps Ricardo round Samburan Schom Schomberg schooner secretary seemed seen shadow shoulders side sight silence smile sort sound Sourabaya speak staring stood strange suddenly surprised table d'hôte talk tell Tesmans There's thing thought tion told tone Tony Tanner turned understand verandah voice walked Wang Wang's watched wharf What's whispered woman wonder words Zangiacomo