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 xix
You can be ' touched ' in the sense of being emotionally stirred , as when he first
sees Alma , Heyst feels ' a secret touch on the heart ' ; or you can be ' touched ' ,
handled , ' grabbed by any of the alien predators drifting around the world .
You can be ' touched ' in the sense of being emotionally stirred , as when he first
sees Alma , Heyst feels ' a secret touch on the heart ' ; or you can be ' touched ' ,
handled , ' grabbed by any of the alien predators drifting around the world .
Page 4
he were perched on the highest peak of the Himalayas , and in a sense as
conspicuous . Every one in that part of the world knew of him , dwelling on his
little island . An island is but the top of a mountain . Axel Heyst , perched on it
immovably ...
he were perched on the highest peak of the Himalayas , and in a sense as
conspicuous . Every one in that part of the world knew of him , dwelling on his
little island . An island is but the top of a mountain . Axel Heyst , perched on it
immovably ...
Page 222
He didn ' t know what to say . All he found to add was : “ I don ' t even understand
what I have done or left undone to distress you like this . ” He stopped , struck
afresh by the physical and moral sense of the imperfections of their relations — a
...
He didn ' t know what to say . All he found to add was : “ I don ' t even understand
what I have done or left undone to distress you like this . ” He stopped , struck
afresh by the physical and moral sense of the imperfections of their relations — a
...
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Common terms and phrases
answer appeared arms asked believe better boat bungalow chair clear close coming Conrad course dark Davidson don't door doubt existence expected expression eyes face fact feeling fellow felt gave girl give glance gone governor hand head hear heard heart Heyst hold idea island Jones keep leave Lena less light lips live looked manner matter mean mind Morrison moved movement murmured nature never night once passed Pedro perhaps raised reason remained Ricardo round Schomberg seemed seen sense shoulders side sight silence smile sort sound speak steps stopped strange suddenly suppose surprised talk tell thing thought tion told tone trouble turned understand verandah voice waited walked Wang watched whispered woman wonder
Bibliographic information
| Title | Victory: An Island Tale Oxford paperbacks World's classics |
| Author | Joseph Conrad |
| Editor | John Batchelor |
| Edition | illustrated, reprint, reissue |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press, 1986 |
| ISBN | 0192817086, 9780192817082 |
| Length | 426 pages |
| Subjects | › Fiction / Classics |
| Export Citation | BiBTeX EndNote RefMan |