Places Discussed
Veranda
Veranda. Porch with comfortable chairs and side tables located somewhere in the East—apparently in one of Great Britain’s colonial territories—where men gather into the tropical evening for long conversations. Throughout the night they listen as Marlowe, the narrator of the novel, recounts the story of a man named Jim. In the darkness, Marlowe’s words alone must carry the narrative.
Patna
Patna. Old steamer on which Jim serves as chief mate during an ill-fated voyage. A rusty, ill-tended vessel, the Patna sails from an unnamed port—most likely on the west coast of India—carrying Muslims on their pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia. During the transit described in the novel, some eight hundred pilgrims are aboard the dangerously overcrowded ship; many sleep on deck and in the holds below.
Little more than a derelict, the Patna has rusty bulkheads and antiquated engines. The only place of comfort is its bridge, which catches some breezes as the ship steams through the night. Jim is on duty on the bridge when the ship collides with some unknown object in the water. Because the ship appears on the verge of sinking. the captain and his European crew—including Jim—abandon both it and their passengers. However, despite the damage it sustains, the Patna does not sink and is later taken under tow by a French vessel. The resulting inquiry and Jim’s search for redemption for his own cowardice provide the mainspring for what follows in the novel.
Courtroom
Courtroom. Colonial administrative building, probably in India, where a panel investigates the Patna incident. There Jim is the only member of the ship’s crew to testify and accept responsibility for deserting the ship’s passengers. For no particular reason, Marlowe attends this hearing and it is there that he first comes to know Jim. Afterward, he and Jim encounter one another in the street and strike up a friendship. Stripped of his certification as a chief mate, Jim afterward moves about in the Orient, seeking redemption for his act of cowardice.
Patusan
Patusan. Remote district of a native-ruled state in the Malay archipelago. About forty miles inland from the sea, it is located on a river between two prominent hills with a deep fissure between them—a geographical fact that may be interpreted as a symbolic reference to Jim’s own divided nature. Patusan is nominally ruled by a corrupt rajah who allows his subjects to be robbed and extorted by a series of local strongmen. This situation is possible because Patusan is dominated by an old European fort whose rusty cannon can easily overwhelm the local residents. Sent to Patusan as a trading agent by Marlowe, Jim restores order to the community, whose people gratefully dub him “Tuan (Lord) Jim.” Jim thereby achieves some peace of mind but when his well-intentioned actions in a later crisis cost the lives of villagers, he willingly allows himself to be shot as an act of penance.
Malabar House
Malabar House. Social club at an unspecific location that is frequented by English and other Europeans doing business in the East. There, amid wicker chairs, potted plants, and little octagonal tables with candles shielded in glass globes, Jim first tells Marlowe his story in a long and sometimes excited oral narrative. The gulf between Jim’s experience on the rusty steamer Patna and the background and expectations of the European settlers and merchants is highlighted by the setting, which attempts to re-create, as much as possible, the atmosphere of a conventional English club.
*Asian port cities
*Asian port cities. After losing his certification as a ship’s mate, Jim moves about among such cities as Bombay,...
(This entire section contains 710 words.)
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Calcutta, Rangoon, Penang, and Batavia, working as a water-clerk. As a water-clerk, he acts as advance salesperson for ships’ chandlers that sell nautical goods and supplies. It is his job to solicit business from ships newly arrived in port and steer their captains to do business with his employers. Although he is an outstanding water-clerk he continues to move eastward, leaving each job as word of his connection with thePatna affair reaches the port. Marlowe sometimes encounters Jim in these ports, while at other times he hears of the man’s restless journey ever eastward.
Historical Context
Conrad penned his novel at the turn of the twentieth century, a period marked by significant global transformations. One of the most notable changes was the extensive colonization of islands and other distant territories by European nations and the United States, often to establish trade or military outposts. These colonization efforts, many of which had commenced centuries earlier, culminated in several conflicts and events at the close of the nineteenth century and the start of the twentieth century.
In 1892, France, eager to extend its control over West Africa's interior—where it already had numerous holdings—initiated a campaign against Dahomey. This country provided crucial access to the southern coast of West Africa. The fierce conflict, during which the Dahomeyan army repeatedly attacked French forces, concluded with a French victory, although both sides endured heavy casualties.
In 1893, the United States, anticipating the need for a military base in the Pacific Ocean near the emerging power of Japan, annexed the Hawaiian islands. Pearl Harbor on the island of Oahu had already been ceded to the United States six years earlier. Although the United States was prepared for potential warfare, deploying numerous marines to surround the Hawaiian capital, the annexation proceeded without resistance from the islanders. Queen Liliuokalani, who had been wary of growing American influence, was overthrown.
In 1894, England, aiming to reinforce its control over South Africa, initiated a war against the Matabele warriors in Matabeleland, present-day Zimbabwe. Dr. Jameson, the administrator of Mashonaland, a neighboring English colony, declared war after Matabele warriors raided some Mashona natives working for the English. The battle was brief, as the English had firearms while the Matabele warriors wielded spears.
In 1896, under the directive of an Italian government seeking to use foreign conquest to distract from domestic issues, General Baratieri and his army of sixteen thousand occupied northern Tigre. Ethiopia, incensed by this provocation, mobilized an army of one hundred thousand, many armed with Italian rifles, against Baratieri's forces. Nearly half of the Italian troops were killed, sending shockwaves throughout Europe, which had grown accustomed to winning its battles.
In 1898, as Cuban insurgents began their struggle for independence from Spain, several American newspapers published sensational stories about the alleged brutality inflicted by the Spanish on the Cubans. This media frenzy stirred the American public and Congress, prompting them to urge President McKinley to declare war on Spain, despite his initial hesitation. The mysterious sinking of the USS Maine in Havana harbor, where it was stationed to protect American citizens in Cuba, made war unavoidable. Within a few months, the United States emerged victorious. In the peace treaty drafted later that year, Spain ceded Cuba, Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines to the United States for twenty million dollars.
Literary Style
Narration
Narration is the most evident technique that Conrad employs in Lord Jim. In the opening line of the first chapter, the reader is introduced to the main character as follows: "He was an inch, perhaps two, under six feet, powerfully built, and he ... made you think of a charging bull." For the initial four chapters, the narration continues in this manner, utilizing a third-person perspective with an unseen, omniscient narrator who introduces Jim and provides details about his background. Starting in the fifth chapter, Conrad shifts to a first-person narrator, Marlow—a character from some of Conrad's earlier works—who takes over the storytelling: "And it's easy enough to talk of Master Jim." Marlow discusses Jim for the rest of the book, occasionally sharing his own experiences with Jim. The first of these recollections describes how he encountered Jim during the inquiry into the Patna disaster: "My eyes met his for the first time at that inquiry." At other moments, when Marlow narrates parts of Jim's life where he was not present, he offers the perspective of others who were there: "I am sorry that I can't give you this part of the story, which of course I have mainly from Brown, in Brown's own words." These numerous accounts of the same story highlight the many ambiguities within the novel.
Bildungsroman
"Lord Jim" serves as an excellent example of a bildungsroman, a coming-of-age narrative where a young protagonist confronts painful challenges on the journey to adulthood. Bildungsromans are educational novels that illustrate how young individuals navigate the essential initiation into adult society, with its mature values. In Jim's case, he is tormented by his act of betrayal when he abandoned his duty and left the Muslim passengers to perish on the Patna without attempting to save them. This disgraceful event haunts him wherever he goes and influences the trajectory of his life. Jim ends up quitting several jobs where he is content, whenever anything reminiscent of the Patna incident is mentioned. For instance, when Jim's employer at Egström & Blake, a company that supplies provisions for ships, tells him, "This business ain't going to sink," even the unintended reference to sinking prompts Jim's departure. Eventually, Jim finds peace and happiness in Patusan. When the past is brought up again, he chooses not to flee from it. Instead, he confronts his past, and when he is compelled to be sacrificed out of honorable duty to his slain friend, he accepts his fate with "a proud and unflinching glance." As Marlow observes at the very end of the story, "Not in the wildest days of his boyish visions could he have seen the alluring shape of such an extraordinary success." Jim's mature, adult life is only "a short moment," much briefer than most protagonists who endure the trials of youth to become adults and usually live to recount their own tales.
Modernism
"Lord Jim" is widely regarded as one of the finest examples of literary modernism, a style of narrative writing that set itself apart from most late-nineteenth-century novels. Modern novels are often more challenging to read, requiring greater effort from the audience. However, the reward for the reader is also more substantial. Instead of using a single narrator to tell his story in a straightforward, chronological manner—or at least in an easily understandable sequence—Conrad experiments with techniques that were relatively novel at the time. As previously mentioned, he employs multiple narrators. Additionally, Conrad keeps the reader in suspense by manipulating time in disorienting ways. The author describes the events leading up to the Patna incident in chronological order, but he only hints at what is actually occurring: "What had happened? The wheezy thump of the engines went on. Had the earth been checked in her course? They could not understand."
Nor can the reader, particularly when, at the beginning of the next chapter, Conrad advances the timeline to an inquiry where Jim is justifying his actions: "the official inquiry was being held in the police court of an Eastern port. He stood elevated in the witness-box." The reader realizes something unfortunate has occurred and, as the chapter progresses, suspects it's something dreadful: "They wanted facts. Facts! They demanded facts from him, as if facts could explain anything!" However, the full extent of the calamity isn't disclosed until many chapters later, when it is revealed that Jim abandoned the Muslim passengers, but miraculously, the ship did not sink: "And still she floated!" In fact, where Jim and his crew failed, "two Malays had meantime remained holding to the wheel," further deepening Jim's humiliation. Conrad frequently employs this method of postponing key background details throughout the novel. Utilizing intricate narrative techniques such as multiple narrators and chronological ambiguity is a defining feature of the modern novel, a genre that Conrad significantly contributed to with works like Lord Jim.
Literary Techniques
One glaring flaw in Conrad's technique is his choice to have much of the narrative delivered by Marlow as if it were an oral story told on a sweltering tropical night on a veranda. Critics have noted that Conrad's use of this method is unrealistic because it is hard to imagine any group of listeners patiently enduring a tale that would take several hours to recount. Despite this breach of realism, Conrad's novel showcases a masterful command of narrative techniques.
Conrad's use of multiple narrators to present varying perspectives and voices about Jim is his greatest technical achievement in this novel and a key reason for its aesthetic brilliance. The first four chapters are narrated by an objective third-person narrator. Subsequently, much of the novel unfolds through Marlow's oral narrative style, a technique Conrad employed effectively in Heart of Darkness. Within Marlow's narrative, Jim himself recounts parts of the story, such as his ill-fated decision to abandon ship and his later experiences in Patusan. Additionally, the dying Gentleman Brown, Jewel, and Jim's servant, Tamb' Itam, narrate many of the closing events to Marlow. Ultimately, Marlow's final written narrative, addressed to one of the original listeners of the oral tale, provides the story with its final unity and symmetry.
This narrative approach offers multiple perspectives on Jim and leaves his ultimate actions somewhat ambiguous. Is Jim motivated by principle and commitment when he sacrifices his life to atone for Dain Waris's death? Is he driven by remorse? Is he simply fulfilling his egotistical notions of heroism? Or is he finally reclaiming his self-respect and defining himself as a man of honor? Perhaps all these motives are intertwined.
It's important to note that Conrad's technique, with its inherent ambiguities, is quintessentially modernist. Such multiple and ambiguous perspectives on a central character would later be employed by other novelists, such as William Faulkner in his portrayal of Thomas Sutpen in Absalom, Absalom (1936).
Ideas for Group Discussions
Conrad's reputation as a writer of maritime fiction can serve as a useful entry point into examining his work, particularly when analyzing Jim's actions aboard the Patna and his subsequent efforts to explain the events. Maritime disasters, like the sinking of the Titanic, continue to captivate imaginations and provide ample material for exploring human interest and moral conduct (or the lack thereof) during crises. Questions of honor and integrity remain highly relevant in politics and public life, and the issue of how one can recover lost honor and self-respect is always a challenging dilemma.
The Patusan section of the novel can be analyzed from multiple perspectives. For instance, despite Jim's well-intentioned actions, he remains an agent of colonialism, making the role of European colonialism in the novel a significant topic for discussion. Additionally, the antisocial behavior of Gentleman Brown warrants some commentary and analysis, and whether Jim's ultimate decision to sacrifice himself is quixotic or not deserves exploration.
1. To what extent is Jim guilty of neglecting his duty on board the Patna? How does Jim's guilt compare to that of the other officers? How much responsibility for the incident should be attributed to the owners of the Patna?
2. What might have been the trajectory of Jim's career if the Patna had sunk without anyone discovering that its officers had abandoned it? Could Jim have lived with the knowledge of his betrayal of trust?
3. To what degree did racism, or at least a European sense of superiority, influence the officers of the Patna in their decision to flee the ship?
4. What is Marlow's primary interest in Jim during the inquiry? What is his main interest in Jim at later points in the narrative?
5. How crucial is Stein's perspective on life to understanding the novel? In what ways do Stein's remarks apply to Jim's story?
6. What role does Jim actually fulfill on the island of Patusan? To what extent does his leadership go beyond mere commercial interests?
7. Is Jim's position on Patusan that of a colonialist? If so, does Conrad imply that there can be positive aspects of colonialism in addition to the negative side he depicted in Heart of Darkness and other stories? What are the beneficial outcomes of colonialism, if any?
8. How secure is Jim's position on Patusan? What actually protects him from hostile natives?
9. How should Jim have dealt with Gentleman Brown and his crew upon their arrival in Patusan? Why should Jim have avoided making any agreements with Brown that relied on Brown's goodwill rather than his fear of force to honor them?
10. What motivations drive Gentleman Brown's behavior? Is Brown a believable character or a one-dimensional villain?
11. Is Jim's final act of self-sacrifice a quixotic gesture, an act of remorse, or a successful attempt to restore his honor? Or could it be a combination of all three motives?
12. Is the latter portion of the novel, especially the concluding sequence in Patusan, as vividly described as the earlier sections that focus on Jim's tormenting self-reflection? Why or why not? Would the novel have been more effective as a piece of art if it were condensed into a short story or a novella?
Compare and Contrast
1890s: Severely outnumbered, the British suffer defeat at the hands of the Boers in South Africa's Cape Colony. However, the Boers fail to position some of their forces in key strategic areas, missing the chance to completely wipe out the British, who still retain access to their naval base and supplies.
Today: Following decades of political instability caused by conflicts between white and black populations in South Africa, the region now experiences a fragile peace.
1890s: The United States is embroiled in a brutal jungle war in the Philippines, recently ceded by Spain to America. However, American public opinion is divided regarding this conflict.
Today: The United States is engaged in a harsh desert war in the mountainous terrain of Afghanistan. Most Americans support this war, which is a response to terrorist attacks on U.S. soil.
1890s: Jewish French Captain Alfred Dreyfus is convicted of treason for allegedly spying for Germany and is sentenced to life imprisonment on Devil's Island in French Guiana. Later that decade, Dreyfus is officially pardoned by the French government to quell the anti-Semitism controversy known as the Dreyfus Affair.
Today: Following terrorist attacks by Middle Eastern extremists, the American government detains and interrogates many citizens of Middle Eastern descent over potential links to terrorist groups. In numerous instances, these individuals are found innocent and subsequently released.
Literary Precedents
Conrad's novel critiques Romantic notions of heroism, aligning with a tradition in major nineteenth-century literature that contrasts romantic ideals with a harsh, pragmatic reality. While this tradition can be traced back to Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility (1811), Conrad's key influences are works like Leo Tolstoy's War and Peace (1865-1869), which critiques romantic heroism and attitudes towards war, and Gustave Flaubert's Madame Bovary (1857), which thoroughly explores the tragedy brought about by Emma Bovary's romantic fantasies. In fact, Jim can be seen as a male counterpart to Emma Bovary. Another notable influence is Henry James's Isabel Archer in The Portrait of a Lady (1881; see separate entry), another romantic idealist who chooses a tragic path to remain true to her principles.
Conrad's fiction also generally presumes some familiarity on the reader's part with literature that celebrates British imperialism and the "white man's burden," as exemplified in Kipling's poems. However, Conrad's works often present an ironic critique or commentary on these views rather than endorsing them.
Adaptations
The primary film adaptation was a British production released in 1965, featuring Peter O'Toole as Jim. The cast also included James Mason, Eli Wallach, and Curt Jurgens. Daliah Lavi portrayed Jim's love interest, a minor role that fit her limited acting range well (she is mainly remembered for her roles as seductive figures in 1960s spy thrillers). O'Toole, on the other hand, was at the height of his career, delivering an outstanding performance as the tormented and self-doubting Jim.
Richard Brooks, an American director noted for his robustly masculine style in films like Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958), Elmer Gantry (1960), and The Professionals (1966), infused the film with a credible action-oriented dynamic, preventing it from getting bogged down in Jim's inner turmoil. The male supporting cast members were dependable and solid, although some of the intricate character details from Conrad's novel were lost in the transition to film.
For those interested, an accessible version of Lord Jim can be found in the slightly abridged audiobook from Durkin Hayes Audio, competently narrated by Simon McCorkindale.
Media Adaptations
Lord Jim was transformed into a silent, black-and-white film in 1925 by Paramount Pictures. Directed by Victor Fleming, the movie starred Percy Marmont in the role of Jim.
In 1965, Columbia Pictures produced another film adaptation of Lord Jim. This version was directed by Richard Brooks I and starred Peter O'Toole as Jim. It is available as part of the Columbia Classics video collection.
In 1999, HarperCollins Publishers released an abridged audio book version of Lord Jim, narrated by Joss Ackland.
Bibliography and Further Reading
Sources
Armstrong, Paul B., "Monism and Pluralism in Lord Jim," in Lord Jim: Authoritative Text, Backgrounds, Sources, Criticism, edited by Thomas C. Moser, W. W. Norton & Company, 1996, pp. 470-71. Originally published in Centennial Review, Vol. 27, No. 4, Fall 1983.
Erdinast-Vulcan, Daphna, "The Failure of Myth: Lord Jim," in Lord Jim: Authoritative Text, Backgrounds, Sources, Criticism, edited by Thomas C. Moser, W. W. Norton & Company, 1996, pp. 493-94, 496, 500, 504. Originally published in Joseph Conrad and the Modern Temper, Oxford University Press, 1991.
Guerard, Albert J., "Lord Jim," in Lord Jim: Authoritative Text, Backgrounds, Sources, Criticism, edited by Thomas C. Moser, W. W. Norton & Company, 1996, p. 397. Originally published in Conrad the Novelist, Harvard University Press, 1958.
Miller, J. Hillis, "Lord Jim: Repetition as Subversion of Organic Form," in Lord Jim: Authoritative Text, Backgrounds, Sources, Criticism, edited by Thomas C. Moser, W. W. Norton & Company, 1996, p. 453. Originally published in Fiction and Repetition: Seven English Novels, Harvard University Press, 1982.
Murfin, Ross C., Lord Jim: After the Truth, Twayne Publishers, 1992, pp. 23, 48.
Review of Lord Jim, in Lord Jim: Authoritative Text, Backgrounds, Sources, Criticism, edited by Thomas C. Moser, W. W. Norton & Company, 1996, pp. 393-94. Originally published in New York Tribune, November 3, 1900, p. 10.
Review of Lord Jim, in Lord Jim: Authoritative Text, Backgrounds, Sources, Criticism, edited by Thomas C. Moser, W. W. Norton & Company, 1996, p. 396. Originally published in Spectator, Vol. 85, November 24, 1900, p. 753.
Simmons, Allan H., "'He Was Misleading': Frustrated Gestures in Lord Jim," in Lord Jim: Centennial Essays, edited by Allan H. Simmons and J. H. Stape, Rodopi, 2000, pp. 31-32.
Watt, Ian, "Composition and Sources," in Lord Jim: Authoritative Text, Backgrounds, Sources, Criticism, edited by Thomas C. Moser, W. W. Norton & Company, 1996, p. 424. Originally published in Conrad in the Nineteenth Century, University of California Press, 1979.
Further Reading
Coundouriotis, Eleni, Claiming History: Colonialism, Ethnography, and the Novel, Columbia University Press, 1999. This book explores comparative arguments on how African writing and ethnography influenced colonial cultures, novel writing, and postcolonial ideology.
Secor, Robert, Joseph Conrad and American Writers, Greenwood Publishing Group, 1985. This book examines the connection between Conrad and the American writers he influenced, including contemporary authors. It also includes a chapter on how film directors have portrayed Conrad's work. The study features extensive bibliographic information for key references.
Stape, J. H., ed., The Cambridge Companion to Joseph Conrad, Cambridge Companions to Literature series, Cambridge University Press, 1996. This comprehensive guide on Joseph Conrad includes a biography and essays about his major works. It serves as an excellent general introduction to Conrad and his art and includes a bibliography for additional readings on Conrad.
Watt, Ian P., Essays on Conrad, Cambridge University Press, 2000. Watt, a renowned Conrad scholar, compiles many of his previously unpublished essays addressing Conrad's later works. Watt's insights into Conrad's writings are influenced by his own experience as a prisoner of war on the River Kwai.