On the Pier we talk about a wide variety of subjects that interest us which, from time to time, include TV documentaries, newspaper articles, magazines, and occasionally, books. When books are being discussed, I usually can’t resist adding my twopence worth into the discussion, by mentioning one or other of my favourite authors.
Most readers would be aware that Dickens is at the top of my list (see post 43). Dickens was a walker and that, as far as I am concerned, makes him worth being the subject of a blog post. However, today I thought I would write a few words about another favourite author of mine, Joseph Conrad. His name came up recently because of an article which I had read about an old shipwreck in Tasmania. The wreck of the “Otago”, which was a three masted barque, built in Scotland in 1869, is now resting in Otago Bay in the Derwent River. Joseph Conrad had once been its captain.
Conrad began his career at sea as a steward, when he was 19 years old, just as I did at the same age. He also travelled to some of the same Indonesian Islands which I visited when I was similarly employed. So, it is not surprising that I’m attracted to his stories. Among his best-known books are Heart of Darkness and Lord Jim. His voyages to South East Asia also inspired him to write a fascinating trilogy, which I read a long time ago, and then read for the second time only a few years ago. The three books of the trilogy are Almayer’s Folly (his first book), An Outcast of the Islands and The Rescue.
Joseph Conrad has been described as one of the greatest writers in the English language, even though English was not his mother tongue. He was born in a region of Ukraine, which was formerly part of Poland, and was fluent in Russian, Polish and French. However, it was not until he was in his twenties that he felt confident enough to begin writing his books in English.
Conrad’s seafaring career began in 1876, when he made a voyage to the West Indies as a steward on a French ship. Two years later, he signed on as a deckhand on a British ship and after that he joined the crew of a wool clipper sailing to Australia. He went on to make further voyages to Australia, including two as First Mate on the Torrens (between 1891 and 1893), which was the fastest clipper ship to carry passengers and cargo between London and Adelaide. Ten years after he started his career on ships as a steward, he managed to gain his master mariner’s certificate (in 1886).
The one and only time Conrad gained command of his own ship, the barque Otago, was in 1888, when the appointed captain died at sea and Conrad had to sail the ship from Bangkok to Sydney, Melbourne, Mauritius and then back to Adelaide. Conrad died in 1924 and was therefore not on board when, in January 1931, the Otago was sold to a local shipbreaker and was scuttled in its present location.
Conrad was 36 years old when he left his life at sea to become a writer, Almayer’s Folly being the first book that he published. The trilogy (which I mentioned earlier) provides, as one of the publishers describes it, “atmospheric seafaring glimpses” of the Indonesian archipelago and the lives of some of the Dutch traders who lived there. I’ve written a little about my own voyages to these same islands in previous posts (9, 25 and 47).
Conrad was a prolific storyteller. There have been many films (including “Almayer’s Folly”, “Outcast of the Islands” and “Lord Jim”) which were inspired by, or based on, the books published by him. Joseph Conrad remains one of my favourite authors. His visits on sailing ships to Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide are interesting. I wonder if he ever came to Brisbane….or to Moreton Bay?
O.P.
P.S. My next post, “The French Connection”, will be published two weeks from now, on Sunday, 4 August.