He also had friendships with prominent writers such as John Galsworthy, Ford Madox Ford and H.G. In 1896, he married Jessie Emmeline George, daughter of a bookseller they had two sons. Literary CareerĪfter his seafaring years, Conrad began to put down roots on land. He rose in rank and became a British citizen, and his voyages around the world-he sailed to India, Singapore, Australia and Africa-gave him experiences that he would later reinterpret in his fiction. He traveled to the West Indies and South America, and he may have participated in international gun-smuggling.Īfter a period of debt and a failed suicide attempt, Conrad joined the British merchant marines, where he was employed for 16 years. Through an introduction to a merchant who was a friend of his uncle, Conrad sailed on several French commercial ships, first as an apprentice and then as a steward. At the age of 16, Conrad left Poland and traveled to the port city of Marseilles, France, where he began his years as a mariner. He was first tutored by his literary father, then attended school in Krakow and received further private schooling. When Conrad's parents died several years later, he was raised by an uncle in Poland.Ĭonrad's education was erratic. They were also Polish patriots who conspired against oppressive Russian rule as a consequence, they were arrested and sent to live in the Russian province of Vologda with their 4-year-old son. His parents, Apollo and Evelina Korzeniowski, were members of the Polish noble class. Joseph Conrad was born Józef Teodor Konrad Korzeniowski on December 3, 1857, in Berdichev (now Berdychiv), Ukraine. Regarded as one of the best novelists, Joseph Conrad wrote short stories and novels like Lord Jim, Heart of Darkness and The Secret Agent, which combined his experiences in remote places with an interest in moral conflict and the dark side of human nature.

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