A Set of Six

by Joseph Conrad

General Books publication 2009 Original publication 1908 Original Doubleday, Page

Genres: Fiction, Short Stories, Classics, Literature, Tragedy, English Literature

158 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 1908

About the author

Joseph Conrad was a Polish-British novelist and story writer. He is regarded as one of the greatest writers in the English language and, although he did not speak English fluently until his twenties, he became a master prose stylist who brought a non-English sensibility into English literature. He wrote novels and stories, many in nautical settings, that depict crises of human individuality in the midst of what he saw as an indifferent, inscrutable, and amoral world.
Conrad is considered a literary impressionist by some and an early modernist by others, though his works also contain elements of 19th-century realism. His narrative style and anti-heroic characters, as in Lord Jim, for example, have influenced numerous authors. Many dramatic films have been adapted from and inspired by his works. Numerous writers and critics have commented that his fictional works, written largely in the first two decades of the 20th century, seem to have anticipated later world events.
Writing near the peak of the British Empire, Conrad drew on the national experiences of his native Poland—during nearly all his life, parceled out among three occupying empires—and on his own experiences in the French and British merchant navies, to create short stories and novels that reflect aspects of a European-dominated world—including imperialism and colonialism—and that profoundly explore the human psyche.

Reviews

[Tristram Shandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

“He was shocked of being the selected victim, not of robbery so much as of contempt. His tranquility had been wantonly desecrated. His lifelong, kindly nicety of outlook had been defaced.”

Il Conde was originally published in Cassell’s Magazine in 1908 and later found its way into a collection of six short stories called A Set of Six. According to Conrad himself, these tales were written as “instruments for raising money quickly”. In a letter to a friend, Conrad explained about these tales, “All are dramatic in a measure but by no means of a gloomy sort … they are not studies – they touch no problem. They are just stories in which I’ve tried my best to be simply entertaining.”

However, Il Conde, a story about an elderly man who is robbed by a member of the Camorra, is not really entertaining at all in that it simply describes an event which, if not exactly of everyday quality, may happen quite frequently at any time at any place. There is no satisfactory resolution to the crime, no sleuthing and bringing down the criminal, and so it is probably fair to contradict the author by saying that this is indeed a study. A study of a man – the narrator summarizes the Conde’s character thus, “Indeed, he was always nice, with the niceness of people whose hearts are genuinely humane” – who has become the victim of a violent crime and whose sense of order and propriety is shattered in the event. Not only is the victim shocked at finding himself threatened at knife point and robbed on the porch of a house inside which a merry soirée is going on, but he also feels keenly the contempt of the perpetrator at his producing only a meagre amount of money. By Conrad’s standards, the story is rather short and does not explore the victim’s mixed feelings in great depth but still it casts some light on how a victim of a robbery might feel for a long time after the crime, and as such goes far beyond any story that uses such a crime as a mere starting point for a plot of crime detection. In most of these cases, the author is oblivious or uninterested in the middle or long-term effects of such a ghastly encounter on the victim.

All in all, Il Conde falls short of what you might usually expect of a Joseph Conrad story but it is still not by half as trite as Conrad made it appear in that letter to his friend.

[Bryan--The Bee’s Knees · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed these stories more than I thought I would--Conrad (to me) has a reputation for being verbose and difficult to penetrate, but either he decided to be more concise with these stories, or I have more patience than I used to . Plus, I don't see these stories as having the same weight as some of his better known works, like Heart of Darkness, for example. Whether he succeeded or failed, with HoD, I thought Conrad was attempting to reveal something about humanity, and given that I felt he was more successful than not, I think of it as one of the truly great books (even though I am aware of its problem, and in the main agree with them)

However, these six stories are not in that vein. These have the flavor of the raconteur, stories that one might hear in casual conversations with friendly strangers, a story one might hear in an enforced proximity with a casual acquaintance. They are entertaining. though Conrad's style is still ponderous, especially compared to modern tales.

Another difference--modern short stories seem to be all of a type; maybe a bit too serious, too intent on illuminating the human condition. These stories are less about illuminating anything, and more about telling an interesting story. Interesting, at least, should you find Conrad's style worth wading through. I did.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Available for free from the always-reliable Gutenberg Project. This version displayed well on my old-school Kindle. Also available free of charge from the University of Adelaide, archive.org, manybooks.net, free-ebooks.net, and the inevitable Google Books.

The longest story in this collect, “The Duel”, was the basis for the 1977 Ridley Scott movie ”The Duellists”, starring Harvey Keitel and David Carradine. I haven't seen this movie and I don't know if it is any good.

A very enjoyable set of short stories from the time when people thought that a 25-page story was short.

Many of the stories are like alternate takes on Conrad's most famous works -- “Gaspar Ruiz” in Heart of Darkness territory (figuratively, not geographically), "An Informer" same for The Secret Agent or Under Western Eyes, and “The Brute" for any number of well-known sea-going stories.

“The Duel” is the longest story in the book and also the best, IMHO. The ending of this story had me turning pages like I was reading this year's hot suspense novel.

Conrad sometimes writes sentences that have to be read two or three times. This I usually consider an unforgivable flaw. But stick with him, because then he’ll come out with a sentence that will knock you flat with its clarity and plain-spoken drama, like

“Don’t you know yet,” he said, “that an idle and selfish class loves to see mischief being made, even if it is made at its own expense? Its own life being all a matter of pose and gesture, it is unable to realize the power and the danger of a real movement and of words that have no sham meaning....” [“The Informer", Kindle location 932]

and

No man succeeds in everything he undertakes. In that sense we are all failures. The great point is not to fail in ordering and sustaining the effort of our life. [“The Duel”, Kindle location 2699]

Ditto the untranslated French -- usually a deal-breaker for me, but here something I felt I could put up with.

In summary, a great thing to have on your electronic device to prevent you from being in the situation where you’re stuck somewhere with nothing to read -- the horror, the horror.

[Manuel Alfonseca · Rating 3 out of 5]

ENGLISH: In the first story in this collection, "Gaspar Ruiz", Conrad is carried away by the anti-Spanish legend in its British version, according to which the pro-independence creole fought for freedom against the Spanish oppression, when it actually was a struggle for power. Proof of this is that the Indians mostly supported the continued dependence on Spain, as by-the-way can be deduced from this same story.

The fifth story, "The Duel," is the longest and most interesting of the six. It reminded me somewhat of the Brigadier Gerard stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, although I think Conrad is a better writer. It also reminded me of War and Peace, although in this case Toltoi is the better writer. The story takes place during the messy times of the Napoleonic wars, and follows the adventures of two lieutenants of the hussars who start a feud because of an absurd reason and keep it for fifteen years. The end of the feud is masterly, and leaves the situation as a total mystery for everybody, except for the reader, who knows everything since the beginning.

ESPAÑOL: En el primer cuento de esta colección, "Gaspar Ruiz", Conrad se deja llevar por la leyenda negra antiespañola en su versión británica, según la cual los independentistas criollos luchaban por la libertad frente a la opresión española, cuando en realidad fue una lucha por el poder. Prueba de ello es que los indígenas apoyaron mayoritariamente que continuara la dependencia respecto a España, como se deduce de este mismo cuento.

El quinto cuento, "El Duelo", es la más larga e interesante de las seis. Me recordó algo a las historias del Brigadier Gerard de Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, aunque creo que Conrad es escribe mejor. También me recordó a Guerra y paz, aunque en este caso el mejor escritor es Toltoi. El cuento se desarrolla durante los tiempos revueltos de las guerras napoleónicas y sigue las aventuras de dos tenientes de húsares que se enfrentan al principio por una causa absurda y mantienen su lucha durante quince años. El final de la disputa es magistral y deja la situación como un misterio total para todo el mundo excepto el lector, que lo sabe todo desde el principio.

[Paradoxe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Η νουβέλα αυτή έχει δυο σκέλη, το πρώτο αφορά την περιγραφή του Κόμη, τέτοια που να εξηγεί τον τρόπο και το βάθος που τον επηρεάζει το περιστατικό που λαμβάνει χώρα στο δεύτερο σκέλος. Πράος, μαλθακός, καλοζωισμένος, χαρακτηριστικά γράφει ο Κόνραντ για την έλλειψη τραχύτητας των ανθρώπων που βρήκαν μια περιουσία και δεν την έχτισαν, με μια άποψη πως η ζωή στους χώρους που κινείται απαραίτητα διακρίνεται για την καλή προαίρεση. Όχι κουτός, αλλά ούτε και ανόητος. Ένας άνθρωπος του κόσμου, ικανός να κρατήσει μια συζήτηση στο τραπέζι, να συντροφεύσει στη βόλτα, στο καπνιστήριο, που βρίσκεται στη δύση της ζωής του ανάμεσα σε γάμους, γεννήσεις που έγιναν και παρήλθαν, θανάτους που επισφράγισαν πως τίποτα όλα οδεύουν προς μία και μόνη κατεύθυνση, με τη συνειδητή απόφαση σε αυτό που του απομένει να περάσει όσο καλύτερα μπορεί. Έχει επιλέξει λόγω κλίματος για τις γεροντικές παθήσεις και για το είδος της διασκέδασης που θέλει στη ζωή του τη Νάπολη.

Μια Νάπολη πάνω σε μια άλλη Νάπολη, όπου σιγά σιγά τα παλάτσα, οι αίθουσες μουσικής, τα ξακουστά καφέ αφήνουν και διαχέονται μέσα τους οι μιας κοινής κοψιάς άνθρωποι, χωρίς ομοιογένεια, χωρίς πιστοποιητικά άλλα απ’ το φαίνεσθαι που φαίνεται να έχει επιβάλλει τη σιωπή στο είναι. Το δεύτερο περιστατικό αφορά ένα βίαιο περιστατικό με ένα τέτοιο νέο, το πόσο επηρεάζει τον Κόμη, αλλά που παρά τα όσα δε θέλει να χάσει, κάπου στέκεται, στο ελάχιστο που δε σκοπεύει να παραχωρήσει σε κανέναν ζωντανός. Και νικά. Η βία όμως έχει πολλά πρόσωπα και συχνάζει σε πολλά μέρη, συχνά όταν αυτή η βία για κάποιο λόγο πισωπάτησε μπροστά στην ευγένεια ίσως λόγω κάποιων αναμνηστικών ιδανικών άλλης ζωής και βλέπει ως μόνη εκδήλωση πως κοροϊδεύτηκε η υποτίθεται ευγενής παραχώρηση της, αλαφιάζει, εξεγείρεται, γίνεται οργή, εκδικητικότητα. Κι έπειτα…

Έχει κάποιο ρυθμό αυτή η ιστορία, μια άνεση με την οποία απλώνει το σκηνικό της και μια διστακτικότητα θαρρείς να ξεδιπλώσει το γεγονός, σαν η ζωή που ποτέ δεν είναι η παράσταση που βλέπουμε στα μάτια μας αλλά αυτό που είναι πραγματικά, ο κόσμος άγριος, με τις προθέσεις του, για άλλους δύσβατος τόπος και για ορισμένους γη επαγγελίας. Δειλά αφήνει λίγο λίγο το κεντρικό περιστατικό, δεν του επιτρέπει το μέγεθος της βιαιότητας του να χρωματίσει, ώσπου…

Ακολουθεί η φυγή, ή η αντίσταση.

Κάτω από 3 Stars αλλά πάνω από 2.5.

[Paul Cornelius · Rating 4 out of 5]

A straightforward enough collection of six stories by Joseph Conrad. The most easily recognized among the bunch is probably "The Duel," due to its adaptation to film in 1977. The best among them, to my taste, however, is "Gaspar Ruiz." This latter story, which appears first in order in the book, carries an almost tragic quality. Told from the perspective of an enemy soldier facing Ruiz, it nevertheless paints a sympathetic portrait of a giant of a man, in terms both of physical strength and determination. Yet oddly bound by his own sense of honor. Oddly, because he is a rebel involved in gruesome fighting, first for independence, then on the side of royalists, and later as a brigand. In the end, his capacity to delude himself leads to his ruin. This is a common theme in much of Conrad's work. But here it's a little more clearly foregrounded than is usual the case.

[Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Joseph Conrad wrote the stories that make up his Set of Six during the most political phase of his literary career. It is true that political concerns can be found throughout his writing period, from the sceptical sideswipes at colonialism in his first book (Almayer’s Folly) to the hostile presentation of French revolutionaries in The Rover, his last book.

However politics was to take centre stage in this middle period of Conrad’s writing, and is the main concern of Nostromo, The Secret Agent and Under Western Eyes. In these books Conrad is writing about the nature of government itself, and about the nature of those who are in revolt against the government, and he is pessimistic about both. This is the world of these six tales, which deal with revolution, anarchism and state control.

The book opens with ‘Gaspar Ruiz’, the tale of an ordinary, physically strong man who is forced into participating into the politics of his time in the South American country that he lives in. Reluctantly supporting the Royalists or the revolutionaries, he soon finds that neither side will help him, and that he is at the mercy of his enemies.

The similarity of both sides in the war is outlined when Conrad tells us that what the government left behind when they stole from his parent’s home, the revolutionaries proceeded to take instead. Conrad has little sympathy for either side in the war, but a good deal for the individual, Gaspar Ruiz, and for one or two kindly soldiers who help or are helped by him. The story clearly says that when people go to war for political ends, it makes no difference – the ordinary decent person will suffer.

A similar lesson can be drawn from ‘The Anarchist’, where an innocent labourer is arrested for uttering foolish anti-government speeches whilst drunk, and soon finds himself forced into joining anarchist groups, who exploit him in equal measure. At the end, he murders the anarchists with whom he escapes his penal colony, and chooses instead to live out his life in a state of almost slave labour since this is the nearest to freedom that he can find.

Anarchists also feature in ‘The Informer’, a story that reads like an off-cutting from The Secret Agent. Indeed The Professor, a character from the earlier novel, makes a brief appearance here, and we are told his eventual fate. The moral atmosphere of the story is similar to The Secret Agent too. Once again we catch a glimpse of parasitical anarchists living in comfort off the state they despise, which weakly allows its own enemies to flourish.

This is shown in the character of Mr X, an anarchist who lives a very bourgeois life of luxury from selling his writings to the wealthy people he despises, and it is he who narrates the tale. The story involves an attempt to expose an informer by having anarchists pretend to be police officers carrying out a raid in the hope that the informer will reveal himself to them.

This plan is successful because the informer has fallen in love with a young lady, who, along with her brother, have allowed the anarchists to use their house. Mr X (and Conrad) are very scathing about the behaviour of these members of the bourgeoisie who support the anarchist movement for reasons of affectation, and with no real understanding of the issues involved.

The other stories are less openly preoccupied with subversive forces. ‘The Duel’ concerns an unfortunate lieutenant who gets into an absurd quarrel with another lieutenant that is never dropped as the years go by. As both grow older and keep getting promoted, they regularly have further duels with the issue between them unresolved. Finally, the lieutenant, now a senior officer, manages to outwit his implacable enemy by refusing to carry out his return shots in the duel, thereby giving him the right to fire those shots at any time later in his life. Since he withholds those shots, his enemy can no longer fight him.

The story (unusually for Conrad) has a happy ending, as this arrangement allows the hero to marry, and not to have to die in a later duel, as we might have been led to expect. The two men seem to have a strange dependency on each other, and our hero actually protects his enemy more than once, ensuring that he avoids execution for supporting Napoleon, and even giving him financial support. Ultimately the story has a benevolent hero and a benign ending that surprises the reader.

While it is not about revolutionaries, it is set against a time in France when the nation was divided between supporters of Napoleon and supporters of the Royalists. Conrad was no lover of Napoleon, but is unable to deny the Emperor’s great appeal, and our hero only narrowly avoids disgracing himself when he is injured and therefore unable to rejoin Napoleon for his last defeat. Similarly, the Royalist minister from whom our hero begs for his enemy’s life is constantly denigrated by Conrad.

‘Il Conde’ is a less revolutionary story, yet has a mysterious subversiveness underlying it. It tells the tale of a wealthy aristocrat who comes to Naples for his health and believes he will die if he does not come here. He is a kindly dignified man who one day has an ‘abominable’ experience. Whilst walking in a remote area, he is accosted by another man who robs him. Later he sees the man in a restaurant, and the man addresses him in hostile and contemptuous terms that appal him, even though his assailant is also supposedly of a good family.

The tale seems to cry out for all kinds of other interpretations, but it is possible that it is simply Conrad making a story out of an anecdote that he had heard. One obvious interpretation is homosexuality, and Il Conde’s pacing up and down the street does seem a little bit like cruising. We also catch a glimpse of a new subversive world where the certainties of rank, privilege and manners are no longer a guarantee of safety.

In ‘The Brute’ we have a sea story with no great implications. It concerns an unlucky ship where there is always at least one death in every voyage, and people attribute this to the malice of the ship. It is a surprising story since in The Mirror of the Sea, Conrad appears to say that ships are always all right, it is the men who control them who are the problem.

The stories are disparate, but have some things in common. As I say, they deal with political matters, and they are about ordinary people caught between the forces of reactionary government and appalling subversiveness. This is the fate of Gaspar Ruiz, the informer, the alleged anarchist and perhaps Il Conde too.

The stories are also united by a rather dismissive treatment of women. Conrad was no misogynist, but his works seem to harbour a certain resentment towards women. Perhaps it was the effect of his time at sea that caused him to view women as outsiders. In Conrad’s works, women are at best ignorant of the realities, and at worst interfering and inciting trouble in areas they do not understand.

Gaspar Ruiz is stirred into worse behaviour by his wife. The informer’s work is unravelled by a foolish wealthy young woman who adopts anarchism as a fad and affectation. It is a woman’s foolish behaviour on ship that ensures ill luck after the great care of two brothers on one of the journeys in ‘The Brute’. Somehow the female characters are only helpful when they are kept out of matters, as is the case with the fiancé in ‘The Duel’.

Of the six stories, Conrad himself said they were more in the way of entertainment, and did not present any problems. This is not entirely true, and there are problems in these stories, both for the characters and the readers. However it is true that the stories are somewhat slight, and do not contain the depth of Conrad’s better works. The quality of writing is variable, but they are all entertaining, and the best stories are very well-written indeed.

[Eva · Rating 5 out of 5]

En ganska kort novell, återigen utmejslad karaktär, psykologisk. Men börjar man reflektera över symbolerna finns det flera möjliga tolkningar, som alltid med mästerverk. Jämför de klassiska romerska konstverket av den sköne Hermes, med den spydige rånaren, Camorra-ledaren (Neapolitansk maffia) som kontrast, och den privilegierade il Conte som hotas av våld, och därmed förlorar sin självkänsla, överfalls av av rädsla och skam.

Och devisen "Se Neapel och sedan dö", säger allt.

[Kit · Rating 4 out of 5]

six Conrad stories, some merely entertaining, some which should be but are so much more. "The Duel" reminded me of "Michael Koolhaas" in its intensity, focus, and sweep. "Gaspar Ruiz" is mostly fun. "Il Conde" and "An Anarchist" are terrific. Also cool - the yellowed library copy I read seems to have been published in 1918, and had been taken out twice before in the past 24 years.

[Tom Leland · Rating 3 out of 5]

Though I only really enjoyed two of the six, it's Conrad -- there is brilliance sprinkled throughout. So much wisdom written from such an absolutely pure observational position...not sure I've ever read anyone like him.

[Jackson Headley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gaspar Ruiz: 3/5 it was alright dont feel bad skipping it
The Informer: 4/5 fun read. Conrad was really fascinated by anarchism definitey a big social force around the turn of the century
The Brute: Could not get into this one tried like 3 times wasn't feeling it. Shortest one too.
An Anarchist: 3/5 a weaker story on the anarchist theme
The Duel: 5/5 superb, excellent setting and story. 2 hussars fight a series of duels over the entirety of the Emperor's rise and fall
Il Conde: 4/5 interesting story takes place in 19th century Naples I haven't read anything that takes place around then fun story

[Keeko · Rating 5 out of 5]

A treasure and a truly good read. Thanks to everyone who works to keep this available.

[Richard Mendell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent collection of short stories.

[Ozan Aytas · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Düello" ve "Gaspar Ruiz" özellikle çok parlak öyküler

[Matt Kelland · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay. A tale of victim-shaming, but the difference is that instead of blaming the victim for being poor, the victim blames himself because he's aristocratic and can't handle the shame and scandal of being robbed.

[Philip Tidman · Rating 3 out of 5]

A collection of short stories from the master of the adventure story. The longest and most original of a very mixed bag is ‘The Duel’, from which Ridley Scott’s debut film ‘The Duellists’ was taken. It is the strange tale of two French officers in Napoleon’s army who engage in a series of duels throughout their careers, for no apparent reason other than some bizarre notion of honour. The only other story of note is ‘Gaspar Ruiz’, set during the Peruvian war of independence. Narrated by a retired general, it is the story of a forgotten Goliath, who was transformed into a rebel by accident, then became a revolutionary hero and inspiration and was finally condemned as a traitor, as so many revolutionaries are.

[Mehdi · Rating 3 out of 5]

این مجموعه از داستان کوتاه کنراد برخلاف مجموعه قبلی فضای وهم‌آلود و خیال‌انگیر ندارد و مسائل غالبی که کنراد بدان‌ها می‌پردازد از وجه‌ای اجتماعی برخوردار هستند.
۱_گاسپار روئیس
این داستان را نه می‌‌توان داستانی کلاسیک خواند و نه مدرن. اما چرایی‌اش: گاسپار روئیس کنراد از ابتدا داستان تا اواسطش شخصیتی ساده‌دل، مهربان و عدالت‌خواه تصویر می‌شود اما از اواسط داستان به بعد گویی کنراد از این قهرمان سازی‌های کلیشه‌ای خسته شده باشد، تدریجا وجه‌ی دیگری از گاسپار روئیس را پیش رویمان قرار می‌دهد. تا حدی که دیگر ساده‌دل نیست بلکه یک ابله زودباور و کله شقی است که از خودش هیچ اختیاری ندارد. آدم عاشقی است و در عشق خود صادق ولی افسارش به دست معشوق کینه‌جو‌یش است و هرچه او امر کند همان می‌کند. البته ناگفته نماند که معشوق هم او را به شیوه خودش دوست دارد.
کنراد می‌خواهد به ما نشان دهد که قهرمان‌‌ها را نباید صرفا دارای صفات مثبت و تجسم کمال و بی‌نقصی بدانیم. بلکه آن‌ها هم انسان‌اند و دارای نقص. انسان بودن هم در همین مابین بودن نقص و کمال است که معنا می‌یابد.
۲_خبرچین
برخلاف داستان قبلی جالب نبود. شاید تنها ویژگی‌اش کشش نسبی و معماوارگی‌اش باشد.
۳_وحشی
مهم‌ترین ویژگی این داستان آرایه تشخیص یا همان جان بخشی به اشیاء آن است. داستان در رابطه با کشتی است که در راستای حرص و طمع و نیاز به فخرفروشی صاحبان آن، در ابعاد و اندازه غول‌پیکر و خلاف اصول کشتی سازی، ساخته شده و سبب مرگ و میر‌های فراوان می‌شود. اما ملوانان این حوادث را به دلیل داشتن یک روح خشمگین، وحشی و رام نشدنی در کالبد کشتی می‌دانستند. به عبارتی خود کشتی را دارای روح و موجودی ماورائی می‌دانستند. چیزی که کمالش را در رمان سایه‌های شب زولا می‌بینیم.
۴_آنارشیست
قصه یاس‌آمیز که مایه‌ای به کمدی سیاه می‌زند. قصه کارگر ساده‌لوح و سربه‌زیری است که از شدت مستی شعار‌های ضد سرمایه‌داری می‌دهد و به جرم تبلیغات آنارشیستی دستیگر می‌شود. گویا سطح طنز داستان کافی نبود که وکیلی سوسیالیست هم وکیل مدافع‌اش می‌شود و حکم اشد مجازات برایش به ارمغان می‌آورد و نهایتا این آنارشیست که 《قلبی مهربان داشت و عقلی معیوب》را تبعیدش هم می‌کنند.
۵_جناب کنت
دقیق نمی‌توانم بگویم چرا ولی این داستان را می‌توان در زمره آثار دوران پختگی‌ کنراد قرار داد. لااقل خواننده چنین حس می‌کند. شاید به دلیل سادگی و بی‌ادعایی است این این داستان دارد. داستان در رابطه با مردی میانسالی است که همه عمر را به دور از سختی و مشقت و در آسایش و رفاه زندگی کرده تا آنکه حادثه‌ای پیش می‌آید و سرنوشتش را تغییر می‌دهد.

[Luisa Distefano · Rating 5 out of 5]

Da quando Leone Editore ha iniziato a pubblicare i cartoromanzi classici, ho riscoperto con molto piacere alcuni autori che avevo studiato e letto gli scritti, durante il mio percorso scolastico, e anche autori – come in questo caso – di cui ancora non avevo letto niente.
Anche la possibilità di leggere sia in lingua originare che in italiano, mi ha invogliato a scegliere queste letture, sia per diletto personale ma anche per raccontare a voi lettori un po’ di letteratura classica in maniera diversa.
Joseph Conrad vive e scrive in pieno Impressionismo.
Se nella pittura, il pittore si predilige il compito di immortalare non solo la natura, il personaggio, ma soprattutto l’emozione del momento, con pennellate di colore ora cupe e profonde, poi lievi e delicate per rappresentare la complessità di un sentimento, nella letteratura ci sono molti autori che cercano di descrivere con le parole lo stesso concetto.
L’emozione non va nascosta, non è vergogno mostrare al pubblico la bellezza dei sentimenti.
E In Conde di Joseph Conrad è il perfetto esempio di un momento di cambiamento in tutte le manifestazioni artistiche.
All’inizio pacato, educato, composto, sempre preciso e competente nel suo dialogare, mostra il suo stato sociale senza ostentarlo, lo accenna, la fa intendere, ma mai per apparire superiore o denigrare il suo interlocutore, con modestia ed eleganza, come ci si aspetta da un uomo della sua posizione.
E l’autore non smette di sorprenderci. Il suo intendo è mostrarci anche le bellezze di Napoli, i panorami, il clima, il cibo, gli eventi e tutto quello che la rende unica e speciale, così cara al Conde.

Entrambi però non sono solo quello che vediamo, hanno un’ombra che fa parte della loro natura, coesiste e non deve essere dimentica.

Napoli così svela i personaggi cattivi che vivono tra le sue mure, pronti a dimostrare arroganza e a mettere solo paura a chi è attorno a loro, umiliandoli nel peggiore dei modi.

Il Conde ne è vittima e svela la sua indole più umana, quella che pochi conoscono.
La vergogna dell’atto subito, una tacita accettazione e tolleranza di tale gesto da parte dei cittadini, una normalità che lui non comprende.
E che riesce a cambiare prima lui, e poi il suo modo di vedere Napoli.

Il Conde è una storia di sfumature, di contrasti e di scelte.
Concentrato in un racconto breve, l’autore riesce a immortalare l’essenza di una città, delle sue bellezze, dei suoi abitanti, a farsi amare ma allo stesso tempo a non celare il suo lato più nero, e a suscitarne l’odio e il disprezzo in chi lo vede per la prima volta.

In ogni cosa, tutto coesiste: il bello e il brutto, il buono e il cattivo, il bianco e il nero e un arcobaleno infinito di colori ed emozioni.

[Rosenkavalier · Rating 4 out of 5]

Duellanti e altre storie conradiane

Volendo rileggere “I duellanti” (o meglio “The duel”) in inglese, ho scoperto che il racconto, dopo una prima pubblicazione in volume illustrato, era poi stato inserito in questa raccolta.
Ne ho approfittato per leggere tutti e sei i racconti e ne è valsa la pena. Pur essendo piuttosto diseguali, sono tutti interessanti.

Gaspar Ruiz è la storia di un contadino peruviano che, suo malgrado, diventa un capo guerrigliero durante la lotta per l’indipendenza dalla Spagna.
The Informer è una satira piuttosto acuminata di certa borghesia radical chic che pare esistesse già a fine ottocento (molto tempo prima di quanto immaginassi).
The Brute è una splendida storia marinara, 100% Conradiana, con un avvio sorprendente e uno svolgimento avvincente (ma i termini marittimi in lingua originale sono ostici).
An Anarchist racconta la vicenda paradossale di un operaio parigino finito alla Cayenna, evaso e poi confinato su un’isolotto a fare da meccanico al gestore di un allevamento di bestiame.
Il Conde (sottotitolo: vedi Napoli e poi mori…) descrive la Napoli di fine ottocento, buen retiro per la bella gente d’Europa, ma non priva di pericoli già allora.
The duel è la storia di una rivalità trentennale fra due ufficiali napoleonici, interrotta solo dalle campagne della Grande Armée. E’ la gemma della collezione, di cui scrivo qualcosa a parte come commento all’edizione italiana che possiedo.

Gli amanti di Conrad (e gli amanti del racconto) non dovrebbero perdersi questa raccolta, che penso sia stata travasata in una delle varie edizioni di romanzi e racconti pubblicate in Italia.
Ci si trovano i tipici elementi del grande scrittore, ironia, self restraint, il senso della precarietà della vita e delle azioni dell’uomo a confronto con un mondo, una natura e un destino indifferenti se non ostili, il profondo senso morale che consente di andare avanti nonostante tutto sembri o sia vano, destinato a scomparire.
Il bonus di questa edizione, che si può scaricare gratis dal sito di Gutenberg Project, è la bellissima prefazione di Conrad che, in poche smilze paginette, scrive una specie di saggio sulla propria visione della letteratura, con la stessa ironia e self restraint “anglo-polacchi” che mi piacciono tanto: “in my mind the story is nothing but a serious and even earnest attempt at a bit of historical fiction” (su The duel).

[Jeffrey Powanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of six stories of varying length (the longest is the novella “The Duel,” which is about 100 pages) that Conrad wrote between 1904 and 1906, shortly after finishing Nostromo. Conrad originally published the stories in literary magazines between 1906 and 1908, and then in 1908 he released this collection.

The stories are straightforward tales told with narrative skill. In an introduction, Conrad suggested that the stories are inspired by true events, but these are often implausible, fantastical stories filled with action and incident. Only one of the stories, “The Brute,” is set at sea. They’re fun tales.

I read this collection mostly for “The Duel” because I watched Ridley Scott’s movie The Duellists (1977) recently and was blown away by how good it is. Screenwriter Gerald Vaughan-Hughes did an excellent job in expanding the story for the screen.

[Monur B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kitabın daha girişinde, "Yazarın Notu" başlıklı sunuşta geçen "poetical justice" kalıbını, "şiirsel adalet" diye çevirmiş Hasan Fehmi Nemli. Ya dayı, Batı edebiyatının en temel terimlerinden birini böyle bire bir çeviriyorsan neden Joseph Conrad gibi devlere bulaştın sen ya! Bu çeviride düşülen en basit, en düzeysiz hatalardan biridir. Genellikle çevirenin kültür düzeyinin düşük olduğunu gösterir. Poetic Justice en kısa, yalın ve en doğru anlamıyla "İlahi Adalet" demek. Bu temel bilgilerdendir. Bunu bilmiyorsan bir zahmet internetten araştır. İki saniyede karşına çıkıyor ama google translate kullanırsan böyle rezil olursun işte. Adamın bir de Poe, Lovecraft, Fitzgerald'ın tüm eserleri gibi dev boyutlu, hırslı çeviri projeleri var. Lan ben de onları gidip almışım gelecekte okumak için.

[Al Maki]

The Duel has joined my favourite Conrad stories, rich and unusually intricate.

It captures so well some complicated facets of life: the way an inane problem can shape a life and inflict difficulties on life for years and how those around us construct an explanationin the absence of information. Then the fanciful explanation takes on its own life.

But it is also a story of how tribulation can give us a great gift.

(Some time later I learned that the plot of the Duel was not fanciful as I thought. There was an instance where someone challenged and fought five duels against the same opponent, losing each time and upon recovery, rechallenging,)

[Lucy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This marks the end of my Conrad project. I'm glad I read the novels first and then the short stories - I don't think I'd have bothered with the longer works if I'd left them. Somehow his stories don't on the whole have the intensity of the full works - the writing is less dense and less layered. Worth reading for the completist, but these don't give the full flavour of the master.

[Rex · Rating 4 out of 5]

Conrad's writing is compelling, and these short stories are all great.

I read it specifically for The Duel, which was the source material for a movie that I enjoyed.

This was just as great as I expected, except on paper the happy ending aspect was a little more pronounced that on film, and I think for the worst.

[Tubi(Sera McFly) · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favorite stories in the book: Gaspar Ruiz, Il Conde and An Anarchist.

[Bill Tyne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not his best effort (Chance is stll my favourite) but well worth reading for the tale of Gaspar Ruiz and the Duel.

[Lysergius · Rating 4 out of 5]

A set of six excellent short stories by Joseph Conrad. I must confess to being unaware that he wrote such things. All of them are excellent although I especially enjoyed "The Duel" and "Il Conde".

[Timothy]

6 stories:

(2/6 read#)

Gaspar Ruiz (1906)
# The Informer (1906)
The Brute (1906)
An Anarchist (1906)
# The Duel (1908)
Il Conde (1908)