Lord Jim by Joesph Conrad
Summary- The story is told by Captain Marlow. He decides one night that he wants to tell the story of a man names Jim. Jim had been a young boy who searched for adventure and wished some day to be hero. When he was young, he rose the ranks quickly and became the chief mate. He had always dreamed of being a hero. When he was finally faced with is oppurtinuiy, he let it slip right through his grasp. When he served on a ship called Patna, it became involved in a leak. Jim and some of the other crew members decided to abandon ship. The ship did not sink though. Jim and the rest of the crew turned themselves in which cost Jim his officer’s certification. Soon after Jim meets Marlow. Jim and Marlow soon become friends. Jim tells Marlow all about his past and Marlow help Jim obtain new occupations. Jim however is unable to keep hold of a job because his past keeps returning to haunt him. Finally after a series of failed jobs, Marlow secures a job for Jim as post manager in Patusan. Jim becomes quite popular among the natives in Patusan. He succeeds at becoming a hero by defeating a local bandit. He even manages to fall in love with a beautiful woman. However, Jim doesn’t have his happiness for long. A pirate by the name of Gentleman Brown comes to the island causing chaos all over the island. In attempt to be rid of the fiend, he makes decisions that cause the death of one man. Jim goes to the camp of the man who was killed and the grieving father shoots and kills him.
Character analysis-
Jim- Jim is the protagonist of the story. As a young person, he was inspired by popular literature to go to sea and become a hero. He was the second son in his family ,so he would never inherit the wealth of his father. When his chance to be a hero comes to him, he lets it slip by because of fear. For the rest of his life, it seems that he was always trying to make up for his mistake. He constantly makes up excuses for his mistake pretending that if he believes them than leaving the boat was the right thing to do. Ultimately, Jim cares how others perceive him rather than what he feels on the inside. Everything he does it to make up for the fact that most of the public view him as a quivering coward. After he causes the death of one man, he sees it as his oppurtinity to find complete and total redemption. He allows the father to kill him to make up the loss of his son
Marlow- Like Jim, Marlow is seafarer. He befriends Jim and feels that he should tell people Jim’s life story. Marlow seems to take Jim underneath his wing. When Jim needed help the most, Marlow befriended him and gave him the support that he truly needed. The entire story is told through Marlow’s eyes. When he first learns of Jim, he devolps opinions that the boy would be cowardly and insulting to all seafarers. When he meets Jim, he develops I different attitude about him. He sees a strong cable young man and is unsure what to think of. Thus, he forms a soft spot for Jim because he sees potential in Jim. Marlow becomes sort of like a father figure to Jim. He helps him find jobs and he puts in a good word for him wherever he goes. Marlow eventually helps Jim find a job that would best suite him ,and later lead him to find the woman that he would fall in love with.
Jewel- Jewel is the woman that Jim falls madly in love with. She is half native and half Dutch. Her stepfather is a man by the name of Cornelius. In the story, Cornelius is hated by almost all of the people. She falls for Jim just as hard as he falls for her. She is closed off to most people because someone may have wronged her in her life. Jewel is capable of powerful emotions. Sometime in the story she even manages to save the man she loves from a group assassins. Jewel’s over powering emotions also make her stubborn yet vulnerable. Although Jewel did experience true happiness with Jim, she can not help but think about and hang on to her dark past. Jewel had experience something her past that had left her in a state of seeking and running. She sought out happiness while she attempted to forget her past. After Jim dies, it seems that her happiness would leave and she would again return to her past state of turmoil.
Gentleman Brown- Gentleman Brown was a pirate that caused quite a bit of trouble for Jim. Brown seems to be Jim’s ultimate downfall. When life seemed perfect for Jim, Brown blindsided Jim by unleashing havoc on the island. Brown loves the sea life. He enjoys pillaging and plundering although he never really gained much wealth. Brown was the most feared pirate; however, he deeply had a fear himself. That fear being prison. Brown reputation holds true on the island and all the people fear Brown. However, Jim opts to stop Brown and his dastardly ways. Jim attempts to get rid of Brown. This attempt proves to be a failure and ends in an innocent man’s death. Brown in cunning like a fox. Brown outsmarted Jim by bringing up his old past mistakes. He knew that the past was where it hurt Jim the most and he used that knowledge to the best of his advantage. He eventually ends up on his own deathbed. He dies a disgraces alone man.
Cornelius- He was Jewel’s stepfather. He was a sniveling coward. He was not an English man. The story doesn’t tell exactly what race he is, but he could have been half-white and half-Malaysian. He was the manager of the Stein’s Patusan trading post where Jim was sent to replace him. Cornelius does not take the replacement well. After he lost power in Patusan, he tries in any way he can to regain it. Cornelius picks on and abuses those who are weaker than he is. Often times in the story, the victims would be his stepdaughter Jewel and her mother. After much abuse to his wife and stepchild, he learns of a new way that he could regain the power that he lost. He makes plans with Gentleman Brown that would later lead to the death of Jim ,Dain Waris, and himself. The fact that Cornelius was a different race them Jim could have led to his hate for Jim and the success that he obtained.
Stein- He was an adventure and naturalist that Marlow sought out for in order to find Jim a job. He was the owner of a large trading post that Jim would later become a part of. He is a European. He like Marlow also enjoys telling tales of himself and others. He can relate to Jim because he was once like Jim young and adventurous. He too dreamed of adventures on the sea and becoming a hero to some people. He lived out his dreams. Because he can relate to Jim, he was willing to help him in all of his endeavors. Although Stein had once be young and adventurous, he was now old and growing tired. He relished in his memories ,but he could no longer go on the adventures that he once did. Instead of wild adventures he took up the hobby of collecting butterflies and beetles. He was just an old man now and could no longer be a part of the grand adventures.
Doramin- He was the leader of the Bugis. He was also the father to Dain Waris. Doramin also becomes a father figure to Jim in the story. After Jim arrives, he deals with a local bandit making him a hero to the Bugis people and to Doramin. Doramin is a reserved, accepting, kind person and immediately accepts Jim as one of his own. Doramin and Jim had a good relationship until Gentleman Brown arrived. He brought chaos to the island. Jim made a bad decision by letting Brown and his men go free. They ended up killing Doramin’s son Dain Waris. Doramin learns of the death and is overwhelmed by grief. It appeared that he was driven to insanity as he sought out revenge for his son’s death. He blamed Jim for the death of his son and he took action on this notion. He shot Jim in the chest, which immediately killed Jim.
Dain Waris- He was Doramin’s son and Jim best friend. He was Jim’s right hand man and second in command. He held an important leadership role in Patusan and had a strong position in the island’s politics. It seemed that Dain and Jim were destined to be friends because they were so fond of one another. Dain isn’t European but he has the mannerisms of a European, which is a positive quality in the eyes of Jim and Marlow. Dain does not have the ability to be a leader like Jim. He led the attack on Gentleman Brown but it was not entirely successful. Jim released Brown and his men and they proceed down the river with the help of Cornelius. Dain is killed and his father avenges him by killing who he though was responsible. The person that he believed was responsible for Dain’s death was Jim ,Dain’s best friend. The two friends die within hours of each other.
Setting- The Book was written for the British Empire. It was written in a manner to show the expansion that the British empire was attempting to do. In this story, the writer does not go into great detail about the backdrop of the story. He does not describe a colorful or vivid environment where the story takes place. Most of the novel takes place on the ship Patna ,the ship the Jim would abandon and leave to sink. A portion of the novel takes place in Stein’s home, the owner of the port that Jim would take over. Another section of the book takes place on the island of Patusan. These places that Jim travels to are described to be tropical and full of exotic eccentric people. Many of the individuals that are encountered are hard to forget because they are so different. In the story, the author much rather describe the characters to create the setting rather than describe the place that the characters are in. By using the mood ant the people the author creates a setting without necessarily telling the readers anything about the place that the characters are at. The story takes place during the late 19th century during the time of the expansionism for the British Empire. Although none of the action takes place in England it is technically about the expansion of the British Empire. The author uses Marlow to describe the setting through his own eyes instead of the eyes of himself. By doing so he allows Marlow to have some say and opinion about the setting.
Conflicts-
Man vs. man- This type of conflict comes into play quite a lot in this particular story. Cornelius has a burning hate for Jim, so he seeks to be rid of him. Jim attempts to obtain his dream to be a hero and go on adventures ,but it seems that many men are constantly doing things to get in his way towards his dreams. Doramin has a desire to kill after his son his murdered and aims that hate towards Jim.
Man vs. self- Throughout the story, Jim cannot let go of his guilt from leaving the ship to sink. It haunts him in every job he has. His inner guilt indirectly leads to his downfall. He allows his self hate to engulf his life almost completely no matter how hard he tries to fight it.
Man vs. society- The fact that Jim post is stationed in a land with a primitive society leads to conflict. The laws of the island are different than a normal civilization. The laws are more along the lines of an eye for an eye kind of deal no matter if a crime was accidental.
Man vs. nature- Jim’s mistake happened because of nature. He abandoned ship after some large under water something caused the ship to leak. The initial incident would lead Jim into a life of struggles.
Man vs. technology- There is no technology in the story. The lack of technology could be a conflict because with technology holding someone prisoner is much easier than before. Brown could have been kept on lock down and constantly watched if the technology was there ,but it wasn’t.
Symbols-
Butterflies- Stein collects the butterflies because of their beauty. For Stein, he feels that all beautiful things should come to and end. Butterfly hunting can symbolize the British Empire. Stein goes into foreign places and captures the beautiful creatures to show to those who would admire them. Just like British imperialism.
Patna-Patna could be a symbol of failure. As it sank, Jim saw he dreams fade away and decided to leave the boat to save him self. His failure to stay is represented by the boat because it did not sink.
Jim’s death- Jim’s death could represent redemption. Although he never fully made up for leaving the Patna, he could find some redemption in offering up his life because his judgment killed a friend.
Themes-
Theme of Memory and Past- The entire story is in fact a memory because it is what Marlow recalls happened. In the story, Jim cannot seem to let go of his past. His past haunts him wherever he goes no matter what he does. His past shaped who he was and consumes his very being.
Theme of Guilt- In the story, Jim feels guilty for what he did on Patna. Other sailors feel embarrassed for him because of the actions that performed. The entire novel is about Jim trying to overcome his guilt and move on ,but it seems that he could not do so.
Theme of Youth- Jim is young his mistakes were made while he was young. He finds many father figures in the novel that he looks up to. He needs the experience the overcome his past mistakes in order to start over and continue with life.
Image:
(above)
Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tCfHxSKmb50
Sources:
"Purple State of John." Purple State of John. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Apr. 2013. <http://john.purplestateofmind.com/?cat=14>.
"Lord Jim." SparkNotes. SparkNotes, n.d. Web. 01 Apr. 2013. <http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/lordjim/>.
"Lord Jim Summary." Shmoop. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Apr. 2013. <http://www.shmoop.com/lord-jim/summary.html>.
Summary- The story is told by Captain Marlow. He decides one night that he wants to tell the story of a man names Jim. Jim had been a young boy who searched for adventure and wished some day to be hero. When he was young, he rose the ranks quickly and became the chief mate. He had always dreamed of being a hero. When he was finally faced with is oppurtinuiy, he let it slip right through his grasp. When he served on a ship called Patna, it became involved in a leak. Jim and some of the other crew members decided to abandon ship. The ship did not sink though. Jim and the rest of the crew turned themselves in which cost Jim his officer’s certification. Soon after Jim meets Marlow. Jim and Marlow soon become friends. Jim tells Marlow all about his past and Marlow help Jim obtain new occupations. Jim however is unable to keep hold of a job because his past keeps returning to haunt him. Finally after a series of failed jobs, Marlow secures a job for Jim as post manager in Patusan. Jim becomes quite popular among the natives in Patusan. He succeeds at becoming a hero by defeating a local bandit. He even manages to fall in love with a beautiful woman. However, Jim doesn’t have his happiness for long. A pirate by the name of Gentleman Brown comes to the island causing chaos all over the island. In attempt to be rid of the fiend, he makes decisions that cause the death of one man. Jim goes to the camp of the man who was killed and the grieving father shoots and kills him.
Character analysis-
Jim- Jim is the protagonist of the story. As a young person, he was inspired by popular literature to go to sea and become a hero. He was the second son in his family ,so he would never inherit the wealth of his father. When his chance to be a hero comes to him, he lets it slip by because of fear. For the rest of his life, it seems that he was always trying to make up for his mistake. He constantly makes up excuses for his mistake pretending that if he believes them than leaving the boat was the right thing to do. Ultimately, Jim cares how others perceive him rather than what he feels on the inside. Everything he does it to make up for the fact that most of the public view him as a quivering coward. After he causes the death of one man, he sees it as his oppurtinity to find complete and total redemption. He allows the father to kill him to make up the loss of his son
Marlow- Like Jim, Marlow is seafarer. He befriends Jim and feels that he should tell people Jim’s life story. Marlow seems to take Jim underneath his wing. When Jim needed help the most, Marlow befriended him and gave him the support that he truly needed. The entire story is told through Marlow’s eyes. When he first learns of Jim, he devolps opinions that the boy would be cowardly and insulting to all seafarers. When he meets Jim, he develops I different attitude about him. He sees a strong cable young man and is unsure what to think of. Thus, he forms a soft spot for Jim because he sees potential in Jim. Marlow becomes sort of like a father figure to Jim. He helps him find jobs and he puts in a good word for him wherever he goes. Marlow eventually helps Jim find a job that would best suite him ,and later lead him to find the woman that he would fall in love with.
Jewel- Jewel is the woman that Jim falls madly in love with. She is half native and half Dutch. Her stepfather is a man by the name of Cornelius. In the story, Cornelius is hated by almost all of the people. She falls for Jim just as hard as he falls for her. She is closed off to most people because someone may have wronged her in her life. Jewel is capable of powerful emotions. Sometime in the story she even manages to save the man she loves from a group assassins. Jewel’s over powering emotions also make her stubborn yet vulnerable. Although Jewel did experience true happiness with Jim, she can not help but think about and hang on to her dark past. Jewel had experience something her past that had left her in a state of seeking and running. She sought out happiness while she attempted to forget her past. After Jim dies, it seems that her happiness would leave and she would again return to her past state of turmoil.
Gentleman Brown- Gentleman Brown was a pirate that caused quite a bit of trouble for Jim. Brown seems to be Jim’s ultimate downfall. When life seemed perfect for Jim, Brown blindsided Jim by unleashing havoc on the island. Brown loves the sea life. He enjoys pillaging and plundering although he never really gained much wealth. Brown was the most feared pirate; however, he deeply had a fear himself. That fear being prison. Brown reputation holds true on the island and all the people fear Brown. However, Jim opts to stop Brown and his dastardly ways. Jim attempts to get rid of Brown. This attempt proves to be a failure and ends in an innocent man’s death. Brown in cunning like a fox. Brown outsmarted Jim by bringing up his old past mistakes. He knew that the past was where it hurt Jim the most and he used that knowledge to the best of his advantage. He eventually ends up on his own deathbed. He dies a disgraces alone man.
Cornelius- He was Jewel’s stepfather. He was a sniveling coward. He was not an English man. The story doesn’t tell exactly what race he is, but he could have been half-white and half-Malaysian. He was the manager of the Stein’s Patusan trading post where Jim was sent to replace him. Cornelius does not take the replacement well. After he lost power in Patusan, he tries in any way he can to regain it. Cornelius picks on and abuses those who are weaker than he is. Often times in the story, the victims would be his stepdaughter Jewel and her mother. After much abuse to his wife and stepchild, he learns of a new way that he could regain the power that he lost. He makes plans with Gentleman Brown that would later lead to the death of Jim ,Dain Waris, and himself. The fact that Cornelius was a different race them Jim could have led to his hate for Jim and the success that he obtained.
Stein- He was an adventure and naturalist that Marlow sought out for in order to find Jim a job. He was the owner of a large trading post that Jim would later become a part of. He is a European. He like Marlow also enjoys telling tales of himself and others. He can relate to Jim because he was once like Jim young and adventurous. He too dreamed of adventures on the sea and becoming a hero to some people. He lived out his dreams. Because he can relate to Jim, he was willing to help him in all of his endeavors. Although Stein had once be young and adventurous, he was now old and growing tired. He relished in his memories ,but he could no longer go on the adventures that he once did. Instead of wild adventures he took up the hobby of collecting butterflies and beetles. He was just an old man now and could no longer be a part of the grand adventures.
Doramin- He was the leader of the Bugis. He was also the father to Dain Waris. Doramin also becomes a father figure to Jim in the story. After Jim arrives, he deals with a local bandit making him a hero to the Bugis people and to Doramin. Doramin is a reserved, accepting, kind person and immediately accepts Jim as one of his own. Doramin and Jim had a good relationship until Gentleman Brown arrived. He brought chaos to the island. Jim made a bad decision by letting Brown and his men go free. They ended up killing Doramin’s son Dain Waris. Doramin learns of the death and is overwhelmed by grief. It appeared that he was driven to insanity as he sought out revenge for his son’s death. He blamed Jim for the death of his son and he took action on this notion. He shot Jim in the chest, which immediately killed Jim.
Dain Waris- He was Doramin’s son and Jim best friend. He was Jim’s right hand man and second in command. He held an important leadership role in Patusan and had a strong position in the island’s politics. It seemed that Dain and Jim were destined to be friends because they were so fond of one another. Dain isn’t European but he has the mannerisms of a European, which is a positive quality in the eyes of Jim and Marlow. Dain does not have the ability to be a leader like Jim. He led the attack on Gentleman Brown but it was not entirely successful. Jim released Brown and his men and they proceed down the river with the help of Cornelius. Dain is killed and his father avenges him by killing who he though was responsible. The person that he believed was responsible for Dain’s death was Jim ,Dain’s best friend. The two friends die within hours of each other.
Setting- The Book was written for the British Empire. It was written in a manner to show the expansion that the British empire was attempting to do. In this story, the writer does not go into great detail about the backdrop of the story. He does not describe a colorful or vivid environment where the story takes place. Most of the novel takes place on the ship Patna ,the ship the Jim would abandon and leave to sink. A portion of the novel takes place in Stein’s home, the owner of the port that Jim would take over. Another section of the book takes place on the island of Patusan. These places that Jim travels to are described to be tropical and full of exotic eccentric people. Many of the individuals that are encountered are hard to forget because they are so different. In the story, the author much rather describe the characters to create the setting rather than describe the place that the characters are in. By using the mood ant the people the author creates a setting without necessarily telling the readers anything about the place that the characters are at. The story takes place during the late 19th century during the time of the expansionism for the British Empire. Although none of the action takes place in England it is technically about the expansion of the British Empire. The author uses Marlow to describe the setting through his own eyes instead of the eyes of himself. By doing so he allows Marlow to have some say and opinion about the setting.
Conflicts-
Man vs. man- This type of conflict comes into play quite a lot in this particular story. Cornelius has a burning hate for Jim, so he seeks to be rid of him. Jim attempts to obtain his dream to be a hero and go on adventures ,but it seems that many men are constantly doing things to get in his way towards his dreams. Doramin has a desire to kill after his son his murdered and aims that hate towards Jim.
Man vs. self- Throughout the story, Jim cannot let go of his guilt from leaving the ship to sink. It haunts him in every job he has. His inner guilt indirectly leads to his downfall. He allows his self hate to engulf his life almost completely no matter how hard he tries to fight it.
Man vs. society- The fact that Jim post is stationed in a land with a primitive society leads to conflict. The laws of the island are different than a normal civilization. The laws are more along the lines of an eye for an eye kind of deal no matter if a crime was accidental.
Man vs. nature- Jim’s mistake happened because of nature. He abandoned ship after some large under water something caused the ship to leak. The initial incident would lead Jim into a life of struggles.
Man vs. technology- There is no technology in the story. The lack of technology could be a conflict because with technology holding someone prisoner is much easier than before. Brown could have been kept on lock down and constantly watched if the technology was there ,but it wasn’t.
Symbols-
Butterflies- Stein collects the butterflies because of their beauty. For Stein, he feels that all beautiful things should come to and end. Butterfly hunting can symbolize the British Empire. Stein goes into foreign places and captures the beautiful creatures to show to those who would admire them. Just like British imperialism.
Patna-Patna could be a symbol of failure. As it sank, Jim saw he dreams fade away and decided to leave the boat to save him self. His failure to stay is represented by the boat because it did not sink.
Jim’s death- Jim’s death could represent redemption. Although he never fully made up for leaving the Patna, he could find some redemption in offering up his life because his judgment killed a friend.
Themes-
Theme of Memory and Past- The entire story is in fact a memory because it is what Marlow recalls happened. In the story, Jim cannot seem to let go of his past. His past haunts him wherever he goes no matter what he does. His past shaped who he was and consumes his very being.
Theme of Guilt- In the story, Jim feels guilty for what he did on Patna. Other sailors feel embarrassed for him because of the actions that performed. The entire novel is about Jim trying to overcome his guilt and move on ,but it seems that he could not do so.
Theme of Youth- Jim is young his mistakes were made while he was young. He finds many father figures in the novel that he looks up to. He needs the experience the overcome his past mistakes in order to start over and continue with life.
Image:
(above)
Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tCfHxSKmb50
Sources:
"Purple State of John." Purple State of John. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Apr. 2013. <http://john.purplestateofmind.com/?cat=14>.
"Lord Jim." SparkNotes. SparkNotes, n.d. Web. 01 Apr. 2013. <http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/lordjim/>.
"Lord Jim Summary." Shmoop. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Apr. 2013. <http://www.shmoop.com/lord-jim/summary.html>.