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Picture_of_Joseph_Conrad photo by Alvin Langdon Coburn-

Top 10 Amazing Facts about Joseph Conrad

Joseph Conrad was a polish British writer who was regarded as the greatest novelist to write in the English Language.

From a young age, he was implanted with a lot of revolutionary ideas, which shaped the course of his work.

Much of his stories centered on themes that depict trials of the human spirit in the midst of what he an impassive, and inscrutable universe.

Here are the top 10 amazing Facts about Joseph Conrad.

1. He was not a native English speaker

Conrad produced the mistbicinic works in English and is revered as one of the greatest novelists to write in English.

What makes the writer stand out is that despite leaving such a legacy behind, English wasn鈥檛 his native language it wasn鈥檛 even his second language but rather his third language.

Conrad was born on December 3^rd, 1857 in Bersychiv, Ukraine, and was the only child of Apollo Korzenioswski, who was a writer, and a political activist.

Despite the fluency and the grace with which he wrote, Conrad was not able to speak English fluently until his twenties.

2. He attempted suicide and survived

Joseph_Conrad_grave photo by Pam Fray-

In his youth, at Marseilles Conrad led an intense social life often stretching beyond his budget.

In late 1877 Conrad鈥檚 maritime career was halted short by the refusal of the Russian consul to provide documents needed for him to continue his service, and as a result, he fell into debt.

Just at the age of 21, he found himself swamped in debts due to his penchant for gambling. He was unable to deal with the harsh reality mocking him and decided to shoot himself in the chest.

Fortunately, the bullet missed his heart and he went to live another half century, revealing one of his best works and becoming one of the most prominent writers.

His recovery was possible through the support of his uncle, who gave him financial aid and helped him resume his mundane life.

3. His adventures in Congo shaped his book Heart of Darkness

In 1890 Conrad began a journey that ferried him through seas and landed on the Congo River.

He captained a steamer up the Congo River, an adventure that inspired him to create his work, Heart of Darkness.

Conrad鈥檚 father, a pole was a political activist who fought to rebuild a nation ruthlessly enslaved and conquered by other European powers.

His upbringing made him sensitive to exploitation and disruption that is brought about by one culture aggressively using military action and other forceful means to impose its will upon another culture.

In his book, the Heart of Darkness, the Point of greed that ignited enslavement was ivory, which was valuable in Europe at that time for the manufacture of piano keys, and intricate chess pieces among others.

4. He avoided reading reviews of his work

Conrad鈥檚 work was first published in magazines and newspapers and received influential reviews like the fortnight Review and Northern American Review.

One would think Conrad would at least read what others had to say about his works, but the weird eccentric writer avoided it for the major part of reading any of the reviews directed at his works.

He was content with seeing long reviews on his work and although his work didn鈥檛 receive a positive review.

It wasn鈥檛 until 1914 when it was believed much of his best work was behind him, he gained commercial success for the first time.

His book Chance paved a path of great success for him and he started to make a good living from his writings.

5. He turned down many honors

Joseph Conrad Print Collection portrait file Photo by Unknown author-

In April 1924, Joseph Conrad turned away from the offer of the British knighthood due to his background in Polish nobility.

Some of his contemporaries pushed for his recognition with a noble prize for literature, but it wasn鈥檛 forthcoming

He even turned down offers of honorary degrees from different prestigious universities.

6. There were several monuments created to honor him

Bust of Joseph Conrad in Celebrity Alley in Kielce photo by Pawe艂 Cie艣la Staszek_Szybki_Jest-

Joseph Conrad has an anchor-shaped monument dedicated to him at Gdynia, on Poland鈥檚 Baltic Seacoast.

The monument features a quotation from him in Poland that states 鈥淭here is nothing more enticing, disenchanting, and enslaving than the life at sea鈥�.

In San Francisco, a small triangular square at Columbus Avenue was constructed in 1979 as a dedication to the writer, which was timed to coincide with the release of the movie, apocalypse now

7. He was considered one of the greatest Modernist writers

The field of modern literature took a break from heavier styles of old writings, Conrad introduced fresh and attention-grabbing content that called for deep thinking in literature.

He gained much attention after his book, Chance was published in 1913, which was the subject of praise and much discussion than any other English writer of the time.

He was considered a great company, especially by his circles of close friends, which had begun assembling even before his first publications, they were authors and other leading lights in the arts.

 8. He was offered a British Knighthood which he declined

Joseph_Conrad_1904 photo by George Charles Beresford –

In 1919 and 1922 the fame of Conrad’s works was growing and gained a lot of prestige not only among writers but also critics in continental Europe.

In April 1924, those who possed a hereditary Polish Status of nobility declined a non-hereditary British knighthood offered by the Labour party, Prime minister Ramsay MacDonald.

He also turned down other offers of honorary degrees from five prestigious universities.

9. He was married and had two children

Despite the tragedies he experienced and the bleak themes in his book, Conrad had a blissful married life.

He was married to Jessie Gorge, an English woman and they had two sons.

10. He wrote characters based on himself

Conrad was a well-traveled man and most of the characters in his books were shadows of people he had met during his adventures on the sea.

In his book, the heart of darkness the character, Marlow was majorly based on himself and the experiences he had as a sailor.

Today Conrad’s influential narrative style and the use of anti-heroes as key characters have impacted a wide range of great writers of the 20th century his legacy will forever be remembered by many who read his work.