As I began reading this special novel I noticed that Conrad likes to use a specific style. His character descriptions are all very similar and use the same format. The first description the reader encounters is that of the director: “The Director of Companies was our captain and our host. We four affectionately watched his back as he stood in the bows looking to seaward” (Conrad, 2). One would expect this character to be the epicenter of the story to come. To my surprise, he is not. After a few pages he is transitioned out smoothly. The narrator, who was traveling with the director, then introduces “The Lawyer – the best of old fellows – had, because of his many years and many virtues, the only cushion on deck, and was lying on the rug” (Conrad, 2). I found a pattern in which the characters profession, social rank, and what they are doing currently.
I was also interested in the way race, slavery and social rank is portrayed. Slavery is present and the narrator experiences very different social conditions. After reading The Cherry Orchard I might be especially sensitive to social differences but it seemed like a theme that was going to be discussed later on. The first few pages I have seemed interesting and different, which is always nice. Darkness is obviously present and is helpful when trying to see how bright ones life is.
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