Almayer's Folly: A Story of an Eastern River (Modern Library Classics) [Paperback]

Joseph Conrad (Author), Nadine Gordimer (Introduction)

Book Description

Series: Modern Library Classics | Publication Date: October 8, 2002

Almayer’s Folly, Joseph Conrad’s first novel, is a tale of personal tragedy as well as a broader meditation on the evils of colonialism. Set in the lush jungle of Borneo in the late 1800s, it tells of the Dutch merchant Kaspar Almayer, whose dreams of riches for his beloved daughter, Nina, collapse under the weight of his own greed and prejudice. Nadine Gordimer writes in her Introduction, “Conrad’s writing is lifelong questioning . . . What was ‘Almayer’s Folly’? The pretentious house never lived in? His obsession with gold? His obsessive love for his daughter, whose progenitors, the Malay race, he despised? All three?” Conrad established in Almayer’s Folly the themes of betrayal, isolation, and colonialism that he would explore throughout the rest of his life and work.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“The human heart as recorded in Mr. Conrad’s pages is the human heart of an immense number of men in all ages and in all climes.” —Ford Madox Ford

Book Description

Set in eastern Borneo during the 1880s, Almayer's Folly recreates the conflicts of imperial Europe with the colonized East Indies. This edition presents Joseph Conrad's first novel freed from seven layers of publishers' and typists' corruptions. Complete textual and contextual histories, full annotation and two regional maps are provided. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Modern Library (October 8, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0375760148
• ISBN-13: 978-0375760143
• Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 0.5 x 8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,035,971 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #30 in Books > Literature & Fiction > World Literature > African > Central & South African

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A powerful tale of the East, June 3, 2002

By 

Carool Kersten - See all my reviews

This review is from: Almayer's Folly: A Story of an Eastern River (Everyman's Library (Paper)) (Paperback)

Loosely based on the life of a Dutch merchant, setting up a trading post along a river in the interior of Borneo, Conrad's novel 'Almayer's Folly' is actually about man's alienation from his environment and eventually himself.

Written during the heyday of western imperialism, when the great powers of Europe subjected the tropics to their rule, the tale of Almayer explores how the tropics actually devoured the individual westerner.

The main character of the book is a man obsessed. Chasing a dream, he completely loses touch with reality. Although on the surface it may seem that he is a white man gone native, Almayer hasn't got a clue what he is dealing with. He is blind to the schemings of his Malay wife and equally oblivious to the fact that his daughter is drifting away from him.

Admittedly, the book has 'orientalist' overtones but, then, Joseph Conrad is both a man of his time and a master of poweful prose, not a politically-correct scholar. The stereotypical mystique of Asia and the inscrutable oriental are exploited as a literary means to descend into the deeper levels of man's psyche. Just like the 'true heart' of Borneo and its inhabitants is hidden under layer upon layer of deceiving images, so is the core of each and every individual. The scariest place to travel is not the interior of an Indonesian Island, but the inner reaches of our own soul.

Almayer's Folly is one of the best novels ever written. Not only because of the author's masterful portrayals of character, but also due his astounding command of English. It is hard to believe that Conrad's first and second language were Polish and French: he only learned English as an adult. It is this combination of psychological understanding and extraordinary use of language that make him into a literary genius.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Underappreciated Jewel, January 15, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Almayer's Folly: A Story of an Eastern River (Everyman's Library (Paper)) (Paperback)

This was Conrad's first novel, and I think it's an underappreciated jewel. It's written with a typical Victorian plotline, and one part of it has a romantic couple seeking their own happy ending, but don't be mistaken - it's real Conrad, so there's the glorious Conradian gloom, fear and descent into madness, too. It's a tale about a Dutchman in a business-gone-bad stranded in the Indonesian boondocks with his witch-like Malay wife who wishes him all the ill in the world. His only hope in life anymore is for his beautiful daughter and he dreams constantly of getting her educated and married off back in Amsterdam so he can wash his hands of his island nightmare and go back to normal life in Europe. But she grows up, grows distant to him, and he's clueless about the reality that she's adopted the local style and wants to be there. A handsome Balinese prince seeks her hand and the plot cranks into motion, spinning to a thrilling climax. It's an interesting study of problems of interracial, intercultural interaction, as valid today as it was in the late 19th century. The visual picture it paints of the old Dutch East Indies - the rivers, the tangled jungle flowers and the wildlife is another of its finest points.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Excellent, Accessible Book, July 21, 2000

By 

Molly Fleming "avid reader" (Santa Clara, CA, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Almayer's Folly (Penguin Twentieth-Century Classics ) (Paperback)

I was surprised to find out this was Conrad's first book. I expected an awkwardness of a writer refining his skill, but what I found was a captivating, accessible and satisfying story. It has suspense and romance as well as the tragedy that Conrad is known for. I think the young characters and themes make this book far more accessible to a young person than the standard required Conrad novel--Heart of Darkness. Almayer's Folly is an excellent introduction to Conrad's work.