Joseph Conrad

Polish-British, 1857–1924

Joseph Conrad (1857–1924) was a Polish-British novelist regarded as one of the greatest prose stylists in English literature — remarkable given that English was his third language after Polish and French. His novella Heart of Darkness, set in the Belgian Congo, is a profound exploration of imperialism, moral corruption, and the darkness within human nature. Conrad's seafaring novels draw on his twenty years as a merchant sailor.