I began reading Conrad’s fiction when I was in my teens, starting with “Heart of Darkness.” I read it several times, trying to fathom its meaning. It is probably the author’s best known work thanks in part to the 1979 film adaptation, Apocalypse Now. But good as this story is, I do not regard it as the best thing its author produced.
Joseph Conrad (1857-1924) was a sailor during the younger portion of his adult life. He began as a deckhand but climbed the ranks to captain. It wasn’t until he was in his late thirties, after spending around twenty years at sea, that he became a writer. Obviously the time he spent aboard ships provided much of the raw material for his fiction, but he did not like to be regarded as a mere writer of sea stories. He felt that his fictional pieces were dealing with more urgent matters than nautical adventure alone. Moreover, some of his major works are not sea stories at all: for example, The Secret Agent and Under Western Eyes, both of which are fine political thrillers.
But Typhoon does qualify as a sea story.
Published in 1903, the short novel concerns the captain and crew of a steamship traveling through the China Sea when a typhoon strikes. The narrative’s focus is on the awesome and terrifying force of this storm, and the manner in which the characters deal with it. In the latter regard, the central figure is Captain MacWhirr.
On the surface, there is nothing remarkable or impressive about the novel’s main character. He is a family man, but his children barely know him and his wife does not miss him. In his professional life, he is not a harsh skipper but he is not especially personable either. Moreover, his bland, taciturn personality often conveys the impression that he is not very bright. In fact his intelligence does seem rather limited. But within those limits Captain MacWhirr carries out his duties, especially during this particular crisis, with skill, heroism, and humanity.
As for the storm itself, here is a description of its onset:
‘A dense bank of cloud became visible to the northward; it had a sinister dark olive tint, and lay low and motionless upon the sea, resembling a solid obstacle in the path of the ship. She went floundering towards it like an exhausted creature driven to its death. The coppery twilight retired slowly, and the darkness brought out overhead a swarm of unsteady, big stars, that, as if blown upon, flickered exceedingly and seemed to hang very near the earth.’
Typhoon might not be regarded as a profoundly meaningful novel, whatever its author’s intentions. Essentially it is a nautical adventure. But the drama unfolds with such artistry and experiential authority that this alone conveys depth.
It is worth noting that Joseph Conrad lived in Poland until the age of 16, and that English was his second language. Even so, he was able to utilize it—as a writer and a sailor—with extraordinary effectiveness.
*Image from Amazon
