In 1908, Joseph Conrad was criticised by a reviewer for being a man ‘without either country or language’: even his shipboard communities were the product of a ‘cosmopolitan’ vision. This book takes off from that criticism and begins by exploring the history and meanings of the term ‘cosmopolitan’. It then considers the multinational world of Conrad’s ships – and of the Merchant Marine more generally – to differentiate multinationalism from cosmopolitanism. Subsequent chapters then address nationalism, nation-formation and the concept of the nation through a reading of
Nostromo; cosmopolitanism and internationalism in The Secret Agent; nationalism, internationalism and transnational activism in relation to
Under Westen Eyes; and Conrad’s own transnational activism in his later essays. While drawing distinctions between cosmopolitanism, internationalism and transnationalism as the appropriate conceptual framings for Conrad’s works, this book traces Conrad’s own engagement with nationalism, cosmopolitanism, and transnational activism in relation to the political events of his time.
Table of Content
Introduction .- Chapter 1: An Archaeology of Cosmopolitanism.- Chapter 2: The Multinational World of Ships.- Chapter 3:
Nostromo: The Nation, Nation Formation, Cosmopolitanism and Transnationalism.- Chapter 4:
The Secret Agent: Transnationalism and Internationalism.- Chapter 5:
Under Western Eyes: Internationalism and Nations.- Chapter 6: ‘The Polish Problem’ and Transnational Activism.- Afterword.- Appendix: A Note on the National Question.
About the author
Robert Hampson is Professor Emeritus at Royal Holloway, University of London; Research Fellow at the Institute of English Studies, University of London; and Chair of the Joseph Conrad Society (UK). He is the author of
Joseph Conrad: Betrayal and Identity,
Cross-Cultural Encounters in Joseph Conrad’s Malay Fiction, and
Conrad’s Secrets.
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