The work of Joseph Conrad is apparently a staple of the 20th century British canon. Few literature students manage to graduate without exposure to his iconic short story Heart of Darkness. While it is undeniably a powerful piece of writing, the analysis of its themes has been so repetitive and overblown that one begins to question whether it truly deserves its place in the canon. In contrast, Conrad's later work, namely the short story The Secret Sharer, offers a much more subtle and nuanced approach to similar themes. Although currently less popular than Heart of Darkness, The Secret Sharer is much more worthy of analysis and therefore more deserving of a place in the British literary canon. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an Original Essay In order to determine whether a work belongs in a canon in the first place, we must first think about what exactly a canon is. In his essay "An Idea and Ideal of a Literary Canon", Charles Altieri paraphrases Frank Kermode when he says: "...canons are essentially strategic constructs by which societies maintain their own interests, since the canon allows the control of texts and a culture. takes seriously and the methods of interpretation that establish the meaning of "seriousness". In other words, any given collection of canonical literature is a carefully controlled presentation of the values ​​of a culture or subculture; it's a direct reflection of how a select group views themselves At a glance, it makes The Secret Sharer seem oddly juxtaposed with the rest of the British canon. – although Conrad was ultimately a naturalized citizen – and so it is difficult to argue that it directly reflects British values ​​or ideals Beyond this, the novella's themes of questionable morality and the human psyche beneath. - underlying do not shed a positive light on British cultural values ​​Which brings us to the question: Does The Secret Sharer serve as a representation of British culture? The answer will unequivocally determine whether the story deserves a place in the canon. British, and therefore an analysis of its themes is necessary. At the beginning of The Secret Sharer, we meet an anonymous speaker who describes his surroundings in the first few lines. at sea. The major themes of the story are evoked in the last sentence of the introductory paragraph, when the speaker says: "And then I found myself alone with my ship, anchored at the bottom of the Gulf of Siam" (Conrad 4). In as few words as possible, it tells us what we need to know. The speaker describes it as his ship, revealing to us that he is the captain. He mentions being alone, which becomes one of the major problems throughout the story. Finally, he reveals his location, which is far more important to the message of the story than it initially appears. The story takes place in the Gulf of Siam, known today as the Gulf of Thailand. It is interesting to note that Thailand is one of the countries in the East that were lucky enough to escape colonization. Although, at first glance, themes of colonialism appear to be more present in some of Conrad's other works, there is a carefully woven undercurrent of colonial and imperialist attitudes throughout The Secret Sharer that ultimately shapes the history. The context is important because of its implications: although Thailand may never have been colonized, the British maritime presence undoubtedly alludes to their presence in surrounding countries. The speaker's shipis representative of one of the many ships in constant transit between these colonized lands and the British homeland. This brings us to Conrad's decision to make the speaker a recently appointed captain. It quickly becomes clear that the speaker lacks confidence, despite his new position. This creates the feeling that the speaker is both an ordinary man and in a position of power, suggesting that his actions throughout the story could mirror the actions of anyone (or, at least, any Western man) in the same position. In this regard, the characterization hints at Western morality on a broader scale, and so we begin to see how it might fit into the British canon. Of course, the speaker is not the driving force of the story, although he or she helps shape our perception of it. It is the presence of a stranger aboard the ship that sets off the events of The Secret Sharer. When the speaker meets the stranger for the first time, he describes him thus: "With a gasp, I saw revealed to my gaze a pair of feet, long legs, a broad pale back plunged up to the neck in a greenish cadaverous glow. A hand, flooded, gripped the lower rung of the ladder. It was complete except for the head. A headless corpse” (Conrad 7)! Almost immediately, the speaker realizes that the man has a head and is very much alive, but this first encounter is essential to understanding the stranger's perception that follows. Leggatt, as we learn, also plays the role of the common man; his initial perceived headless state represents the ambiguity and fluidity of his identity. It instantly becomes a filler onto which the speaker projects his own perception of himself. This becomes more relevant as Leggatt's crimes are revealed. The Speaker chooses to abuse his new power by harboring a fugitive aboard his ship who has committed murder, which has long been considered one of the most heinous crimes. The ultimate reason the speaker seems to lie in the similarities to himself that he sees in Leggatt. This speaks to the undercurrent of colonial themes in Conrad's work. It is the perfect representation of the implicit bias present in Western cultures, whereby those who are perceived as "like" are excused for even the most atrocious actions, while those who are labeled "other" are ostracized and even criminalized for their arbitrary actions. . The speaker acting as a shield for Leggatt because they are "alike" is symbolic of the willful ignorance and justification of Western cultures as a whole. The main conflict throughout the story revolves around the speaker's concealment of Leggatt. The question of whether the speaker will reveal Leggatt to his comrades or allow him to escape without answering for his crimes parallels the idea of ​​facing his demons or ignoring them. The speaker shares his feelings on this subject when he says: "I was extremely tired, in a particularly intimate way, by the effort of stealth, by the effort of whispering, and the general secrecy of this excitement." (Conrad 15). Although this seems to suggest that the speaker is tired of hiding things and wants to confront the problem, he ultimately chooses to help Leggatt escape. The speaker essentially ignored his demons. He never admits his actions in covering up Leggatt, but ironically the sequence of events leads the speaker to gain the trust of his crew all the same. This suggests one of the great problems of Western culture; it is often considered more acceptable to “save face” than to admit to having done wrong. Presentation is often valued above virtue, and this is exactly the case with the speaker of.