The Secret Sharer

"The Secret Sharer" by Joseph Conrad is a novella written during the early 20th century. It follows a young sea captain who, while on a journey in the Gulf of Siam, encounters a mysterious figure, Leggatt, a fugitive from another ship. The narrative explores themes of isolation, duality, and moral conflict as the captain grapples with his sense of identity and responsibility. The story begins with the captain feeling like a stranger on his own ship, having recently taken command. One night, he discovers a man swimming near the ship, who turns out to be Leggatt, the former first mate of the ship Sephora, who has committed a crime in a moment of passion. Leggatt seeks refuge aboard the captain's ship, and the two men forge a bond, sharing secrets and ultimately each other's burdens. As the captain must navigate the complexities of leadership and morality, he decides to help Leggatt escape, leading to a tense and poignant conclusion where he aids Leggatt's escape back into the sea. The story culminates in a powerful exploration of the duality of human nature, as the captain finds himself both sympathizing with and identifying profoundly with Leggatt, who represents both the shadow and the self he struggles to understand. (This is an automatically generated summary.)

Joseph Conrad was a Polish-British novelist and story writer. He is regarded as one of the greatest writers in the English language and although he did not speak English fluently until his twenties, he became a master prose stylist who brought a non-English sensibility into English literature. He wrote novels and stories, many in nautical settings that depict crises of human individuality in the midst of what he saw as an indifferent, inscrutable and amoral world.