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Cover of The Mirror of the Sea

Memoir

The Mirror of the Sea

by Joseph Conrad

An autobiographical memoir on Joseph Conrad’s maritime experiences and his relationship with the sea.

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First published
1906
Length
61,731 words
Reading time
About 4 hr 18 min
Language
English (UK)

About the book

The Mirror of the Sea is the first of two autobiographical memoirs by Joseph Conrad . Prior to his career as a writer, Conrad spent two decades as a sailor, working in the French and British merchant marine from 1874 to 1894. Published in 1906, The Mirror of the Sea is a collection of essays on Conrad’s relationship with the sea, sailing, and ships.

The book’s fifteen essays explore a wide range of maritime topics: from a seafarer’s perspective on departure and landfall, to the nature of the East and West Winds, and the symbolism of the anchor. These thematic reflections are mixed with personal anecdotes and autobiographical chapters in which Conrad reflects on his own nautical adventures.

First published 1906; the Read4Max reading text contains approximately 61,731 words arranged in 69 navigable sections.

About the author

Joseph Conrad

Joseph Conrad (1857–1924) is described by Wikidata as Polish-British writer (1857–1924), with citizenship or national association recorded as Russian Empire, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom, and Second Polish Republic.

Recorded occupations include writer, novelist, essayist, screenwriter, science fiction writer, and autobiographer. Languages recorded for Joseph Conrad include English and Polish. The structured record associates Joseph Conrad with modernist literature. Wikidata lists The Lagoon, The Nigger of the 'Narcissus', Heart of Darkness, Lord Jim, Amy Foster, and Typhoon among Joseph Conrad's notable works. Open Library identifies Heart of Darkness as a leading work in its author record. Open Library catalogs 5571 works under this author record. The Read4Max catalog currently includes A Personal Record, Almayer’s Folly, An Outcast of the Islands, Chance, Heart of Darkness, Lord Jim, and Nostromo under Joseph Conrad's authorship.

1857–1924

Reading options

  • A complete text with direct section navigation in the browser reader.
  • A downloadable EPUB for phones, tablets, desktop reading apps, and compatible ereaders.
  • Book and contributor metadata are checked against the source edition before indexing.

Themes and ideas

  • Conrad, Joseph, 1857-1924
  • Seafaring life

Table of contents

Open reader
Show all 69 sections
  1. Dedication
  2. Author’s Note
  3. Epigraph
  4. The Mirror of the Sea
  5. Epigraph
  6. Landfalls and Departures
  7. I
  8. II
  9. III
  10. Emblems of Hope
  11. IV
  12. V
  13. VI
  14. The Fine Art
  15. VII
  16. VIII
  17. IX
  18. Cobwebs and Gossamer
  19. X
  20. XI
  21. XII
  22. The Weight of the Burden
  23. XIII
  24. XIV
  25. XV
  26. Overdue and Missing
  27. XVI
  28. XVII
  29. XVIII
  30. XIX
  31. The Grip of the Land
  32. XX
  33. XXI
  34. The Character of the Foe
  35. XXII
  36. XXIII
  37. XXIV
  38. Rulers of East and West
  39. XXV
  40. XXVI
  41. XXVII
  42. XXVIII
  43. XXIX
  44. The Faithful River
  45. XXX
  46. XXXI
  47. XXXII
  48. In Captivity
  49. XXXIII
  50. XXXIV
  51. Initiation
  52. XXXV
  53. XXXVI
  54. The Nursery of the Craft
  55. XXXVII
  56. XXXVIII
  57. XXXIX
  58. The Tremolino
  59. XL
  60. XLI
  61. XLII
  62. XLIII
  63. XLIV
  64. XLV
  65. The Heroic Age
  66. XLVI
  67. XLVII
  68. XLVIII
  69. XLIX
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