Nostromo (Wordsworth Classics) Paperback – December 30, 1998

Clásico

This magnificent novel is proof of the importance of character-development in literature. As I have said several times in these reviews, the main reason why a book of fiction becomes a classic is that it can be interpreted from different -even opposite- points of view.Plus, you have a wonderful tale of political intrigue, adventures in the sea, romance, decadence and violence, set in a fictional South American, exotic nation with a lush subtropical landscape, and you are in for a treat. And Conrad is simply excellent at crafting sentences that you will remember.The plot: Costaguana is in the middle of political upheaval. Sulaco, the Western province, is rich and relatively peaceful, thanks to the asset represented by the San Tomé Mines, rich in silver. When the town is in danger of being seized by corrupt rebel forces, the need arises to save the most recent lot of silver. Nostromo, an Italian of great prestige and courage who works at the docks, is charged with the responsibility to save the silver. He will be assisted by Decoud, an expatriate who has come back in search of the woman he loves, but who has become entangled in politics. The chapters about their escape aboard a small boat, in the darkest night, are impressive. From then on, everything will be adventure, intrigue and violence. The tension builds up excitingly, and at the end, what has to happen happens.The magical side of this novel is that Conrad creates a whole country, with its history, geography, society. As I said before, the development of the characters is excellent. We get to know the Gould house just as well as the inhabitants (and you can't help desiring to have met Mrs. Gould); we know the story of Dr. Monygham (for me, the real hero of the novel), of Don José Avellanos and his daughter, of Decoud, of Giorgio Viola. Curiously enough, the most enigmatic person is Nostromo himself (and certainly not the most likable): all we know is that he's arrogant, brave, smart and insufferably vain. But don't worry, he'll get what he deserves. By the moment it happens, you will have enjoyed a tropical tale of epic proportions, full of well-rounded, complete personalities competing for power, money, love or honour. The novel is rich with revealing passages, among them, besides the escape in the dark: Nostromo and the Doctor's dialogue as a high point in the tension of the book; Nostromo's awakening after returning to land, surely the most beautifully written chapter; and the final confrontation. Great book.

For the first 150 or so pages of Nostromo, there were several times when I almost quit. The amount of detail about the political and social organization of Conrad's imaginary country was so dry and technical that I felt like I was reading an encyclopedia. But, the strangest thing happened on about page 151. . . I started to get into the book! Then, I couldn't stop. In retrospect, I believe that the exposition at the beginning of the novel could have been dispersed throughout the narrative, rather than shoving it down the reader's mouth at the beginning.Nevertheless, Nostromo is a stunning and extremely pessimistic examination of the "heart of darkness" within all humans. Virtually all the characters are driven by self-interest and greed, and even our "hero" (Nostromo), is at times bestial and self-involved. But, I still loved this book! Joseph Conrad is like the literary equivalent of Paul Verhoeven- an extremely bitter artist whose dark view of the world serves to shed light on the audience. I know it sounds strange, but I mean exactly what I say.

This is Joseph Conrad’s worst novel. Long winded, characters all over the place, too many shifting unrelated plots and way overdone. The idea of western influence in South America followed by internal revolution is a great concept but The canvas is too big for Conrad. His best Novels are Victory and Heart of Darkness. I highly recommend those novels over Nostromo. Not sure how this wound up as #47 in the top 100 English Novels as ranked by the Modern Library. English Professors love complex Unentertaining Fiction.