Happy Deathday Mr. Conrad and Ms. O’Connor!

On August 3rd in 1924, novelist,  Joseph Conrad died at the age of 66 from heart failure. On the same day in 1964, Southern writer, Flannery O’Connor died at the very young age of 39, from complications due to Lupus.

Joseph Conrad is, of course, most well known for his novel Heart of Darkness,  which was first published in three parts via Blackwood’s Magazine in 1899 before it’s formal publication in 1902.  The novella is written as a frame narrative and is regarded by most to be a highly significant contribution to English Literature, although Conrad was not born an Englishman.

In fact, it may surprise many of you to know that Conrad spent many years as a sailor, including four years in the French merchant navy and an additional eight years as a British sailor. He made several voyages to the Far East, notably Singapore, Borneo, and the Gulf of Siam, all of which served as material for his novels. One trip up the Congo led to the writing of… you guessed it… Heart of Darkness.

Throughout his adult life, Conrad suffered from bouts of malarial gout and struggled with depression and financial distress. By 1908, he had added some more works to his output, notably The Secret Agent. Although he had won critical recognition, he was depressed by the fact that he was still not a “selling” author. Unfortunately, he was constantly tormented by the need to make money yet retain his artistic integrity, until the day he died.

A critic once said of Flannery O’Connor that she was “arguably the greatest Southern writer after Faulkner”. As we, here at DWC, are mostly Welty readers, we will disagree…but O’Connor is undeniably a close second ;) One of our favorite collections from O’Connor is A Good Man in Hard to Find, which was published in 1955. Her fiction is richly allegorical and sardonic, and her perspective on human nature unflinching…  which can sometimes make the soul feel rather unsettled after reading it. She always manages to find humor and beauty within a dark, seemingly remorseless landscape.

O’Connor lived in the “bible belt” and often made contributions to the local Catholic literary outlets, including book reviews. This setting shows up often in her work, which she preferred to label as “Christian Realism” rather than the popular term “Southern Gothic”.

Today, we hope you will remember these very different but equally gifted writers. Like O’Connor, we encourage you to look for the beauty in the grotesque underbelly of wherever you may live. Like Conrad, draw back on where you’ve been and take your readers there as he did… into the heart of darkness.

Write on in peace Mr. Conrad and Ms. O’Connor!