Lush prose and penetrating psychological insight infuse Conrad’s first novel with the qualities that have made him one of the most popular and most studied writers in English literature. The novel chronicles the tragic decline of a Dutch merchant isolated in 19th-century Borneo, the machinations of his bitter Malayan wife, and the loss of his much loved daughter. Conrad establishes the themes of betrayal, isolation, and colonialism that he would explore throughout the rest of his life and work