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Audiobooks Narrated by Kristel Tretter
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Almayer's Folly, Joseph Conrad's first novel, is a tale of personal tragedy as well as a broader meditation on the evils of colonialism. Set in the lush jungle of Borneo in the late 1800s, it tells of the Dutch merchant Kaspar Almayer, whose dreams of riches for his beloved daughter, Nina, collapse under the weight of his own greed and prejudice. Nadine Gordimer writes in her Introduction, 'Conrad's writing is lifelong questioning . . . What was 'Almayer's Folly'? The pretentious house never lived in? His obsession with gold? His obsessive love for his daughter, whose progenitors, the Malay race, he despised? All three?' Conrad established in Almayer's Folly the themes of betrayal, isolation, and colonialism that he would explore throughout the rest of his life and work.
'Almayer’s Folly' (1895) is Joseph Conrad’s debut novel. It centers on the Dutch trader Kaspar Almayer, who comes to Borneo with a suitcaseful of dreams. He settles on the exotic island among the Malays and mainly deals in river trade. His half-Malay daughter, Nina, is met with reluctance by the local community. But Almayer wants to put an end to his waning career as a merchant and hopes to find the island's hidden gold mine, so that he can return to Amsterdam as a wealthy man, with his daughter, and give her both financial and social status. But fate can be cruel, not least in the colonies.
This is the story of a man living at the edge of two cultures, having to adapt both sociologically and psychologically to a new environment. Here Conrad masterfully combines romance and adventure with moral and existential issues.
A European businessman and his Malayan wife have a daughter, Nina. A Malayan prince comes to do trade with the businessman and falls in love with the daughter. Conflict arises when other influences cause distrust in the business partnership and the daughter runs off to be with the prince.
