Conrad’s Thoughts on Dualism and Personality in The Secret Sharer

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“He had turned about meantime; and we, the two strangers in the ship, faced each other in identical attitudes.” (9) The captain, narrator and main character in the story of the Secret Sharer by Joseph Conrad feels isolated and alone on his new ship and crew. He has a surprise visitor that turns out to be a fugitive, Leggett, from the ship Sephora. Leggett and the captain have an immediate connection from the first meeting on the ship. The captain finds an alliance with Leggett because he feels he shares the same human experiences as Leggett. They are both young, held similar posts, are both segregated from their respective crews, they both save the ships during a time of crisis and both men moved on to newly found destinies. I believe Conrad wants the reader to conclude that taking risks of this kind repeat in human experiences to develop self- actualization. The captain risks harboring a fugitive and risks possible destruction of his ship. The captain hides Leggett because he connects to him through similar experiences in life. “He appealed to me as if our experiences...

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