To Be, Or Not To Be :: essays research papers

According to Merrion-Webster Inc. Dictionary, a doppelgnger is a double, an often ghostly or evil counterpart to a char exertioner. It comes from the German language, doppel- double + -gnger goer. It might be asked, What does a doppelgnger have to do with a paper on Joseph Conrad? The answer is a lot, especially if Conrads The conundrum Sh atomic number 18r is being discussed. In this short story, the two constituents, the original and Leggatt, share some similarities, as well as differences. When comparing the similarities and differences, they can be utilize to show the duality between the captain and Leggatt. Conrad used Leggatt as a doppelgnger to help the captain come terms with himself.In 1880, Conrad was part of the clump of the Cutty Sark. On this ship, Sidney Smith killed a black man, John Francis. The captain of the Cutty Sark on the QT helped Smith to an American ship, the Colorado. Four days later, Smith committed suicide (Daleski 171). Smith had not wanted to be tried for his murder. This experience is in particular interesting when one compares it to Conrads short story, The Secret Sharer. Conrad directly used his association of the occurrences aboard the Cutty Sark for that particular story.The Secret Sharer is a psychological masterpiece that dramatizes the act of sympathetic identification with an outlaw. Also, it deals with the achievement of self-mastery when the secret self is exorcised (Graver 150). In it, the character Leggatt is the embodiment of the captains personality yet, he is not any higher or lower than the captain. Hes only different. He is one side, to a double-sided coin.In the story, the captain of a ship discovers a man named Leggatt. Leggatt had committed murder on the Sephora, on which he was first mate. Not wanting to face a trial, he escaped. The captain and Leggatt form an immediate bond (Conrad 702). Comparing the two, they are both of the same stature, same background. The captain even refers to Leggatt as hi s double, other self, or secret sharer almost 40 times (Graver 152). Conrad specifically implies that Leggatt is a doppelgnger, or the captains double.They do, however, take striking differences in their personalities. Where the captain is apprehensive and uncertain of himself, Leggatt is full of calm and self-confidence (Conrad 702). In fact, part of the attractiveness that Leggatt has, is based on his unmistakable self-possession (Graver 152). Yet, it must be remembered that Leggatt killed a man.