The Duel

By Joseph Conrad

About This Book

"Haven't you heard of the duel going on ever since 1801?"

An exciting, swashbuckling thriller based on a true story about two of Napoleon’s soldiers.

Conrad’s brilliantly ironic tale about two officers in Napoleon’s Grand Army who, under a futile pretext, fought an on-going series of duels throughout the Napoleanic Wars. Over decades, on every occasion they chanced to meet, they fought. Both satiric and deeply sad, this masterful tale treats both the futility of war and the absurdity of false honor, war’s necessary accessory.

This Is An Enhanced eBook

This eBook contains Illuminations—additional illustrated material that expand the world of Conrad's novella through text and illustrations—at no additional charge. 

"Illuminations" contains writings by Napoleon Bonaparte - Catherine Bearne - Captain Elzear Blaze - Louis Antoine Fauvelet de Bourienne - Richard Curle - And a historical appreciation of the real life Feraud and d'Hubert
 
Illustrations include: Jacques-Louis David - Jean-Antoine Gros - Johannes Flintoe - Johann Gottfried Schadow - James Gillroy and others.
 
Also included is The Duelist’s Supplement – “The Code Duello: A Diverse Anthology For Personal Use” which includes in their entirety the French, Irish and American Southern Code Duellos as well as the Queensbury Rules and a description of the Viking Holmganga.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
• Release date: Aug 16, 2011
• ISBN: 9781612190723

Joseph Conrad

Polish author Joseph Conrad is considered to be one of the greatest English-language novelists, a remarkable achievement considering English was not his first language. Conrad’s literary works often featured a nautical setting, reflecting the influences of his early career in the Merchant Navy, and his depictions of the struggles of the human spirit in a cold, indifferent world are best exemplified in such seminal works as Heart of Darkness, Lord JimM, The Secret Agent, Nostromo, and Typhoon. Regarded as a forerunner of modernist literature, Conrad’s writing style and characters have influenced such distinguished writers as F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, William S. Burroughs, Hunter S. Thompson, and George Orwell, among many others. Many of Conrad’s novels have been adapted for film, most notably Heart of Darkness, which served as the inspiration and foundation for Francis Ford Coppola’s 1979 film Apocalypse Now.

Reviews for The Duel

[bibleblaster · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Read this in anticipation of a viewing of "The Duellists," Ridley Scott's directorial debut. Have not watched the movie yet, but the story was wonderful in that Conrad way, a simple, puzzling tale that ends up with some profound reflections on human nature.

[elizajane_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

After my disastrous attempt to read this month's other selection Michael Kohlhaas by Von Kleist, it should be unnecessary to say I came upon this one with trepidation. But I said to myself, at least it is very short so I will finish this one whether I like it or not. So, what a pleasant surprise to find myself fairly flying through the story in just one reading. Right from the first page my experience was different as this was easy to read, the story was entertaining and while wildly over dramatic it also had an understandable plot. All things I could not find in MK. The publisher's summary on the inside flap is incorrect and I see that the online summary has been changed to just one sentence which virtually summarizes the simple plot. "The story of a virtuous woman slandered by a nobleman." Things turn out to be much more than they seem though and through convoluted and last second revelations the truth comes out in the end. The story is readable, I have no complaints. I can only wonder though at the author's misconceptions of God, punishment and innocence (from both this story and Michael Kohlhaas); had he never contemplated God's gift of free will?

[eachurch-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This novella was originally published in German in 1810. It is a delightful story which is both suspenseful and thought-provoking. It is set 'toward the end of the fourteenth century,' and it does a fabulous job of demonstrating how little humans have changed since then. The outward trappings may have changed, but our basic concerns and motivations remain the same. The translation is excellent.

[msarki_3 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I can't remember ever fighting for somebody's honor. It is possible I have, but perhaps too drunk at the time to remember. Of course, that would have been years ago when I was young and dumb and fought for things as if they mattered. In this novella, the truth does matter. Not only is an entire fortune at stake, but the integrity of good people is challenged and mistakes are made contiguous with deceit confounding all in several different ways. Love and jealousy share equal billing, and the battle between these two reaches almost epic proportion. But that is how a good novella is made.

The jacket flap erroneously states the general plot of the novella, but this is still a fine translation and wonderful story. Sad for the fact that the editors of Melville House missed this huge mistake on the flap and this is for me beyond belief. It is possible an intern wrote this bit for Heinrich, and that adds insult to injury. It is obvious whoever wrote the jacket blurb had not ever read the book. How important it is to have accuracy and attention to details when producing a book as important as this one could be. Important enough to be included in a series and finally have its own space alone in book form. There is no forgiving this error and for this grievous mistake somebody in these offices needs be held accountable. Melville House is doing the world a favor by keeping these important books in print, but their presentation needs to be of the very first rank. If it were my book, and if I were Kleist, and so appreciative of somebody finally recognizing my genius and giving me my due, and then the house I had trusted and put my faith into had produced an artifact with this type of unforgivable error in it which clearly could have been avoided had the person responsible for writing this copy had read the novella first, I would be beside myself with embarrassment. The publisher should immediately set the record straight with the prompt and judicious removal of this book from the public consumption and move forthwith to repair the copy for proper publication as error free as required by good taste. Of course, the entire premise of the novella is one of credibility or truth and how it questions ones integrity and honor. I am not at all versed in the history of knights and chivalry, and I am also not sure where I got the idea this novella takes place in the 1500's. But it sounds good. Just as it did for the writer of the jacket flap when he or she stated the premise being Littegarde's husband having been murdered by his brother when in fact Littegarde's husband died of some illness and his death and person had nothing to do with the story at all. I kept going back to the flap to find something I surely must have been missing, but to no avail. But I must report that the main text of the book is error free, and wonderful.

Heinrich von Kleist writes in an easy and flowing manner. He tells a good story. However, this novella could go down as a myth or moral and be closer to the truth than claiming it a masterpiece. Though the gifted translation proves the book to be well-written, the Kleistian idea that God has something or other to do with proving guilt or innocence in a duel to the death is preposterous. As much as I do enjoy the culture of knights and honor and chivalric fights to the death does not in any way align me to the creed of a just god ultimately deciding our fate. Skill and luck and intelligence prevail in most of our endeavors, both good and bad, and it would take more than a supposed miracle by God's hand to move me off my stalwart position for my consistent stance in denouncing gods.

[greeniezona · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Every time I get riled up about the many ways our current justice system is a farce, I will have to remind myself that this ridiculousness was once considered justice and reassure myself about how far we've come after all.

A story of murder, deceit, and intrigue set in the fourteenth century. All about who has the power of being believed, and how God works in the world. Remember the kind of logic that said if you attempted to drown a witch and she didn't die, it must be because she was a witch and Satan was protecting her, but if she did die, whoops -- must have been innocent? This is a little less terrible, but still amazing.

The story itself is well told though, and if you aren't rooting for poor Littegarde throughout, well, let's just say I have concerns for your soul.

[bayardus-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Nothing special. Writing is serviceable, characters are forgettable, the idea of a duel as a conduit for divine justice is interesting but never much explored, and swept under the rug by the final lines of the story: "unless it be God's will." Way to make the issue circular while not actually saying anything substantive about it Kleist!