Cundill History Prize Lecture by Maya Jasanoff

Joseph Conrad, an influential voice in Modern literature, was an untethered soul. Emigrating from Poland to England as a teenager, he travelled the oceans for many years as a sailor before settling in London to write.

In a lecture based on her award-winning book, The Dawn Watch: Joseph Conrad in a Global World, Professor Maya Jasanoff will present Conrad as a prophet of globalization. Jasanoff will explore how Conrad was deeply influenced by the dawn of the twentieth century — the tensions of global capitalism, encroaching imperialism and unprecedented migration which still characterize our global world.

A beacon of globalization, worlds intersect in Conrad’s life and writing. Professor Jasanoff followed in the footsteps of this prolific writer, journeying from East Asia to Europe on a cargo ship, and sailing 1,000 miles down the Congo River. This distinct experience flavors the pages of The Dawn Watch, much as Conrad's work is imbued with the familiar worlds of his travels.

Part travelogue, part literary criticism, part history — this innovative work acknowledges the story in history, and enriches the history of Conrad's stories.

For more information: https://www.cundillprize.com/the-cundill-lecture