We’ve all heard of the stories where the main character is a hero and meets a beautiful woman, which ends in a happily ever after. However, what will happen when the main character was a coward, lost his true love, and died? In Lord Jim by Joseph Conrad, a guy named Jim has always wanted to become a hero, and throughout the book, we can see changes to his behaviour. Ever since Jim was very young, he had always dreamed of being a hero. However, when he boards the Patna, he realizes that he is not fit out as a hero. He was too scared to save anyone but himself, and during an inquiry about this, he meets Marlow. Later on, as Jim and Marlow become friends, Jim was captured. This took a great turn for him because he was known as a hero for defeating some local thieves. Then, he meets Jewel, and finds love. However, a little afterwards, a man named Cornelius plotted Jim’s death with a man named Brown, out of jealousy. While all of this happened, Jim had no idea what was in store for him. He was first tricked into leaving Jewel, and then mercilessly killed. Although he died an unfair death, we can see how much he has changed.
Jim died as someone who many considered to be a hero, while others considered to be a coward. To know who he truly is, we can look at how he was throughout the story. Since the beginning, he has always wanted to be a hero. However, he soon faced the harsh reality when the Patna was sinking. He realized he was too much of a coward to save the others and actually be a hero. However, towards the middle, Jim defeated some thieves, which kind of made him a hero to the community. Towards the end is where most people are conflicted. They argue over whether he actually died as a hero. Technically, he died a sad death, because he had just lost the love of his life because the community needed him, and then he got even more betrayed. He died close to sea, which is where is dreams of being a hero were born. This could be a symbol of the fact that he died as a hero, but many people believe that it is just a coincidence. Jim changed a lot, but many people can never forget his cowardliness to many situations. We will never know whether he truly died a hero or not because the end of the story can be interpreted in many ways.
During the time when he was alive, Jim did many good things, but he also had many problems. His issues weren’t exactly with other people, but more about himself. Even when he was young, Jim had always been unaware of the reality. He can’t really face what he actually is. He always daydreamed and escaped the real world to imagine himself as an amazing hero, but when the opportunity had come, he was unable to follow through. Jim is also unable to distinguish real honesty, which is what led him to be killed in the first place. He doesn’t realize that in the world, many people will be jealous of his success and will want him dead. His personality is also very hard to understand. He wants to become a hero, he wants to save his community, but he is not ready, and he proved that. He showed this when he was so oblivious of the fact that Doramin would kill him, and in the process, he neglected the one good thing in his life, Jewel. Jim is a man who is very lenient and kind, but he fails to notice the dangers around him and the threats that could injure or kill him.
This story was the only time that Jim could prove himself a hero, but if it were to happen again, would Jim still do the same things? Of course, we will never know because Jim has already passed away and the facts in the book that he has given us isn’t enough to determine whether he would do the same things if every event occurred again. We can think of the first situation, with the Patna ship. If he had the chance to go back and save the passengers, would he do it? Although it seems as if he would definitely take the chance to prove himself, I believe he wouldn’t change what happened. Since the story stated that he was too scared to react, would he really stop being scared if this situation happened for the second time? I think the answer to that is no. Everyone needs practice to excel at something, so in my opinion, he might have to re-experience the same event many times to overcome his cowardliness. Then, when the plot advances and Jim was about to be mercilessly killed, that’s what I think would change. If Jim had the chance to re-experience this, he would first give a proper and loving goodbye to Jewel, because relationships can be fixed, but death can never be dodged.
Lord Jim by Joseph Conrad talks about a guy called Jim who has always dreamed of being a hero. His ending was not what we expected because although he had found true love, he was separated from her on bad terms, and killed right after. This story may seem a bit aggressive, however the plot lines up really well. Jim was first neglected by himself, because of his denial that he would ever be a hero. Then, things were peaceful, he found a lover, and we definitely weren’t expecting him to be killed. This actually just makes the story more exciting and can help us reflect on many things. I believe that the story teaches us to stay true to ourselves, and although fate may not be on our side, we should still try our best to accomplish what we want to do in life. Jim started off as nothing, but died as a well known and successful person. Although Doramin shooting him may not have been the best idea, it shows us just how many people envy him. Having many people plot against him is a symbol of how much his social status has changed over the years. Overall, Lord Jim teaches us many things, and it is a very special book with it’s own twisted ending.
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