Cultural diasporas: a comparison between the self-imposed exiles of Joesph Conrad and Multatuli

Abstract

This article explores an aspect which Multatuli and Joseph Conrad shared in common, an aspect that crossed from the borderlines of their lives and into their writing, the effect of self imposed exile. The focus shall be twofold, of a biographical and literary perspective, showing how their attitudes towards colonialism were an important factor which resulted in a differently developed sense of isolation and removal from socially acceptable behaviour and conduct/morality of contemporary society. In the case of Multatuli, such a difference resulted and was further exacerbated by the writing of Max Havelaar, however in the case of Conrad, the effects of exile from his native land, Poland have been echoed in the lives of his characters, Jim (“Lord Jim) and Kasper Almayer (Almayer's folly). From a biographical perspective, this articles assertion is to highlight, how exile affected both writers work. The relevance of this article is to develop and explore an important connection between the two writers and how such a connection may affect the scholarship of each writer and colonial literature in general.