Elisabeth Piedmont-Marton is an instructor at University of Texas Extension and the coordinator of the Undergraduate Writing Center at the University of Texas at Austin. In the following essay. she discusses the theme of self-discovery in "The Secret Sharer. "

In "The Secret Sharer," Conrad tells the story of two simultaneous journeys: the literal sea journey, and the young captain's journey toward self discovery. That his ship barely gets underway in the final pages of the story is an indication of which of the two journeys Conrad found most interesting. The young captain of the unnamed ship, who has Just taken command of the vessel, and who, in his own words, is "somewhat of a stranger" to himself is given the opportunity and incentive to embark on his own Journey toward self-knowledge. Conrad uses a double for the captain, to force him to look into his "self" from...