The captain in "The Secret Sharer" undergoes a process of initiation and self-definition. When confronted with the duties and responsibilities of a captain, he is not only overwhelmed but also impressed with all the responsibilities that he has taken on. He is constantly looking for reassurance from his crew that he is doing fine. He learns from Leggatt that in order to be a good leader, he has to be more aggressive, more intuitive, and more direct. Conrad's captain is exploring various ways in which to define himself; he must come to terms with his aggressiveness or else risk falling into insanity.
The captain and Leggatt act as mirror images of each other, or as each others' doppelgangers, as "the other" is sometimes called in literature. They both have.....
This is a free excerpt of 135 words. This section contains 311 words. This
study guide contains 12,952 words (approx. 43 pages at 300
words per page).
Read the rest of this Literature Guide with our The Secret Sharer Access Pass.
