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In Conrad's novels
and essays Chinese characters and institutions are pervadingly present. Always
remaining in the background, Chinese characters pop up here and there, are mentioned
in passing, or affect the course of events by active involvement. In general,
the superficial image gained by reading individual works roughly coincides with
the stereotypes of the Chinese in other fictions of Conrad's time: they are businessmen
in the Malay Archipelago, run laundries and restaurants, or work as coolies in
foreign countries to send or take home their savings to China. Due to their minor
role in the stories, the individualities of these characters are neglected and
overlooked.
By using a lexicographical method
and a transtextual approach to all of Conrad's work this essay outlines the
specific images of China and the Chinese that Conrad has created. The result
shows that aside of the stereotypes which Conrad shares with his time there
is a great variety of differing images.
This leads to
the understanding that Conrad's references to China and the Chinese hardly express
his own opinions about the country and its people or they do so only in a very
indirect way. That is to say, they have to be seen from the aspect of Conrad's
impressionist approach to fiction writing. Pronouncements on the Chinese and
opinions about them are used to characterize those who express them rather than
being intended as reflections of the author's views. Nevertheless, Conrad's
views can probably be deduced from the fact that he coupled negative opinions
about China and her people with generally disagreeable characters and that by
allowing for affirmative pronouncements he differed from the negative opinions
that prevailed at his time.
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