Almayer's Folly facts for kids

Almayer's Folly is the very first novel written by Joseph Conrad. It came out in 1895. The story takes place in the late 1800s in the jungles of Borneo. It's about a Dutch trader named Kaspar Almayer and his daughter, Nina.

The Story of Almayer's Folly

Kaspar Almayer was a young trader from the Netherlands. He was looked after by a wealthy man named Captain Lingard. Almayer hoped to get rich by marrying Lingard's adopted daughter, who was Malay. He also agreed to run Lingard's trading post in a place called Sambir, deep in the Borneo jungle.

However, Captain Lingard lost a lot of his money looking for a hidden treasure. Meanwhile, Almayer's own business ideas kept failing. He built a very expensive trading house, which he called "Almayer's Folly." But no one ever came to trade there.

Almayer and his wife had a daughter named Nina. The book then focuses on Almayer's mixed feelings. He loved Nina very much. He also wanted to keep her away from her mother's Malay culture. At the same time, he still dreamed of becoming rich and successful.

Later in the story, a Malay prince named Dain arrived in Sambir. Almayer tried to get Dain to help him find the treasure that Captain Lingard had searched for. But instead, Dain fell in love with Nina. They got married and left Sambir together. This happened against Almayer's wishes.

Losing Nina and his hopes of getting rich shocked Almayer deeply. He spent the rest of his life in his empty trading house. His mind slowly started to fade away.

What People Thought of the Book

Since Almayer's Folly was Joseph Conrad's first novel, some people think it's not as good as his later books. They sometimes found the language a bit difficult or repeated.

However, more recently, people have started to notice something special about the book. They like how Conrad shows Nina as a strong, independent female character. She is not European, and her character is seen as important, much like Aissa in Conrad's second novel, An Outcast of the Islands.

Movie Version

Filming for a movie based on the book started in November 2010. It was a French-Belgian movie directed by Chantal Akerman.

• Joseph Conrad, Almayer's Folly: A Story of an Eastern River, Random House, 1996.

See also

In Spanish: La locura de Almayer para niños