%0 Journal Article
%T Rafał Marceli Blüth as a Conrad Scholar
%A Zabierowski, Stefan
%J Yearbook of Conrad Studies
%V 2017
%R 10.4467/20843941YC.17.001.8658
%N Vol. 12
%P 7-26
%K Rafał Marceli Blüth, Polish Conrad scholarship between the wars, Joseph Conrad’s biography, Joseph Conrad’s writing, Joseph Conrad’s novels
%@ 1899-3028
%D 2018
%U https://ejournals.eu/en/journal/yearbook-of-conrad-studies/article/rafal-marceli-bluth-as-a-conrad-scholar
%X The aim of the present article is to present the achievements of Rafał Marceli Blüth (1891-1939) in the field of Conrad scholarship. During the period between the First and Second World Wars, Blüth was a prominent Catholic intellectual and—along with Prof. Józef Ujejski and the well-known writer Maria Dąbrowska—was one of Poland’s foremost Conrad critics. As well as interpreting Conrad’s novels, Blüth researched the writer’s biography, particularly with regard to the role played by family tradition in the Polish eastern borderlands. He also put forward a detailed interpretation of the factors which might have influenced Conrad’s decision to leave Poland while he was still in his teens. Blüth’s greatest achievements as a literary critic include interpretations of novels such as Victory, The Rover and Nostromo, an attempt to classify the main characters of Conrad’s novels and a study comparing Conrad’s writing and view of the world with those of Dostoevsky.