Violence, an integral part of modern society, constitutes the lives of individuals that lead to reactions in the sociological perspective. In terms of sociology, violence grasps the control one’s realities. Sociological impact of violence is so intertwined with side factors that individual get derailed in conducts transforming personalities, emotions, thoughts, world views. This study deals with violence in the sociological view and its implications as depicted in Conrad’s The Secret Agent.
Spy novels are seldom known to have preferred philosophical or intellectual content. The predominant plot is the hunt and the staple character is the hunter of the hunted. By the token of their profession, spies are constantly chased; and if hunted, …show more content…
Conrad reveals the inherent disorder of the world and thereby shows the order of the Western civilization to be merely a façade imposed on a non-Western setting. In The Secret Agent, Conrad reveals social violence and chaos in the very heart of Western civilization.
By setting the novel in London, Conrad shows that even the seeming order of civilization in the West is illusory as both political radicals and conservatives work counter to social order. The character of London contributes into the formulation of social violence as a theme in the novel. The muddy and twisting streets, the encircling curtain of never lifting fog are in compliance with the theme that the world is full of violence and that life is in chaos.
London is malevolent. Conrad underlines the stress in the streets, its lifelessness and meaninglessness. Stephen Bern in the article of Gothicism in a similar way emphasizes the demeaning character of London. He describes London as "cruel, devoid of grace, a monument to arrogant human aspiration getting a mass grave for the waste of modern anonymity". (Gothicism in the Secret Agent). Thus, London as the symbol of imprisonment forms the foundation of social violence in the …show more content…
For example, Verloc’s home mirrors the violent atmosphere of domestic life. His dwelling is located "in a shady street behind a shop where the sun never shone".(P.258). The street displays lack of light which is associated with the image or urban death, like a mass grave.
Complete enclosure from the rest of the world is emphasized to render characters prone to violence in the least encouragement. The Secret Agent is considered an ironic narrative in displaying the features of London in Edwardian period. London is depicted in the novel with disposed underworld of revolutionaries and anarchists. Conrad was familiar with the tactics and rationalization used by political agitators, terrorists and agent provocateurs. He was fascinated with the twilight world of internal and political activities in London at the time, which was a haven for political exiles from Europe during the nineteenth century, and he portrayed them in his novel
Spy novels are seldom known to have preferred philosophical or intellectual content. The predominant plot is the hunt and the staple character is the hunter of the hunted. By the token of their profession, spies are constantly chased; and if hunted, …show more content…
Conrad reveals the inherent disorder of the world and thereby shows the order of the Western civilization to be merely a façade imposed on a non-Western setting. In The Secret Agent, Conrad reveals social violence and chaos in the very heart of Western civilization.
By setting the novel in London, Conrad shows that even the seeming order of civilization in the West is illusory as both political radicals and conservatives work counter to social order. The character of London contributes into the formulation of social violence as a theme in the novel. The muddy and twisting streets, the encircling curtain of never lifting fog are in compliance with the theme that the world is full of violence and that life is in chaos.
London is malevolent. Conrad underlines the stress in the streets, its lifelessness and meaninglessness. Stephen Bern in the article of Gothicism in a similar way emphasizes the demeaning character of London. He describes London as "cruel, devoid of grace, a monument to arrogant human aspiration getting a mass grave for the waste of modern anonymity". (Gothicism in the Secret Agent). Thus, London as the symbol of imprisonment forms the foundation of social violence in the …show more content…
For example, Verloc’s home mirrors the violent atmosphere of domestic life. His dwelling is located "in a shady street behind a shop where the sun never shone".(P.258). The street displays lack of light which is associated with the image or urban death, like a mass grave.
Complete enclosure from the rest of the world is emphasized to render characters prone to violence in the least encouragement. The Secret Agent is considered an ironic narrative in displaying the features of London in Edwardian period. London is depicted in the novel with disposed underworld of revolutionaries and anarchists. Conrad was familiar with the tactics and rationalization used by political agitators, terrorists and agent provocateurs. He was fascinated with the twilight world of internal and political activities in London at the time, which was a haven for political exiles from Europe during the nineteenth century, and he portrayed them in his novel