(1857–1924)
a British novelist who was born Teodor Josef Konrad Korzeniowski in a part of Poland under Russian rule. He left home at 17 to go to sea and, after many adventures, he joined the crew of a British ship. He changed his name and became a British citizen in 1886. He used his experiences around the world as the background to many of his novels, such as Lord Jim , Heart of Darkness and Nostromo (1904). He is considered by many people to be one of the greatest novelists in the English language.