Liminalność i poznanie w Smudze cienia Josepha Conrada. Między uniwersalnym a kontekstualnym rozumieniem inicjacji

Abstract

The axis of "The Shadow-Line" by Joseph Conrad is the issue of initiation in the seaman craft and, at the same time crossing the threshold of adulthood. The author of the article, referring to the concept of the rites of passage of van Gennep, Turner and Eliade, as well as the model of Campbell’s mythic “hero’s journey”, analyses the process and anthropological implications of this initiation and considers to what extent the rites de passage are universal, and to what extent they are contextual. The ship crew turns out to be a communitas, a community of the liminal phase of the rite of passage, and the protagonist must realize the model-archetype in concrete circumstances. Even though the plot resembles the structure of a magical tale, one may find there the cultural reality of seamen’s work and the Victorian era.