Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Lord Jim, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Fantasy vs. Reality
Justice and Duty
Racism and Colonialism
Truth and Perspective
Summary
Analysis
At dinner, Jim says it was nice for an older man like Marlow to listen to Jim’s story about the Patna. Marlow doesn’t normally feel that old, but Jim’s comment makes him feel much older.
Although Jim and Marlow are not far apart in age, Marlow’s shows a much greater maturity and sense of his own identity, making the gap seem wider than it really is. .
Themes
Literary Devices
Jim tells Marlow about how he felt so lost on the Patna. It was worse than being in a proper fight. The fake story that the skipper tells about the Patna incident is not a total lie, and Jim muses about how thin the line between right and wrong can be sometimes. Jim wonders what would’ve happened if he'd lingered a moment longer on the Patna and fallen off, needing to be saved, rather than jumping intentionally.
The novel’s structure reflects Jim’s musings about the nature of truth: different characters tell the events from their own perspective, and it is only through combining all of these perspectives that one can reach an idea about what the “real” true version of events is.
Themes
Jim hopes that Marlow understands why Jim hasn’t tried to run away from his problems. He wants to face what he did. He wonders if he would’ve stayed on the Patna if not for the skipper and the others. Jim paces around and asks Marlow what he believes.
Despite Jim’s shame about his past actions, he also wants to justify them to Marlow, reflecting how conflicted Jim is on the inside.
Themes
