Calendar of Cultural Events

Please verify dates and times with The Kosciuszko Foundation Director of Cultural Affairs
Tom Pniewski -- (212) 734-2130 ext. 214

One Hundred Years: Joseph Conrad and Nostromo - Conference on Poland's Master Novelist

March 12, 2005
admission is $10 and $5 for students and seniors
Reservations are required
Foundation House - click here for directions.

Opening Keynote Speaker:
Zdzislaw Najder, University of Opole, Poland
Trained at Warsaw University and Oxford, Zdzislaw Najder has taught at numerous American universities, including Yale, Stanford, and Berkeley; he retired from the University of Opole in Poland two years ago. He headed the Polish Section of Radio Free Europe in Munich 1982-1987, during which time he was stripped of his Polish citizenship and sentenced to death in absentia in 1983; all these charges were later dropped. His lifelong research and publications on Conrad have won numerous awards and prizes. His honors include Poland's Polonia Restituta and France's Legion of Honor.

Speakers:

Jennifer L. French, Williams College Peter L. Mallios, University of Maryland
John Peters, University of North Texas Brian Richardson, University of Maryland
Jean Szczypien, SUNY-FIT Wallace Watson, Duquesne University

One of Poland's greatest literary figures, Joseph Conrad is known for Heart of Darkness, Lord Jim, and many other novels celebrating life at sea and the colonial experience. "Nostromo," written a hundred years ago, is one of his most complex novels. The conference will examine this work as well as Conrad's "Polishness" and his importance in the 21st century.

The conference will begin at 10 AM with the keynote address, and include a screening of a BBC video adaptation of Nostromo ; dramatic readings; and panel discussion, with breaks and a closing reception. Participants will be able to order a light lunch sandwich.

10:00 AM Professor Najder, Keynote Speaker followed by a break

12:00 Noon: Jennifer French," Nostromo's South American Context"

Screening of BBC video adaptation of Nostromo

2:00 PM Break

2:30 PM: Readings and Discussion

NB:schedule approximate

For additional information and reservations, call the Foundation Office at (212) 734-2130.

This conference is made possible by generous support from the Tadeusz Solowij Literary Fund of The Kosciuszko Foundation.

All events take place at the Foundation House, unless otherwise noted. Programs subject to change. Click here for directions.

Kosciuszko Foundation programs are supported by the Mary F. Koons Charitable Trust, the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA), the Tadeusz Solowij Literary Fund, and the KF Cultural Fund.

Joseph Conrad