1 h 53 minAudiobook14 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook edition · 1 h 53 minPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What if the stranger you hide aboard your ship seems closer to you than your own crew?
In Joseph Conrad’s The Secret Sharer, a young captain faces his first command as a stranger to his ship and crew. At anchor in the Gulf of Siam, he meets Leggatt, a tired swimmer who says he is chief mate of the nearby Sephora. The captain chooses to hide him.
Leggatt shares the captain’s cabin, clothes, food and secret. Each visit from the steward threatens discovery, while the captain’s older first officer senses something wrong. When the captain of the Sephora comes searching, private loyalty presses against public duty. The young commander’s authority, reputation and ship are all at risk.
What you’ll discover
- A stranger at sea Enter a quiet night at anchor where an unexpected swimmer changes the captain’s course.
- The burden of command Follow a young man who must decide alone while still unsure of himself.
- A secret within reach Feel the tension as the steward moves through the cabin where Leggatt stays hidden.
- The unsettling double Explore the captain’s bond with a stranger who seems to mirror his own self.
- Loyalty under pressure Consider what one person owes another when sympathy puts duty and authority at risk.
Who will love it
This story suits readers who love sea tales, quiet suspense and close portraits of a mind under strain. It also speaks to anyone drawn to doubles, secrets and loyalty.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A stranger takes command of a still ship
- A swimmer clings to the side ladder
- Leggatt tells the story of the killing
- The captain hides his guest in plain sight
- A visitor from the Sephora searches for his man
- Scares at sea and a plan for the island
- Two men who share one conscience
- How the story is told and what it means
Who’s who
- The captainA young, unnamed captain in his first command, a stranger to his ship and crew, who wants to prove himself and finds he must act against the rules.
- LeggattThe former chief mate of the Sephora, a strong swimmer and a parson's son, who is on the run after killing a man and wants to vanish for good.
- The chief mateA serious, whiskered officer who likes to explain everything and who grows more alarmed as the new captain behaves in ways he cannot account for.
- The second mateA quiet, round-cheeked young officer who knows more than he says and whose lips tremble at the captain's odd orders.
- The stewardA nervous servant who keeps coming into the captain's cabin and comes close to finding the secret, though the captain fears him all the time.
- Captain ArchboldThe red-whiskered captain of the Sephora, shaken and persistent, who comes searching for his missing mate and insists the law must take its course.
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The Secret Sharer
by Joseph Conrad · 1910
A young captain alone on night watch finds a naked swimmer clinging to his ladder, and hides him from the whole ship.
Medium levelUnder 2 hours to readEnglish
Excellent
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In short
What would you do if a naked stranger rose out of a dark sea and told you he had killed a man? The young captain in this story has no time to think.
The Secret Sharer at a glance
- Reading time
- About 1 h 5 min50 min fast, 1 h 20 min slow
- Length
- 15,700 words
- Library level
- Medium longer sentences, everyday words
- First published
- 1910by Joseph Conrad
Reading time at 238 words a minute (fast 300, slow 200). How long the classics take to read · Updated
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A stranger takes command of a still ship
The story opens at the head of the Gulf of Siam. A tug has just towed the ship out of the river Meinam, and the young captain watches it vanish. The sea lies flat and solid. Nothing moves, not a canoe, not a bird, not a cloud.
The captain feels out of place in this calm. He took command only a fortnight earlier. He knows almost nothing about his officers or the men forward, who have sailed together for eighteen months. He is a stranger to the ship and, in some way, to himself.
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- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas of the whole book in about 14 minutes. A good first look, or a refresher.
Details
- First published
- 1910
- Language
- English
- Reading time
- 1 h 10 min
- Level
- Medium level
Cite this edition
Conrad, Joseph. The Secret Sharer. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-secret-sharer.
Conrad, J. (2026). The secret sharer. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-secret-sharer (Original work published 1910)
Conrad, Joseph. The Secret Sharer. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-secret-sharer.
@book{conrad2026secret,
author = {Conrad, Joseph},
title = {The Secret Sharer},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-secret-sharer},
note = {First published 1910}
}
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What is The Secret Sharer about?
A young captain on his first command finds a swimmer clinging to his ship's ladder at night. The man, Leggatt, is a fugitive who killed a sailor on another ship. The captain hides him in his cabin and risks his command to help him.
Who is Leggatt in The Secret Sharer?
Leggatt is the former chief mate of the Sephora, a strong swimmer and a parson's son from Norfolk. He is locked in his cabin after a death in a storm, escapes by swimming at night, and finds refuge aboard the narrator's ship.
Why is the story called The Secret Sharer?
The captain feels so alike to Leggatt that he calls him his double and his other self. He shares his cabin, his clothes, his food and his thoughts in secret, and the title names that hidden, shared life.
The author
Joseph Conrad
1857–1924 · Polish-British novelist
Joseph Conrad (1857–1924) was a Polish-British writer born in Berdychiv, then in the Russian Empire and now in Ukraine. He worked at sea before settling in England. He wrote in English. His works include Heart of Darkness (1899), Lord Jim (1900), Nostromo (1904), and The Secret Agent (1907).
More by Joseph Conrad
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