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The Point of Honor

THE POINT OF HONOR

The Point of Honor By Joseph Conrad (1857-1924)

Set during the Napoleonic Wars, “The Point of Honor” (English

title: “The Duel”) features two French Hussar officers, D’Hubert

and Feraud. Their quarrel over an initially minor incident turns

into a bitter, long-drawn out struggle over the following fifteen

years, interwoven with the larger conflict that provides its

backdrop. At the beginning, Feraud is the one who jealously guards his honor and repeatedly demands satisfaction anew when a duelling encounter ends inconclusively; he aggressively pursues every opportunity to locate and duel his foe. As the story progresses, D’Hubert also finds himself caught up in the contest, unable to back down or walk away.

This Conrad short story evidently has its genesis in the real duels that two French Hussar officers fought in the Napoleonic era. Their names were Dupont and Fournier, which Conrad disguised slightly, changing Dupont into D’Hubert and Fournier into Feraud. In 1977, it was turned into a movie, “The Duellists”, starring Keith Carradine and Harvey Keitel. (summary adapted from Wikipedia)

Read by Mark F. Smith; total running time: 03:29:57.

This recording is in the public domain and may be reproduced, distributed, or modified without permission. For more information or to volunteer, visit librivox.org. Cover picture by Carle Vernet (1812).Author photograph by George Charles Beresford (1904). Copyright expired in US, Canada, EU and all countries with author’s life +70 yrs laws. Cover design by Janette Brown. This design is in the public domain.

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