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The Secret Agent study guide contains a biography of Joseph Conrad, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.
- Mr. Adolf Verloc. Mr. Verloc, the novel’s protagonist (and eventual antagonist), is the titular secret agent. He lives in London with his wife of seven years, Winnie.
- Mrs. Winnie Verloc. Winnie is Verloc’s young wife. She married Verloc seven years ago (even though she’d loved another man more), because Verloc was willing to support Winnie’s dependents, her mother and her beloved brother Stevie… read analysis of Mrs. Winnie Verloc.
- Stevie. Stevie is Winnie’s younger brother. He lives with the Verlocs, and Winnie watches over him like a mother. Stevie has an unnamed mental disability and cannot live independently, though he can read and write… read analysis of Stevie.
- Mr. Vladimir. Vladimir is the First Secretary of the Embassy of an unnamed European country. He is a young man with a reputation for wit. Vladimir accuses Verloc of being lazy and insufficiently useful to the Embassy… read analysis of Mr. Vladimir.
Need help with Chapter 9 in Joseph Conrad's The Secret Agent? Check out our revolutionary side-by-side summary and analysis.
Summary. Ossipon meets with the Professor in an underground bar to ask him about a bombing that has just happened in Greenwich Park. The robust Ossipon and the diminutive Professor face off, and it becomes apparent that the socialist publisher is no match for the solitary explosives expert.
- Winnie Verloc. Winnie Verloc, a motherly woman who married Verloc mainly to provide security for Stevie, the half-witted brother whom she loves protectively.
- Chief Inspector Heat. Chief Inspector Heat, an investigator of the Special Crimes Department of the London police. A methodical man, he wishes to follow conventional and routine procedures in trying to solve the mystery of the bombing, the motive for which he can in no way understand.
- The assistant commissioner. The assistant commissioner, an official of the London Police who has only recently come to his position from service in the tropics.
- Privy Councilor Wurmt. Privy Councilor Wurmt, of the foreign embassy in London. He orders that Verloc be called in for reprimand and instructions.
The Secret Agent is a novel by Joseph Conrad. It was published in 1907. The novel describes events in the life of a man named Verloc, a secret government agent for an unnamed country living in London in 1886, who is ordered to carry out a bombing with the goal of manipulating the British government.
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Dive deep into Joseph Conrad's The Secret Agent with extended analysis, commentary, and discussion
