Lord Jim - Joseph Conrad

This is the story of a man who makes a mistake early in life and then runs from the mistake and the notoriety, even the notoriety he made for himself. He eventually finds peace living among the native people on an island. However, the scars of that first mistake colors his life even on the island. He is driven by a need to not fail people again. Thi ultimately leads to him willingly going to his death. It was not a choice to go to his death, but determined by the life he had lead since his first mistake. However, he fails yet again. In his death, he fails those closest to him. And he fails to realize that his last act leads to a failure greater than any to that point.