...Heart of Darkness Essay Light and dark imagery is one element most commonly used in literature, and has held specific symbolic meanings for hundreds of years. Simply stated, light generally symbolizes good, while darkness symbolizes the complete opposite, evil. More specifically, Conrad uses detailed imagery of light and dark to show that white men can in fact be more savage than the natives. While the contrast of light and dark, white and black, and good and evil is a common theme in his novel, Conrad reverses the meanings of the two. In his story often the light is viewed as more menacing and evil than the darkness, and the white characters more spiteful than the black. In Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad uses light and dark imagery and the reversing of their regular meanings as a main focal point throughout the novel. Conrad establishes throughout this the theme that not everything is as it seems. Conrad uses light imagery as a symbol of civilization. Darkness is defined as the absence of light just like the black jungle is defined as the absence of white man’s civilization, a civilization full of corruption and evil. Conrad’s first description of Brussels is an example of this. “In a very few hours I arrived at a city that always made me think of a white sepulcher.” It is significant that Conrad describes the building as a white coffin, because the job there is sending men out to retrieve ivory, ultimately resulting in their death. This cycle of evil begins and ends in...
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...1 Discuss the relation between narrative style and mo ral judgement in Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness. The relation between narrative style and moral judg ement in literature is an issue in aesthetic philosophy that stretches back to Plato. ‘Narrative style’, I define as those formal literary aspects employed by the writer, in order to construct a narrative that is unique. By ‘moral judgement’, I refer to the messag e conveyed by a given text when referring to objects beyond itself. The above quest ion presupposes a relation between narrative style and moral judgement, and as such, part of my analysis will be to determine whether such a presupposition is wa rranted. Joseph Conrad’s novella Heart of Darkness has been celebrated for its detailed examination o f European values and conduct. Ian Watt argues that ‘ Heart of Darkness embodies more thoroughly than any previous fiction the postu re of uncertainty and doubt.’ 1 But is this reading accurate? And if so, what stylistic devices does Conrad use in order to convey this position of ‘uncertainty’? Heart of Darkness uses an oblique narrative style, that is to say, t hat an unnamed narrator relates the narrative as it is in turn rel ated to him by Marlow, Conrad’s main protagonist in the novella. It is thus we can be to ld that for Marlow: ‘the meaning of an episode was not inside like a ke rnel but outside, enveloping the tale which brought it out only as...
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...Heart of Darkness There are many themes that run through the novel Heart of Darkness. There are however two main and significant ones. These are the theme of restraint and man's journey into self. The importance of restraint is stressed throughout Heart of Darkness. In the novel Marlow is saved by restraint, while Kurtz is doomed by his lack of it. Marlow felt different about Africa before he went, because the colonization of the Congo had "an idea at the back of it." Despite an uneasiness, he assumed that restraint would operate there. He soon reaches the Company station and receives his first shock, everything there seems meaningless. He sees no evidence here of that "devotion to efficiency" that makes the idea work. In the middle of this, Marlow meets a "miracle". The chief accountant has the restraint that it takes to get the job done. He keeps up his appearance and his books are in "apple-pie order." Marlow respects this fellow because he has a backbone. "The cannibals some of those ignorant millions, are almost totally characterized by restraint." They outnumber the whites "thirty to five" and could easily fill their starving bellies. Marlow "would have as soon expected restraint from a hyena prowling amongst the corpses of a battlefield." The cannibal’s action is "one of those human secrets that baffle probability." This helps Marlow keep his restraint, for if the natives can possess this quality Marlow feels he certainly can. Kurtz is...
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...Heart of Darkness Imperialism has always had certain negative effects. Not only are the victims of imperialism exploited economically but they are often bound to experience racism. The natives are forced to abandon their political and spiritual views to learn the ways of the imperialists. In Joseph Conrad's novel Heart of Darkness, Conrad describes the negative consequences affiliated with imperialism for not only the indigenous people, but also the imperialists themselves. In the beginning of the novel Heart of Darkness, Conrad shows that the British believed their imperialism had a positive influence on the Congolese by introducing them to civilization and the British way of life. "Hunters for gold or pursuers of fame, they all had gone out on that stream, bearing the sword, and often the torch, messengers of the might within the land, bearers of a spark from the sacred fire. What greatness had not floated on the ebb of that river into the mystery of an unknown earth! … The dreams of men, the seed of commonwealths, the germs of empires." (pp. 2-3 ll. 29-2). This is an optimistic statement describing the British mentality. They assume that they are imperializing for helpful reasons when they are truthfully just attempting to obtain Congo's resources. Marlow undermines the good intentions of the explorers. In the quote, "Mind, none of us would feel [...] at the back of it; not a sentimental pretence but an idea; and an unselfish belief in the idea." (pp. 4-5 ll. 26-5), Marlow...
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...Heart of Darkness is about humanities’ self-interest. Throughout the book, greed and plotting eventually lead to paranoia and self-doubt. Paranoia, self-doubt, and mental instability are inevitable when greed takes over people’s lives. In this way, Kurtz was affected exactly in this manner. Marlow went into this adventure looking to make money to survive, but more so he was looking for adventure. When he was little, he dreamed about exploring the world and was his true intention for going on this exploration. Marlow had a feeling that the Company was all about the money, however, Marlow was looking for something more than the money. He wanted to help civilize foreign lands. In speaking with his aunt, Marlow got the first hint as to what the Company was all about, however he joined the adventure anyway, “She talked about ‘weaning those ignorant millions from their horrid ways’ till, upon my word, she made me quite uncomfortable. I ventured to hint that the Company was run for profit.” The Company was lucky to have Marlow in their expedition. Among the greedy, plotting workers, Marlow was a kind man, taking everything in without any bad intentions. Marlow felt terrible about the way he saw the natives treated. While on board Nellie, he regretted that the boiler operator was stuck on board the ship rather than out dancing with his fellow natives. Throughout the story, Marlow mentioned how bad he felt for the “slaves” also. He even gave one slave something to eat. All the petty...
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...The goals of countries reflect the desire for power that all humans have. As seen throughout the history of the world, countries have been continuously fighting for control of different lands. In this way, those in power built empires, affecting thousands of lives in the process. Belgium was one of these imperialistic countries and Joseph Conrad depicted the effects of their take over in his novel. Colonialism, as shown in Heart of Darkness, “Heritage,” and “An Image of Africa,” has drastic effects on individuals that force them to alter both their presence in and their view of the world. Heart of Darkness illustrated the effects of imperialism on two main characters: Marlow and Kurtz. Marlow’s experience and awareness of the struggles in...
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...Kapilan Pushparajah ENG4U1 Mr.Karantonis April 11th 2014 Imagery of Darkness The book “Heart of Darkness” is a novel written by writer Joseph Conrad. It is about the adventurers that an ivory transporter named Charles Marlow had down the Congo river to central Africa. The novel is based on a true story, of Joseph Conrad's actual journey up the Congo River in 1900. Marlow is Joseph Conrad’s alter ego. The novel had many themes such as; racism, loneliness, colonialism, good vs evil, power and many more. In this novel, Conrad uses imagery and symbolism to reveal the implication on the traits of different characters’ personalities. They represent main character traits. Main examples of imagery and symbolism in the novel occur when; Marlow meets the accountant for the first time. Marlow was amazed by how well dressed the accountant was. Imagery and symbolism also occur when Marlow looks through his binoculars to see the heads that were facing the station house which he had initially thought were just ornaments. The heads represent how kurtz is crazy and violent due to the graphicness of the heads.The imagery and symbolism in this novel describe the personality traits of the characters very well and helps the reader make better connections with the novel and helps them understand it better. When Marlow first met the chief accountant he was amazed. He was impressed with the way that the accountant looked. He seemed to be very surprised. “When near the buildings I met a white...
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...Darkness. It is where monsters hide and evil is all around. Darkness veils its lurking creatures and secrets through its absence of light. People see darkness in black cats and eclipses. Society sees black cats as evil by color and witch association. Eclipses perceived as evil for causing darkness. Elizabethans view darkness as evil, as it blocks out light and destroys hope. We see darkness used by William Shakespeare, one of the great writers of the Elizabethan Era. He uses it as a motif in his plays. In the play Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, the motif of darkness represents foreshadowing of tragedy and the sinful situations faced by Romeo. A source of evil in the Elizabethan era is darkness. During this time period, there are a lot of superstitions flying around. Many of the superstitions involved items of darkness. A black cat...
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...Heart of Darkness Criticism Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness is a novella that despite its short length constructs a tale that is as dense and complex as the undergrowth of the jungle through which the main character travels. The tale, which begins as a frame narrative on the Thames in London, chronicles Charlie Marlow’s descent from Belgium into the heart of Africa in search of Kurtz, the infamous chief of the inner station. As Marlow travels through Africa, we are treated to a wildly different view of Africa then we typically see in popular culture, with the book portraying the harsh realities of Colonialism while also creating an atmosphere of dread and horror. This atmosphere is incredibly critical to the way in which we view the story, which has been criticized both as a racist text and as the first truly critical account of Imperialism. The journey culminates at the inner station where Marlow meets the legendary Kurtz, a character so complex that critics are still analyzing his purpose in the story. Heart of Darkness, is certainly one of the most polarizing novels of the last few centuries, with critical essays singing its praises and damning its aesthetics being almost equal in sheer volume. The watershed of criticisms towards Conrad’s visionary novella burst with Chinua Achebe’s scathing write up of the story, with its famous defaming of Conrad as a “bloody racist” (Achebe 343), that ends with the suggestion that it be banned from student book lists. Achebe’s essay...
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...Casey Lanier Mrs. Harmon AP English Literature 17th September, 2014 Heart of Darkness is a well-known book, full of irony and violence. But the main part of the book is about Marlow and his surroundings. Joseph Conrad reveals Marlow’s characteristics when he changes Marlow’s environment from civilized to barbaric, through the use of imagery, symbols, and the intensity of his diction. Language and the diction of language is one of the most idealistic topics. Since Marlow is narrating most of the entire story, it’s styled to sound like a drawn out monologue. It’s stop and go with his story, while he remembers different topics and materials of his adventure. The long paragraphs are spoken, and read, without a pause for a breath to be taken. This causes the text itself to feel like its creating a difficult, and even imprisoning scenery. Marlow also throws in a lot of repetition, which causes a dark and frightening atmosphere. “Trees, Trees, millions of trees, massive, immense, running up high; and at their foot, hugging the bank against the stream, crept the little begrimed steamboat, like a sluggish beetle crawling on the floor of a lofty portico. It made you feel very small, very lost...” (12) Makes the jungle feel claustrophobic and overbearing of the humans that are traveling through. The humans are like the beetles since their size variation is so different from the trees. He makes you feel that as you go through the jungle, you’re not in harmony with it. And at any point...
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...Heart of Darkness vs. Apocalypse Now Both the novel "Heart of Darkness" by Joseph Conrad and the movie "Apocalypse Now" are about one man's journey through Africa and Vietnam. A comparison and contrast can be made between the two. Both have the same themes but entirely different settings. Heart of Darkness takes place on the Congo River in the Heart of Africa while Apocalypse Now is set in Vietnam. The stock characters in both have the same general personalities but have different names. Of course, Kurtz is Kurtz, Willard twins Marlow, and the American photojournalist relates to the Russian Harlequin. Willard is a lieutenant for the US Army while Marlow is a captain of a steamboat of an ivory company. The first looks of Willard and Marlow differ a little. The movie begins with Willard lying in an apartment room completely out of touch with reality. He is haunted by his earlier deeds and he is getting very plastered. Willard smashes the mirror while fighting himself and cuts his hand. He falls to the bed crying. Marlow is portrayed as a traveler of the sea. The narrator described him as a hero somewhat. Their mission is to find Kurtz and take him down.. In both stories Kurtz is a psychotic rebel, worshipped as a god, who threatens the stability of his unit, but in one it is an ivory trading company and in the other it is the US Army. Kurtz, who had begun his assignment a man of great optimism and the highest morals, had become peculiarly savage. Tribes of natives worship...
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...Joseph Conrad's, Heart of Darkness, brings to light the heavy suppression of women’s presence and opinion in Western patriarchal times. Women are heavily absent from the bulk of the narrative, and when they do make an appearance they are identified through the powerful narrative viewpoint of the character Marlow, who constructs them in terms of the values of the dominant principles of the British gentleman. The contrast between Kurtz's intended and his mistress reveals to the contemporary reader this undeniable Victorian background - women are effectively downgraded from power and silenced by the writings confirmation of British values. "The women", Marlow declares, "are out of it". Indeed, the five women of Heart of Darkness make only brief appearances and are given only a passing mention in Marlow's narrative. His aunt, given a cameo role in the text, is supremely naïve and "out of touch with truth"; she reminds him to "wear flannel" when he is about to "set off for the center of the earth". The knitters of black wool in the company headquarters are defined by classical mythology, taking on a symbolic significance by "guarding the door of Darkness"; they are not characters in their own right. Kurtz's mistress is identified as a product of the wilderness, "like the wilderness itself", and is described in terms of natural processes, a "fecund and mysterious life". Kurtz's intended, by contrast, lives in a place of death rather than of life, darkness rather than lightness, delusion...
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...It was the strangest thing I had ever seen, with tubes and wires hanging from the ceiling. The room was rather small, like the size of a normal classroom. The walls were pale gray and rusted out. It was dark, but there was a dim light from under the doorway across the room. I had been trapped in this room for hours, and I was chained to a chair. I couldn’t speak, for there was tape over my mouth. It was cold in the room, and every small breeze from under the door made me shiver. I was able to breath from my nose, and each breath made a small, foggy cloud from my nose, which looked like smoke in the darkness. I focused my eyes on the ceiling and discovered that the tubes were wrapped and connected by wires. The wires weren’t like “hanger” wires though. They were more like the wires you find inside your TV when it’s broken. The only sound I could hear was the ticking of a clock. I hadn’t noticed it when I had woken up in this odd place. It was once silent, but now the ticking was louder than before, as if it was in my head. “Tick-tock, tick-tock”, I repeated in my head. I shut my eyes, thinking that I was only in a dream. I sat there for minutes at a time, and when I opened my eyes the place was still the same. I started to worry, but I did not panic. I thought and thought and thought. “What should I do?” I whispered softly to myself. Suddenly, I heard foot steps from outside the door. They were slow, steady foot steps that made a slightly loud thud with every step taken....
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...Throughout of the book, Heart of Darkness, madness is shown as a key element. The reader can relate to the desire of adventure that Marlow expresses, but what many readers don’t see is the madness that can come from the desire to explore. During the scene where Marlow finally meets the Harlequin the reader sees that madness is not only within Marlow's own crew, but with those who went before him. " You can't judge Mr. Kurtz as you would an ordinary man. No, no no!" ( Line 1) Marlow experiences first handily of the madness that lies in the jungle of Africa through the eyes of the harlequin. Marlow is shocked and appalled by Kurtz's madness and his failure to restrain himself. Mr. Kurtz actions it just a display of the insanity that has grown...
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...titled it Heart of Darkness. Heart of Darkness begins on a ship on the Thames River with the protagonist, Charlie Marlow, and a few of his crewmembers. Marlow describes his one trip to Africa and his experiences to the crew. Along the way, Marlow learns of a man named Kurtz who is stationed at an inner station along the Congo River. Kurtz is often described as remarkable and this piques Marlow’s attention. Marlow becomes consumed with the idea of Kurtz and does all that he can to find and talk to this man. Marlow travels by steamboat to the third station, moving deeper and deeper in the dense jungle. In Heart of Darkness, Conrad’s...
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