The Role Of Imperialism In Joseph Conrad's Heart Of Darkness?

On September 3, 1945, the world awoke to a feeling of serenity it had only experienced a few times in the past 30 years. The second of two arduous world wars was over, the geographical lines of the globe had been redrawn, and new policies were emerging daily to prevent these events from repeating themselves. With the jarring events that took place in this relatively short time span, a global shift was inevitable and swift moving. A total overhaul of the ideology of humans was in the works in 1945, and human rights (including women, African Americans, Jews, and other minorities) catapulted to the forefront of global politics. But before this could happen, the maps had to be “redrawn.” Individuals who lived through this time period saw the world as they know it change, from

These regions were not separated by strict geographic borders and each one was constantly looking to expand it’s territorial power and reign. This style of ruling is now discussed as what it truly was, which was a systematic, imperialistic method of ruling. Racism and oppression were almost guaranteed when dealing with these powerful empires, a fact that is well-illustrated in Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness. This novella is just a small example of similar events happening all across the globe, concentrated in Africa, Asia, and Caribbean territories. Conrad and his men were in the Congo simply to colonize the land, regardless of the people (whom they believed to be subhuman) that were killed or enslaved in the process. Imperialists successfully quashed a vast majority of nationalistic uprisings that threatened colonization, up until the dissolution of these hegemonic empires. At the of World War I, with an allied victory and the signing of the Treaty of Versailles, the land that once made up these vast empires was