Heart of Darkness: The Final Words In Conrad's Heart of Darkness, Kurtz's final words as he lay dying are, "The horror! The horror!" (pp. 1415) Some interpret these final words as the horror of one culture decimating another in the name of religion, civilization or greed. Others may believe that Kurtz had at that moment fully recognized what he had become, "the expression of sombre pride, of ruthless power, or craven terror..." (pp. 1415) But later in Heart of Darkness I believe that Conrad tells us what the real horror is-life. "Droll thing life is-that mysterious arrangement of merciless logic for a futile purpose. The most you can hope from it is some knowledge of yourself-that comes too late-a crop of unextinguishable regrets..." (pp. 1415) To the very end Kurtz was proud and unrepentant. It was not the recognition of just his wrongs, but the recognition of life's wrongs, terrors, and disappointments that caused Kurtz to cry out. The recognition of life's horrors is what Marlow terms "a moral victory". (pp. 1416) In the course of Marlow's travels, he saw countless people too dull or too blinded by their greed or their "cause" to take the time to stop and think about who they were becoming; about what they were doing to others; about why they were doing the things they were doing. Kurtz's identification of "the horror!" is the "moral victory". Yes, he had plundered and killed and destroyed, but in the end he acknowledged the cruelty of life and had judged it-more than can be said about the countless others that die daily in the "heart of darkness". The "heart of darkness" is not Africa. It is not England or Belgium or the United States. The "heart of darkness" is the unexamined heart of man. Through the narration of Marlow, Conrad challenges his readers to examine themselves to gain the "moral victory" before it is too late.
There is a difference between courage and craziness. The definition of courage means “the ability to do something that frightens one”. The definition of crazy means “mentally deranged, especially as manifested in a wild or aggressive way”. The story of Chris McCandless is an interesting one as he heads off into the wilderness of Alaska by himself, with hardly any supplies. Unfortunately, McCandless’ journey ended on his 113th day in the wild. Many scholars believe that instead of being courageous or that he also he had a split personality which caused him to be deranged from the reality of the real world. It is possible that being crazy or courageous could have a connection. Chris McCandless demonstrated a
Before reading this book I didn 't see or ever think about examples of Kyle in my life, but now after reading it I see Kyle all around. Since we first started reading the book I have heard many sermons that remind me of Kyle. The one that stood out to me the most was a sermon from my pastor at my home church in Austin. My church is expanding and so they are asking members of the congregation to donate more money to a building fund, along with their regular tithes and offerings. During
Clarke, Philip. “Cuba’s Newest Revolution Bloodless but Plenty Bewildering as New President Breaks Army Grip, Aims at Democracy.” The Washington Post. 22 July. 1945: B3. ProQuest. James Madison University library. 16 September 2003
It is not difficult to identify Cuba as a “developing” nation: a quick glance around at the grimy, graffiti-filled streets, rampant propagandist billboards and the cars, clanking along with broken fenders in tow and a volatility and tint that suggest that their primes passed 50 years hence are enough of an indication. Indeed, those sepia-toned prosperous days under communist rule having come and gone, there has been little to no influx of money to replace and refurbish aging buildings, automobiles, schools, roads and above all, aging policies. When asked what they thought ab...
While there are differences between Francis Ford Coppola’s film, Apocalypse Now!, and Joseph Conrad novel, The Heart of Darkness, Kurtz and his influence on the main character remain very similar. Both the movie and novel depict a protagonist’s struggle to travel upstream in a ship in search of a man named Kurtz. While doing so, Marlow (The Heart of Darkness)/Willard (Apocalypse Now!) become progressively fascinated with Kurtz. Kurtz is claimed to have a profound influence on his followers and is becoming a huge influence on Marlow/Willard as well.
Greed, lust, envy, wrath, gluttony, sloth, pride. The cardinal sins are feared by some and recognized by all; despite this, there is one transgression that casts a silent shadow upon all of these offenses. As shown in T.S. Eliot’s “The Hollow Men”, the internal void of humanity not only destroys man, but begins the downfall of those whom he influences. The character Kurtz in Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness is portrayed in T.S. Eliot’s “The Hollow Men” through the use of an anti-hero archetype and allusions to “Death’s other Kingdom”, which is representative of the his detachment, caused by his revert to a primitive state -- acting only on his quintessential needs. Eliot’s usage of an anti-hero archetype and allusions also prove Conrad’s theme: indifference is the
In Heart of Darkness, all of Joseph Conrad’s characters seem to have morally ambiguous tendencies. The most prominently morally ambiguous character is Kurtz, whose distance from society changes his principles, and leads him to lose all sense of decorum. Conrad takes a cynical tone when describing Marlow's journey. Marlow's voyage through the Congo gives him insight to the horrific, dehumanizing acts that his company and Kurtz conduct. Conrad creates a parallel with the tone of his writing and the misanthropic feelings that the main character experiences. Furthermore, Conrad creates a frame story between Kurtz and Marlow, adding to the symbolism and contrast between contextual themes of light and dark, moral and immoral, and civilization and wilderness. After being sent on a horrific journey into the Congo of Africa, as an agent for the Company to collect ivory, Marlow finds the infamous and mysterious Kurtz. Kurtz, who has totally withdrawn from society, and has withdrawn
...o, while the novella’s archetypal structure glorifies Marlow’s domination of Kurtz. These two analyses taken together provide a much fuller and more comprehensive interpretation of the work. Conrad presents the idea that there is some darkness within each person. The darkness is is inherited and instinctual, but because it is natural does not make it right. He celebrates – and thereby almost advises – the turn from instinct. By telling Marlow’s tale, Joseph Conrad stresses to his audience the importance of self-knowledge and the unnecessity of instinct in civilization.
Heart of Darkness is Joseph Conrad's tale of one man's journey, both mental and physical, into the depths of the wild African jungle and the human soul. The seaman, Marlow, tells his crew a startling tale of a man named Kurtz and his expedition that culminates in his encounter with the "voice" of Kurtz and ultimately, Kurtz's demise. The passage from Part I of the novel consists of Marlow's initial encounter with the natives of this place of immense darkness, directly relating to Conrad's use of imagery and metaphor to illustrate to the reader the contrast between light and dark. The passage, although occurring earlier on in the novel, is interspersed with Marlow's two opposing points of view: one of naïveté, which comes before Marlow's eventual epiphany after having met Kurtz, and the matured perspective he takes on after all of the events leading up to his and Kurtz's encounter.
Imagine waking up and not knowing what is going on in the world. That is how people who suffer from dementia live every day of their lives. They forget their basic cognitive skills and functions. According to Joseph Quinn (2013), those diagnosed with dementia have trouble with attentiveness, language, and memory recall. (Quinn, 2013). For example, just speaking to a family member is hard for dementia patients, because they forget how to form
Have you ever had the feeling when you can’t remember a specific thing and it drives you insane? Well try living with Dementia. Dementia is not a disease; it is a group of symptoms caused by another disease, which produces a progressive loss of cognitive functioning (Psychology Today). People often believe that because of old age, a person may have Dementia, but this is a false accusation. In old age you may forget a few things here and there, but it is only when the symptoms affect the person’s daily life that it can be called Dementia.
That people attempt to make up for their weaknesses in one area by overcompensating in another area, such as a person that is bad in sports might try to excel in music inorder to hide their weakness. I agree that people to tend to strive to excel in an area that they feel stronger in, for myself, it was being able to excel in sports as a way to fit into a new environment and culture since coming from a family that immigrated from Europe to the United States. Being involved in different sports, I was able to learn about my new culture and learn to speak English better. I realized that I was able to adapt to my surroundings and I was more accepted when I excelled in a sport that was popular with a school. Also, as outlined in the Adlerian theory, when an individual tends to overcompensate, they develop an inferiority complex. They believe they are incapable of excelling to the same level of others. Some people use a real or imagined inferiority complex as a means to avoid taking risks that might lead to great rewards. Others take the exact opposite route. Instead of developing an inferiority complex they develop a superiority complex whereby they believe they are better than everyone else (Marcus and Rosenberg, 1998). This type of individual tends to exaggerate his or her self-importance. My experience of compensation has led me to strive to excel in many areas and to
Similarly, everyone has some sense of morals, wherever they may come from, an oftentimes he will continue to go against his set of morals, even though he knows that he should not. Looking back to Kurtz as an example, as he is suffering and about to die, the last words he is able to say are “The horror! The horror!” (p.178). These few, yet powerful words demonstrate that Kurtz knew that what he had done was cruel and wrong, but that is not all that called for a cry of horror. It was also his knowledge of his cruelty, but he did not care. He continued on with his practices. Marlow was able to see this when he said “It [Kurtz’s cry] was an affirmation, a moral victory paid for by innumerable defeats, by abominable terrors, by abominable satisfactions. But it was victory!” (p.179). This same truth was made by Paul in Romans:
There are a few more literary devices used in Millay’s sonnet; such as, alliteration in line one with the w’s and the i’s: “What lips my lips have kissed, and where, and why”. There is also imagery; for example, “And in heart there stirs a quiet pain” or “I only know that summer sang in me”. Another literary device used is symbolism, for example birds being used as a symbol for the many lovers. Millay also uses metaphors to be able to highlight upon her state of mind, such as “Thus the winter stand the lonely tree”. Although, personification seems to be Millay’s distinct literary
In the heart of those we venerate, there is a place for evil. Pumped into it are the forces of evil that we do not see physically, as one’s reputation masks the malicious mind. Heart of Darkness presents Kurtz’s reputation and the way the characters within the novella see him. He is placed above many in the social hierarchy, and receives an almost Godly admiration from others, “‘Ah, so they talk of him down there,’ he murmured to himself. Then he began again assuring me that Mr. Kurtz was the best agent he had, an exceptional man of the greatest importance of the company.” (Conrad 32). Throughout the novella, Marlow is told of Kurtz’s reputation, though he has yet to meet him. The speaker in this text reinforces Kurtz’s reputation that has already been built up prior to Marlow’s arrival in the Congo. In the Congo, however, Kurtz’s race already puts forth a social dominance over the Natives. White people are seen as superior, which is cultural perception, nonetheless. Thus, Kurtz being white automatically gives him a reputation of righteous...