1 The novel “Heart of Darkness” follows the journey of an introspective sailor Charlie Marlow from Europe into the interior of Africa to meet Kurtz believed to be a man of great capabilities. The novel is a searching exploration of good and evil, black and white. The disturbing journey of the boat captain shows the readers some harsh reality of life for the Africans at that time. The theme of novel is human nature. Through the experience of the main character the writer has successfully transferred his message to the audience. The experience of Marlow tells the readers how powers of imperialism sliced …show more content…
The novel starts with Marlow, the lawyer, chief accountant, the narrator and the director of the companies on the yawl and the environment there represents their bond with the sea. Marlow feels that his day on the boat was ending with a certain sort of stillness. When Marlow goes to the company’s office, even the city reminds him of grave vault. The first glimpse Marlow gets of the company’s office is evil. The two women at the office knitting black yarn makes him think of the Africans being the victims of racism. Marlow’s experience with the doctor is also an unpleasant one. The doctor asks him about any mental disorder in his family tree and also tries to measure the size of his skull as if Marlow is not returning back from his journey and also tells him that when he is in Congo he should do everything he can do to stay calm. The doctor here is an ultimate symbol of ineffectiveness because in order to see internal changes he keeps an eye on the external …show more content…
Marlow’s terribleness in the grove prescribes that the evils of the colonial enterprise are “dehumanization and furthermore death.” Near the end of the novel Marlow had to experience Kurtz’s soul leaving his body with Kurtz uttering the words “horror-horror.” These last words have been purposefully left ambiguous to let the readers interpret on their own as the readers are not let into Marlow’s thoughts this time. Marlow’s experience with Kurtz wife ends up in a lie when Marlow tells her that the last words spoken by Kurtz were her name. Although Marlow considers that his answer is cruel but he thinks that the truth is “too dark” keeping the women in a state of
On the deck of the Nellie is the narrator, Marlow, an accountant, a lawyer and the Director of Companies. The Nellie is docked in the Thames River.
Towards the end of the story, right before Kurtz dies, Marlow looks at Kurtz, and says “I saw on that ivory face the expression of somber pride, of ruthless power, of craven terror-of an intense and hopeless despair.” (P.118), and then Kurtz screams, “The horror, the horror.” (P.118) and he dies. He is referring to what he sees inside himself. This is just what Marlow was afraid he was becoming, he looked deep inside himself, and saw Kurtz.
Marlow also symbolizes the uncorrupted men that traveled to foreign lands to help the 'uncivilized' become cultured, but unlike the others Marlow does not become indoctrinated by an alternative motive. He is able to see through the materialistic ideals that had plagued the men before him. Marlow has the open-mindedness and sensitivity that was absent during Imperialism, but doesn't have the courage or power to stop the abuses that where ongoing. Marlow is proof that when confronted a man's evil side can be both informative and perilous.
Marlow embarks on a journey to be the captain of a small steamboat to navigate the Congo river for a trading company. On ...
Marlow is driven by morality and is able to see what is right and wrong; he is not blinded to the truth. The truth that these “civilized men” are destroying countless numbers of people so that they can worship th...
The two main characters in Heart of Darkness, Marlow and Kurtz are used to show the true nature of man, that is, the capacity for good and evil within humanity. The central character is a thirty two year old sailor, Charlie Marlow. Marlow is the primary narrator in the novel, therefore his thought’s, opinions, experiences and revelations, shape the entire novels themes and the value system put forward. Marlow illustrates how forces of light and darkness serve to weave the human soul together; thus, essentially how good and evil are reflected in an individual. This is particularly important regarding the construction of Marlow, who is essentially a biased narrator, and a product of his European upbringing. An example is his inability to deal with the dying natives at the “grove of death”, offering a native a biscuit as an apparent kind gesture. Yet this is only due to him not being confronted with situations like this previously where his own values, and the whole premise behind colonialism, the exploitation is revealed. The patriarchial views of women he displays also outline the background of Marlow and the a...
A masterpiece of twentieth-century writing, Heart of Darkness exposes the tenuous fabric that holds "civilization" together and the brutal horror at the center of European colonialism. Joseph Conrad's novella, Heart of Darkness, describes a life-altering journey that the protagonist, Marlow, experiences in the African Congo. The story explores the historical period of colonialism in Africa to exemplify Marlow's struggles. Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness is most often read as an attack upon colonialism. Marlow, like other Europeans of his time, is brought up to believe certain things about colonialism, but his views change as he experiences the effects of colonialism first hand. This essay will look at Marlow's negative view of colonialism, which is shaped through his experiences and from his relation to Kurtz. Marlow's understanding of Kurtz's experiences show him the effects colonialism can have on a man's soul.
The opening discussion in "Heart of Darkness" between Marlow and his friends, is about an idealistic imperialism of conquerors, especially English, who were "bearers of a spark from the sacred fire"-the fire of civilization (1428). Marlow once too had "tingled with enthusiasm" at the thought of imperialism, as his friends do during their recollection of the past, but that was before his experience in the Congo, where he uncovers the crudeness of the Belgians. Imperialism, to Marlow, is not alw...
Through the usage of individual characters, Conrad illustrates the differences between dark and light and black and white created by colonialism. Marlow and Kurtz can be as two halves of one soul. Throughout the tale, Marlow is disgusted with what he sees during his employment with the ivory company. He is shocked and angered at the horrible treatment of the black workers. By the end of his tale, Marlow has turned f...
Kurtz. Marlow retrieves an ailing Mr. Kurtz, who is holding onto life by a thread. In his last words, Mr. Kurtz screams, “The horror! The horror!” When reflecting upon this outcry Marlow states, “I affirm that Kurtz was a remarkable man. He had something to say. He said it. Since I had peeped over the edge myself, I understand better the meaning of his stare, that could not see the flame of the candle, but was wide enough to embrace the whole universe, piercing enough to penetrate all the hearts that beat in the darkness.” Marlow admires Kurtz because Kurtz was able to break free from racism and wholeheartedly assimilate with all stretches of humanity. Perhaps Kurtz knowledge of the world comes at the cost of sanity. Marlow observes Kurtz’s universal perspective, but he himself does not quite attain it. Although he has taken steps in the direction of understanding for the natives, Marlow’s innate prejudices restrain him from crossing the bridge into the land of
“ The Marxists hate imperialism and consider it as the highest stage, the peak of capitalism and coincidently Heart of Darkness has been considered as an anti-imperialist work, so the work invites a Marxist approach in itself.” (Sardar) The natives were basically stripped of their agency and were forced under the European influence to do hard labor with the ivory. “This imperial relationship between Europe and the underdeveloped world as defined by Lenin is certainly detectable in the historical setting of Heart of Darkness.” (Sardar) They weren’t given the same opportunities as the others. “European imperialism would suggest that this is a utopia considering they can exploit the African masses for maximum gain and they believe that they bring civilization and light to a dark and savage area…” (Rodarte101litcrit 1) And this is kind of topsy turvy because Marlow dreamed of having a utopia. Now that he has met Mr. Kurtz and has seen, and personally worked with his many wonders that he so powerfully possessed, he’s convinced that what he is doing is right. Marlow was naive and hopeless, and Mr. Kurtz seemed all powerful and glorified. Yet we see through the hands of Mr. Kurtz, power is not to be dealt with people who do not know how to control
Marlow has gone through three mental phases throughout his trip to Africa which have forever changed him. He has become wise. He has not just experienced new cultures but he has completed an extremely tough mental journey. After this journey had ended he experienced extreme changes to his psyche which had occured on his way to and from the Congo. He begins as a naive sailor who longs for adventure, which represents the superego. Then as he became isolated on the Congo, away from society’s restraints his id instincts came out. He has the courage to continue and when he returns to society, his ego balances his id and superego.
Marlow is an honest man. He sets out on a genuine search for answers to his questions of exploration of the unknown "when (he) was a little chap" (Conrad 64). Marlow was drawn to a certain place on the world map, called the Congo "the biggest, the most blank, so to speak---that (he) had a hankering after" (Conrad 64). Upon first entering the mouth of the Congo River, Marlow declares his stance on lies and those who lie. [He believes that lying in the worst thing for a person.] He vows never to lie in his life. After reading Kurtz's report about his progress down the Congo, Marlow finds that Kurtz lied, and in part loses all the respect he ever had for Kurtz. However, Marlow still continues to pursue him. Marlow continues his journey up the Congo River, penetrating further and further into the heart of darkness. In the process, Marlow reverts back to his innate state to survive, whether or not that means going against his principles. Finally, 200 miles later, Marlow meets Kurtz, who is the object of his psychological desire, only to find him very ill. After Kurtz's death, Marlow finds himself transformed into a person he thought he would never become, a liar. Marlow lies to Kurtz's intended about Kurtz's last words when he returns to Europe. After being consumed by the heart of darkness, Marlow throws away his previous values as he reverts into a savaged, almost evil state of mind.
The imagery, like that of Marlow being able to “see the cage of [the native’s] ribs all astir; the bones of his arm waving”, does not reveal how Marlow reacts to such a traumatic sight and leaves readers to form their own opinions on both what Marlow thinks and their initial impressions (Conrad). Marlow’s actions are also questionable and lack the moral consequence assumed when pursuing an action, which demonstrates that for much of the novel, Marlow is untrustworthy and even fictitious at times, like, when he falsifies Kurtz’s last words “I was on the point of crying at her, ‘Don’t you hear them?’ The dusk was repeating them in a persistent whisper all around us, in a whisper that seemed to swell menacingly like the first whisper of a rising wind. ‘The horror! The horror!’ ‘His last word—to live with,’ she insisted. ‘Don’t you understand I loved him—I loved him—I loved him!’ ‘I pulled myself together and spoke slowly. ‘The last word he pronounced was—your name,’” (Conrad). By having an unreliable narrator, Conrad demonstrates that by using someone else’s impressions, we are not fully given a chance to understand for ourselves and can only do so when we are in complete isolation from Marlow’s own
Through out this novel a lot of different themes are present, and is very graphic but it can be seen that even at the end Marlow questions his sanity because of the jungle. Even the thick taste of the jungle is dangerous as Marlow says in the final lines of the book. “The offing was barred by a black bank of clouds, and the tranquil waterway leading to the uttermost ends of the earth flowed somber under an overcast sky – seemed to lead into the heart of an immense darkness.” (96)