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The Symbolism of Darkness in "Heart of Darkness
Imagery and symbolism in the heart of darkness
The Symbolism of Darkness in "Heart of Darkness
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Epiphany in Heart of Darkness
Marlow, in the novel "The Heart of Darkness," experiences an epiphany, or a dramatic moment in which a character intuitively grasps the essential nature or meaning of some situation.
The moment in which Marlow experiences his epiphany is right after the helmsman gets killed by natives, which are associated with Kurtz. The thing that Marlow realizes is the savagery of man and the corruption of the ivory trade. The actual change takes place when Marlow sees the helmsman die. Marlow sees the death take place and is shocked. "The side of his head hit the wheel twice, and the end of what appeared a long cane clattered round and knocked over a little campstool. ... my feet felt so very warm and wet that I had to look down. ... It was the shaft of a spear that...had caught him in the side just below the ribs. I had to make and effort to free my eyes from his gaze and attend to the steering. ... I declare it looked as though he would presently put to us some question in an understandable language; but he died without uttering a sound, without moving a limb, without twitching a muscle. ... 'He is dead,' murmured the fellow, immensely impressed. 'No doubt about it,' said I." When this happened, Marlow realized the savagery of man, horror of death, and the corruption of the ivory trade. He realizes that in the ivory trade, that the ivory is more valuable than human life and that traders will do almost anything to get it. Marlow also realizes man's savagery in the event that man puts greater value on riches than on human life. This is the epiphany of Marlow in "The Heart of Darkness."
The epiphany of Marlow in "The Heart of Darkness" has significance in the overall story. The theme of the story is how every man has inside himself a heart of darkness and that a person, being alienated like Kurtz, will become more savage. Marlow, in his epiphany, realizes the savagery of man and how being alienated from modern civilization causes one to be savage and raw. This savagery is shown especially in the death of the helmsman, which is where Marlow's epiphany takes place, but the savagery is also show in Kurtz. The link that Kurtz has to the natives and the death of the helmsman is that the natives work for Kurtz.
According to en.wikipedia.org and historyplace.cpm, Hitlers rise to power began in Germany when he joined the Nazi party in September, 1919. Deep anger about the first world war and the treaty of Versalies created an underlying bitterness in the German people which Hitlers viciousness and expansionism appealed, so the perty gave him support. He was imprisioned after the 1923 unich Bear hall putsch. The Bear hall putsch resulted in the deaths of four officers. He was sentenced to five years, during that time he wrote Mein Kampf. He was named chancellor on January 30, 1933 by president Paul Van Hidenburg. His rise to power could have ended if the Enabling Act of 1933 was not adopted. The Enabling Act of 1933 meant that Hitler could enact laws and endemocract in Germany. The Nazi party used force to scare the German Governmant into voting for the act. The day the voting for the Nazi troopers gathered outside the opera house, chanting,"Full power or else." under Hitlers rule, Germany was transformed into a racist totlaitarian state which controlled nearly all aspects for everyones life.
Hitler’s meteoric rise to power came to be as a result of several factors all working to Hitler’s benefit. The first factor was Hitler’s ability to procure the role of undisputed leader of the Nazi’s. Luckily for Hitler, by this time the Nazis had pretty much assimilated other like-minded groups, such as the right individual strands of the volkisch. Hitler in his leadership role was able to promote his “agenda” to save Germany. The second factor was Hitler’s ability to use the circumstances of the day to his advantage, one of which was the German depression that began in 1929. Even with Hitler’s ability to win the masses over could not have been achieved without the many external factors, like the ever worsening crisis that the government was experiencing. Hitler’s public appeal became his greatest factor in his rise to power and as such more and more people were swayed by his ideology. Finally, Hitler’s own opposition helped him, insomuch that his political rivals could neither overcome nor counter Hitler’s popularity.
The paradox arises due to a number of assumptions concerning knowledge, inquiry and definition made by both Socrates and Meno. The assumptions of Socrates are:
In order to understand how the menisci can be injured, you must understand the basic anatomy of the menisci and why they are important. The menisci are two oval (semilunar) fibrocartilages that deepen the articular facets of the tibia and cushion any stresses placed on the knee joint. They enhance the total stability of the knee, assist in the control of normal knee motion, and provide shock absorption against compression forces between the tibia and the femur (Booher, 2000). Articular cartilage covers the ends of the bones that make up the joint. The articular cartilage surface is a tough, very slick material that allows the surfaces to slide against one another without damage to either surface. This ability of the meniscus to spread out the force on the joint surfaces as we walk is important because it protects the articular cartilage from excessive forces occurring in any one area on the joint surface, leading to degeneration over time (Sutton, 1999).
Socrates’ philosophical beliefs and life isn’t accurately represented in the modern world. Since there aren’t any writings from Socrates himself, his life, beliefs, and philosophy has to be depicted through the writings of Plato, Aristophanes, Aristotle and Xenophon, with Plato being the most informational and dependable source. These writers that do mention Socrates in their writings aren’t always accurate and are sometimes very contradicting and inconsistent. In Plato’s writing, it is difficult to distinguish the ideas and beliefs of Socrates from Plato’s. Some historians believe that the beliefs of Plato were based upon Socrates. Some believe that the beliefs of Socrates were interpreted by Plato in his writings. Others believe Socrates didn’t have any ideas of his own. This unclear representation of Socrates is known as the Socratic Problem. Due to the S...
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.
Hitler's early life was full of hardships that impacted the leader that he grew up to be. For example, when Hitler was thirteen years old, his cruel father passed away(Noakes). As a result he, was raised by his mother who adored and pampered him. Hitler was born August of 1889 and was raised in Austria-Hungary (
Right after Socrates comments how they can both look for virtue, Meno gives him these questions: “How will you look for it, Socrates, when you do not know at all what it is? How will you aim to search for something you do not know at all? If you should meet with it, how will you know that this is the thing you did not know (80d)?” This is Meno’s paradox which explains the discovery of knowledge is impossible and if you do not know what you are learning, and that you cannot discover it either. Meno states in his first premise that you either know what knowledge is or you don’t, and whether you do know it or not, you cannot discover what that piece of knowledge is. This,
Citizen Kane was a movie based on the life of a man named Citizen Kane, who was ripped away from his childhood onto a road to riches and success. Kane didn’t have a family when he died, but was immensely rich and was considered incredibly successful because of it. Kane shows that you don’t need a family to be successful, but shows that family is, for most, a personal requirement. Andrew Carnegie was a businessman who owned a monopoly over the railroad business of the 19th to 20th century of the United States. He also showed that being wealthy, owning lots of material items, and having a family is the ultimate sign of success, according to society. Bill Gates is the world’s richest man, who raised all of his money from creating the company, Microsoft. Bill is also considered extremely successful due to his wealth while also having a perfectly healthy family, much like Andrew
When Marlow finally reaches Kurtz he is in declining health. This same jungle which he loved, embraced and consumed with every ounce of his flesh had also taken its toll on him. Marlow finally meets the man whose name has haunted him on his river journey. Could this frail human be the ever so powerful Kurtz? The man who has journeyed into uncharted territories and has come back with scores of ivory and the respect of the native tribe. Yes, this was the very man and though he is weak and on his way to death his power still exudes from him.
Adolf Hitler was born to Alois Hitler and Klara Polzl in Braunau, Austria in 1889. Hitler's father Alois was an Austrian civil servant. He had a very short fuse and would often beat Adolf. His mother, Klara, had a warmer heart. She greatly encouraged Hitler to do what he wanted. She would often take her son's side when Alois would began a tantrum against Adolf. Hitler told his father he had a dream of becoming an artist. His father did not approve. Alois wanted his son to become a civil servant like himself. When Adolf hit the age of thirteen, his father passed away. Hitler gave up on school and his dream of being an artist when he applied at the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts and was rejected entry. At the age of nineteen, Hitler's mom passed away. He never told her of the devastating news that the school declined him. Hitler soon after joined the military when World War I started. After becoming injured, Hitler began going to the German Workers Party. The party soon realized Hitler's great speaking gift. The German Workers Party changed their name to the Nazi's. They selected Hitler as their leader. Soon millions came to hear Hitler speak. Hitler's power hit an all time high. (Witherbee 1).
The Significance of the Congo River For Marlow, the journey on the Congo River is one of the most difficult and ominous journeys he will ever take. The fact that it takes him around and not completely into the jungle is significant of Marlow's psychological journey as well. He never really goes on land but watches the shore from the outside. The only time he goes on shore he finds a wasteland. For Marlow the jungle of the Congo is representative of evil that man is capable of. In Heart of Darkness, it seems that the further Marlow travels into the jungle, the deeper he looks into himself. All this time is spent on the Congo River as he looks from the outside. This is symbolic as he is looking at his soul from the outside but never really sees himself until he goes on land to get Kurtz. When he arrives on land is symbolic of when he looks the deepest into himself. He goes to find Kurtz on his deathbed and is given he choice to take over for him as a god among an African tribe. Marlow is faced with the ultimate choice between good and evil. For a moment it is uncertain what choice Marlow will make. But, unlike Kurtz, Marlow picks the good over evil, as he rescues Kurtz back to the steamer. The fact that Marlow sailed along the Congo River, around the jungle, and not actually into the jungle is an important symbol also. Marlow never walks the path that Kurtz did to self-destruction. He went around the jungle to avoid getting captured by evil. Kurtz was a decent Englishman until he gave into the desires of his heart of darkness. Kurtz spent all his time in the jungle and eventually forgot all of his self-control, manners, and upbringing. He truly looked in the deepest part of himself and found that his evil desires would reign. This is symbolic because he was deep inside the jungle. In this respect Conrad uses to men to show the reader both the good and bad of humankind. He shows the true evil and good that man is capable of If proper restraints had been there would Kurtz have done things differently?
On one hand, Marlow is saved by his self-discipline while on the other hand Kurtz is doomed by his lack of it. Before Marlow embarked on his voyage to Africa, he had a different view. Due to propaganda, he believed that the colonization of the Congo was for the greater good. In his head, he judged that the people of Africa were savages and that colonization would bring them the elation and riches of civilization. Despite an apparent uneasiness, he assumed that restraint would function there.
By the time Marlow and Kurtz meet, Marlow is already well aware of the similarities they share. Both are imperialists, and while Marlow detests the treatment of the natives by his employers (Belgian colonists), he also makes apparent his abhorrence toward the Africans. On the other hand, Kurtz abandons the pretense of helping the natives achieve civilization, as displayed by the Europeans. Instead, he adopts their customs and becomes their leader in the never-ending quest for ivory. "He began with the argument that we whites, from the point of development we had arrived at, 'must necessarily appear to them [savages] in the nature of the supernatural beings- we approach them with the might as of a deity' (Longman, 2000, p. 2226). Marlow also admired Kurtz' resourcefulness and survival skills, especially his perseverence through jungle fever. "The wilderness had patted him on the head....it had taken him, loved him, embraced him, got into his veins, consumed his flesh, and sealed his soul to its own by the inconceivable ceremonies of some devilish initiation. He was its spoiled and pampered favorite." (Longman, 2000, p. 2225).