Ambiguities Explored in Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness Essay

Finally the abuse of power in the Congo also demonstrates the hypocrisy of Imperialism through the corruption observed in ‘the company’. Before Marlow travels to the Congo itself he reveals that it was very difficult for him to ascertain a job, which would result in his exploration of the river which had charmed and fascinated him from childhood. It is at this point that Marlow decides to ask his aunt for help, and she manages to get him a job, which will take him where he desires to go. This clearly demonstrates that Marlow’s abuse of power right at the beginning of the book. He then proceeds to judge others who are abusing power when he is in the Congo. For

He carries this kind and chivalrous thought with him when he visits Kurtz's Intended, and with it in mind cannot bring himself to shatter her beautiful fantasy world by telling her the truth of Kurtz's last words. In his own declaration Marlow claims there is a taint of death in lies. If he had been completely truthful with the Intended and told her Kurtz's actual last words, "The horror, the horror" (Longman 2240), he would have given her more than a taint of death. He would have shared with her some of the mental images his imagination had spawned since he heard those final words. He would have given her a 'flavour of mortality', which he claims to hate and detest in the world. Hate and detest are very powerful words which would

The cruelty that Marlow sees in the congo sways his opinion against total imperialism. He views piles of bodies on the street, murder for

In his exile, Marlow experiences alienation, set apart from even his compatriots due to differences in motivation. Marlow is an explorer, journeying through the Congo for the journey’s sake, even noted by the frame narrator as “a seaman, but…a wanderer, too” (Conrad 3). Marlow visits the Congo for enlightenment and adventure, but the other colonists he encounters are present only to profit in the ivory trade. As Marlow frequently says, they are “pilgrims” (Conrad 31), motivated not by faith but by greed as they journey through the Congo in search of ivory. Such a description is incredibly accurate, as it is as though ivory is sacred to these colonists. Describing the Central Station, for example, Marlow remarks, “The word ‘ivory’ rang in the air, was whispered, was sighed. You would think they were praying to it” (Conrad 20). Frequent mentions of the colonists as pilgrims, in reference to their quest for ivory, serve as a means of distancing Marlow from these men. Marlow’s alienation, thus, is caused in large part by a conscious decision on his behalf. Recognizing the corrupt motivations, and disagreeing with their corresponding methods, behind the colonists, Marlow hopes to separate

    In the opening of his novel, Heart of Darkness, Conrad, through Marlow, establishes his thoughts on colonialism. He says that conquerors only use brute force, "nothing to boast of" because it arises, by accident, from another's weakness. Marlow compares his subsequent tale of colonialism with that of the Roman colonization of Northern Europe and the fascination associated with such an endeavor. However, Marlow challenges this viewpoint by painting a heinous picture of the horrors of colonialist ventures as we delve deeper into the recesses of the novel. Here we find that Marlow sees colonization as "robbery with violence, aggravated murder on a great scale, and men going at

The passage demonstrates a parallel between the colonialism that took place with the Romans the the Europeans in Africa; “... when the Romans first came here…” The comparison between the expeditions goes to emphasize on how the effect of colonization and the reasoning behind colonizing in the first place. Marlow states that the area was “one of the dark places of the earth,” showing that when the Europeans entered Africa, they had no knowledge of what was there and what was to be expected; everything was “dark” and a mystery to them all. Marlow claimed that the Romans presence in England had given the island and its people knowledge and understanding; “light.” In the same way, England came into Africa under the belief that their presence

Marlow says that, "They were conquerors, and for that you want only brute force-- nothing to boast of."(p.58 Heart of Darkness) . Marlow compares his subsequent tale of colonialism with that of the Roman colonization of Northern Europe and the fascination associated with such a voyage. However, Marlow challenges this viewpoint by illustrating a picture of the horrors of colonialist ventures as we delve deeper into the novel. White Europeans are used as symbols of self-deception, and we find that Marlow sees colonization as "robbery with violence, aggravated murder on a great scale, and men going at it blind - as it is very proper for those who tackle darkness."(p.58 Heart of Darkness) This shows how Conrad feels about colonialism through Marlow, because Marlow feels strongly adverse to the actions of the whites in the Congo.

Marlow thinks that 'conquering'; the jungle for all its ivory is an arduous task after seeing a battleship fire its guns at the civilians. It was as if the tiny battleship was firing at the vast continent of Africa rather than the people. Conrad uses this metaphor to associate European thinking with imperialism. Unfortunately, Europeans, with the exception of Marlow, Kurtz and perhaps a few others, were primarily concerned with getting land- survival of the civilians was expendable on the continent. In Part II, a group of explorers called the Eldorado Exploring Exposition led by the manager's uncle come to the Congo. Marlow expresses his thoughts on the mission's evil intention by saying that these 'sordid buccaneers'; were only after the riches of the continent and not concerned with the natives:

Conrad’s Heart of Darkness tells the story of Marlow, an experienced sea captain, who is setting out on a mission to rescue Kurtz, an intelligent but disobedient Trading Society agent. Marlow must travel deep into the Congo, a treacherous area of Africa, in order to locate Kurtz. Conrad concentrates on the evils of European imperialism, specifically the moral corruption and the discrimination against women. However, Marlow appears unaware of the cruel treatment that women received. Marlow encounters women several times throughout his journey. He instinctively reciprocates this behavior through his prejudices and proves his attitude of superiority. Joseph Conrad demonstrates sexism in Heart of Darkness through his portrayal of women

From the start, we are presented with a rather Romantic introduction, stories of heroic adventures, of travellers going to new lands. These ideas of Imperialism and Colonialism are two massive Romantic ideals. Not only does Conrad point out the hypocrisy of Imperialism, but he also shatters the Romantic idea of the ‘Heroic Traveller’ with Marlow’s experiences. He starts by appealing to nationalistic pride, “the tidal current runs to and fro…crowded with memories of men and ships it has borne to the rest of home or to the battles of the sea. It had known and served all the men of whom the nation is proud.” (P17). The narrator expresses the Romantic belief that imperialism is a charitable enterprise. In Conrad’s time, “empire” was one of the central values of the British Empire, the fundamental term through which Britain defined sense of purpose. But from the moment Marlow begins speaking, he sets himself apart from his era by bringing up a past in which Britain was not the heart of civilization but the savage “end of the world.” Likewise, the Thames was not always the

This is an interesting analogy, as it not only depicts the natives as ‘sorcerers’ of black magic, but it also portrays Marlow as a ‘pure’ rescuing Knight, an image of himself that he might not detest, for in his eyes, he did return to Europe and spared himself from the horrors of the imperial encounter, and yet lives on to tell the tale in the very fashion of the Heart of Darkness. Once again, he uses Africa as his canvas on which he readily paints his existential struggles, summing Africa into nothing more than ‘blank space’ (Conrad

Throughout the novel, there are lots of examples that show the evilness of colonialism. We see that Marlow adores Kurtz from what he heard about him, he looks up to him like he’s his hero. But when Marlow finally meets him, he realizes that he turned into a monster and he showed Marlow that all men have darkness in their hearts. In the book, it states “‘Kurtz got the tribe to follow

Conrad displays many realistic example of imperialism and how the characters in this book act under certain circumstances. In this book, Heart of Darkness, A group of men are aboard an English ship. It is sitting on the mouth of the Thames. The group on the ship consists of a Lawyer, an Accountant, and one of the Company Director. The Company director is also the captain. The protagonist and narrator is Marlow. He got a job on the ship because of his aunt who has connections to the Company. The other narrator is an unnamed guest on the ship too. While they are casually sailing and waiting for the wind to pick up so that they can continue their voyage, Marlow begins to speak about his experiences in London and Europe. He describes them as some of the worst times of his life because of the darkness he has experienced there. Marlow has always had a passion for travel and exploration since his childhood, upon doing research it seems to be that the author, Joseph Conrad, portrays his personal life and his experiences growing up into Marlow’s experiences. This is especially seen when portraying imperialism in the book because unlike most of the other characters in the book, Marlow is completely against imperialism and imperialistic ways. It can be suggested that the author feels the same way from how he presents Marlow and how the author presented himself

Namely, Marlow focuses on an "idea"--an ideal slogan--which is employed to impose "higher" civilization on uncivilized world: "What redeems it is the idea only . . . not a sentimental pretense but an idea; and an unselfish belief in the idea--something you can set up, and bow down before, and offer a sacrifice" (7).   Seeing the idea as a false concept fabricated by ideological colonialism, Said notes: the idea is only a man's desire for protection from the impinging confusions of the world.   Immediately after the intellectual organization of the world, according to the idea, there comes the expedient of devotion to the idea,which in turn breeds conquest according to the idea.2   Consequently, the "idea" reflects Eurocentric self-image.   As soon as this Eurocenric image is constructed, Westerners begin to think that the world should be reorganized according to the image.   From the beginning of the novel, imperialism is thus justified even as a sacred mission to deliver light to the darkness of uncivilized society by Marlow’s colonial discourse, which does not consider the marginal, silenced voices of the natives, or the Other in the text.

“Now when I was a little chap I had a passion for maps. I would look for hours at South America, or Africa, or Australia and lose myself in all the glories of exploration. At that time there were many blank spaces on earth, and when I saw one that looked particularly inviting on a map I would put my finger on it and say, when I grow up I will go there” (Conrad 8). This statement is very powerful. Here we have Charles Marlow reflecting on his younger self. We as readers are given the impression of how different parts of the world, mainly unexplored parts of the world were viewed. Marlow’s story in Heart of Darkness takes place in the Congo, which is a well-known European colony in Africa. The Congo is infamous for the Europeans greed and how they treated the native people. Many questions arise from this text which can be considered a masterpiece in its own right. One of our main concerns as a reader is to why Marlow wanted to go to the Congo so badly and what did he expected to see and endure while there. Since the Congo is a “blank space” on a map are we to believe that this region is civilized or uncivilized? The Heart of Darkness shows that a civilized man can be placed in an unknown world with no restrictions, and the desire for power can overcome him. Even though a man can tell himself that he is civilized, but the world that surrounds him can turn him into something that he’s not.