Comparison of Paton's Cry, The Beloved Country and Conrad's Heart of Darkness

A nation of tortured slaves with bodies so emaciated one could count the ribs, death lingering in every corner as overworked natives line the ground with their lifeless forms, a people so scarred that evil men are allowed to rule as gods. Unfortunately, the gruesome description reigns true for African tribes that fell victim to the cruelty of colonialism. Pointing out the abhorrent evils of the imperial tradition, Joseph Conrad wrote Heart of Darkness to expose the possibility of malevolence in a human being. Throughout the novella, Conrad illustrates sickening images of the horrendous effects of colonizing African tribes while incorporating themes such as a reversal of black and white imagery, the “fascination of the abomination”, and the

An essay, An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad’s Heart of Darkness, written by Chinua Achebe came from an amended version of the second Chancellor’s Lecture at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, February 1975; later publish in the Massachusetts Review, vol. 18, no. 4, winter 1977, Amherst. This essay is regarding to the racism that was used in Conrad’s novel, Heart of Darkness, and how it influenced the topic at hand of Achebe’s essay. Achebe was not happy when he noticed the racial remarks being used in the books and how no one really focused on them and wanted to fix the problems. Chinua was brave enough to write an essay, even after Conrad’s death, to express his opinions on racism in Heart of Darkness, but also remarks on other racial factors that happen in other countries. His main idea is to prove that racism is a problem and that “Joseph Conrad was thoroughgoing racist.” I agree with Achebe’s opinions because he uses a lot of evidence to support his claim, and by reading the actual novel, I too believe he is a racist because of the words that were used to describe the Africans’ appearance and their actions.

Another similarity in both of these novels is how the African natives are viewed by the white colonists. In the Heart of Darkness, Conrad portrays how the colonists viewed the African tribesmen early on the novel. Conrad does this by showing the interaction between Marlow and his aunt when she relates to him her wishes in him assisting in, “weaning those ignorant millions of their horrid ways” (Conrad). She makes this statement even though she has never traveled to Africa, but only has prejudiced impression of the African people as illiterate brutes. This mindset seems to be prevalent in Europeans in this time period and this because of myths and stories shared by those who have never been to the country.

In the article "An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad's Heart of Darkness," Chinua Achebe criticizes Joseph Conrad for his racist views toward the natives of Africa. After one reads Achebe’s critique, it is clear that Conrad wanted the novella to be perceived as a racist text. Conrad depicts the uncivilized treatment of nonwhites during the period of colonization without condemning such actions. After analyzing Achebe’s famous work and Conrad’s novella I have come to agree with Achebe; Conrad “was a thoroughgoing racist.” (Achebe) Heart of Darkness portrays this position clearly. Throughout the novella, Conrad describes and represents the Africans and Africa itself in a racist way. According to Chinua Achebe, the harsh behavior of English people towards the natives, the lack of equality felt by the English towards the Africans, and the word choices of the English to and about the savages reveal Conrad's racist position in the work.

Joseph Conrad 's Heart of Darkness is both a dramatic tale of an arduous trek into the Belgian Congo at the turn of the twentieth century and a symbolic journey into the deepest recesses of human nature. On a literal level, through Marlow 's narration, Conrad provides a searing indictment of European colonial exploitation inflicted upon African natives. By employing several allegoric symbols this account depicts the futility of the European presence in Africa.

In the story “Heart of Darkness” The author Joesph Conrad contrasts different places and people throughout the story. One of the main contrasted elements that is focused on is Africa and Europe. Contrasting these two places adds depth to the story and also helps complete the theme of the story. Conrad uses this contrast to create the theme of innate evil in every man

Conrad, in Heart of Darkness, challenges the values of colonialism, but at the same time he conforms to the constraints of popular culture of the time in which he wrote. In this way, the extent to which he challenges mainstream ideas is limited in regards to the angles of his criticism. Conrad’s detailed descriptions of the Europeans in Heart of Darkness implicate his discontent towards colonial practices whilst certain references to the “black fellows” who reside in Africa show his opinions are influenced by his time, and thusly impact his acquired knowledge of what is politically correct or incorrect. Conrad challenges stereotypical

There are millions of varying perspectives in the world on many different topics. Sometimes two different mindsets clash and disagree with one another. This is apparent in the work of Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart and Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness. Achebe gives a personal account of African life, culture, and customs in his book. He grew up in Nigeria, solidifying the reality that his take on their culture is the most natural, the one that will hit home. Also, since Achebe grew up surrounded by the culture so it is something intimately familiar to him. On the other hand, Joseph Conrad’s book Heart of Darkness makes Africa into a wild and savage place that needs to be ‘tamed’ by the white men and their ways.

Achebe argues that the racist observed in the Heart of Darkness is expressed due to the western psychology or as Achebe states “desire,” this being to show Africa as an antithesis to Europe. He first states Conrad as “one of the great stylists of modern fiction.” [pg.1] He praises Conrad’s talents in writing but believes Conrad’s obvious racism has not been addressed. He later describes in more detail that

Edward Said, author of “Two Visions in the Heart of Darkness”, provides commentary on the work of Conrad exclaiming that Conrad provided readers a sense of humanity to the inhumane treatments regarding colonization by European powers. Said understands that the primary theme of Conrad’s Heart of Darkness lies in the dissonance of culture and purpose of these African citizens as a result of imperialism.

In Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad, the imperialism of Africa is described. Conrad tells the story of the cruel treatment of the natives and of the imperialism of the Congo region through the perspective of the main character, Marlow. Throughout the novel, Marlow describes how the Europeans continuously bestow poor treatment to the native people by enslaving them in their own territory. Analyzing the story with the New Criticism lens, it is evident that Conrad incorporates numerous literary devices in Heart of Darkness, including similes, imagery, personification, and antitheses to describe and exemplify the main idea of cruel imperialism in Africa discussed throughout the novella.

Chinua Achebe, a well-known writer, once gave a lecture at the University of Massachusetts about Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness, entitled "An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad's Heart of Darkness." Throughout his essay, Achebe notes how Conrad used Africa as a background only, and how he "set Africa up as a foil to Europe,"(Achebe, p.251) while he also "projects the image of Africa as 'the other world,' the antithesis of Europe and therefore of civilization."(Achebe, p.252) By his own interpretations of the text, Achebe shows that Conrad eliminates "the African as a human factor," thereby "reducing Africa to the role of props."(Achebe, p.257)

In my opinion, Conrad was simply telling the story as it is. ‘Heart of Darkness’ was published in 1899 and is based on Conrad’s personal experiences as a sailor in Congo. In 1885, Belgium colonized Congo and exploited the Congolese population, forcing large numbers of people into slavery. ‘Heart of Darkness’ talks about the suffering that this entailed and the dire situation the natives were left in. Conrad is effectively portraying the catastrophic scenario that the selfish needs of Belgium left the locals in. Conrad clearly admires the natural beauty of Africa and its people when they are not chained up or

In “An Image of Africa”, Chinua Achebe comes to the bold conclusion that Joseph Conrad “was a bloody racist” (788), with his discussion centering primarily on Conrad’s Heart of Darkness as a racist text. Achebe’s reasoning for this branding rests on the claims that Conrad depicts Africa as “a place of negations at once remote and vaguely familiar in comparison with which Europe 's own state of spiritual grace will be manifest” (783), that Africans in Heart of Darkness are dehumanized through both the characterization of individual Africans and the Congo as a setting, and finally that Marlow is no more than a mouthpiece for Conrad’s personal views on race and imperialism. However, Achebe makes critical oversights and contradictions in the development of each of these argumentative pillars, which prove fatal to the validity of his overarching contention. This should not be construed, though, as a yes-or-no assessment of whether Conrad was a racist outside of what his written work suggests—Achebe himself has “neither the desire nor, indeed, the competence to do so with the tools of the social and biological sciences” (783)—but as an assessment of claims specific to Heart of Darkness and their implications for Conrad’s views and attitudes.

Joseph Conrad was born as Józef Teodor Konrad Korzeniowski on December three 1857 in Berdichev, Ukraine to Polish parents. He was raised and educated in Poland. After his career is the seafarer in the French and British merchant Marines, he wrote short stories which he used his experiences in remote places and combined it with an interest in moral conflict and the dark side of human nature. He died on August 3, 1924 in England.