Examples Of Evil And Evil In The Heart Of Darkness

Kurtz is Africa's Satan, who's forbidden fruit is ivory, drawing him away from the rules of civilization and creating a monster that feeds on fulfilling that one job, no matter the consequences. Kurtz has no restrain in his actions, having been consumed by the chaotic darkness that surrounds him and that he becomes a reflection of. His fall from grace comes in the form of the manager and all others on the rescue expedition despising him. They realize his flawed methods and his lost mind and are disgusted by him. Kurtz falls away from the rules of civilization into the darkness of the jungle and all of its chaos. He presents himself as a god to the natives, who are awed by Kurtz's magnificence and become his devoted followers, his own fallen angels. There, in the deepest pits of the jungle, those demonic and primitive people and their god partake in hellish rituals and orgies, taking all of the ivory they want without hesitation, living as they please. This is especially shown when we hear from the harlequin that Kurtz threatened to shoot him for his ivory, "because he could do so, and had a fancy for it, and there was nothing on earth to prevent him

Throughout the first two parts of Joseph Conrad's book, Heart of Darkness, the character Kurtz is built up to be this amazing and remarkable man. In the third book, however, we learn the truth about who Kurtz really is. Kurtz cries out in a whisper, "The horror! The horror!"(p. 86), and in only two words he manages to sum up the realization of all the horrors of his life during his time in the Congo.

Although Kurtz was alone, that loneliness helped him in the end. Through isolation, Kurtz was able to see who he really was. The main place where Kurtz finds himself is on his deathbed. Marlow says, ‘"But the wilderness had found him out early, and had taken on him a terrible vengeance for the fantastic invasion. I think it had whispered to him things about himself which he did not know, things of which he had no conception till he took counsel with this great solitude-and the whisper had proved irresistibly fascinating’"(Conrad 57). Marlow is saying that since Kurtz has been in the wilderness,

The bitterest contradiction and the deadliest conflicts of the world are carried on in every individual breast capable of feeling and passion” (Raskin 116). Even those with the best intentions can create some of the deadliest atrocities as passion can take control over one's emotions. This emotional instability can be seen in Heart of Darkness as Joseph Conrad illustrates how one’s “passion” of saving others slowly turned into a madness that caused hundreds of fatalities. We wonder, what could cause a man, such as Kurtz, in Heart of Darkness, to enter another country with the best intentions, to become so violent and be the reason behind thousands of brutal and torturous killings without any resentment. It was the unchecked power instilled within Kurtz that led him to act on his horrific impulses. In Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad claims one who has an unchecked power can fear losing it so eminently, that he or she is willing to engender atrocities that sustain the power the individual possess. In this case, Conrad suggests one way an individual reinforces his or her power on others is through annihilation.

In the Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad, Marlow goes into the depths of an African jungle and encounters a level of evil and savagery not seen in day-to-day life. The real “heart of darkness” comes from hidden evil within humans, suppressed by rules and regulations in society. This potential evil, when able to be free from the standards in society, can reveal a completely different side to a person, as shown through the character of Kurtz. Kurtz holds a great amount of power in a secluded area, over a group of people who feel inferior to him, which turns into the ultimate abuse of power. While savagery tends to come out only during extreme circumstances, acts of evil are displayed in society daily, exempting no one from having evil thoughts or tendencies.

Kurtz’s lack of restraint and hunger for ivory consumes not only his soul but drains all of his physical existence. Upon seeing him, Marlow states, “I could see the cage of his ribs all astir, the bones of his arm waving (126)”. Conrad focuses on the physical features of Kurtz to display the madness that has consumed him. However, though Kurtz’s body is deteriorating, Kurtz’s mind continues to thrive. Conrad shows this in Marlow’s shock of witnessing a flame of passion that remains in Kurtz’s eyes as he converses without signs of exhaustion (126). Conrad continues to describe Kurtz as a shadow composed of tranquility and satisfaction. Conrad’s incorporation of this detail signifies the evil and greed that consumes Kurtz and is reflected through his physique. However, the power of Kurtz’s presence is personified through the action of his words. As the strength in his voice captures Marlow’s attention, it merely reflects his influence upon his followers. The power reflected through his voice displayed his confidence as well as his position as a leader for the natives. Hi demeanor displays an air of arrogance that makes others feel less equal to him. Those who follow him fear him, but also continue to respect him.

The story centers on Marlow and his journeys up the Congo River as a riverboat captain for a Belgian trading company. From an early age, Marlow was ambitious. He wanted to go places that “looked particularly inviting on a map” (Conrad, p.4). Marlow knew that if he wanted to go to the places he’d longed dreamed of experiencing, he had to take a chance at working for the trading company. Marlow is assigned as captain of a riverboat and his determination is a reflection of his self-concept. Marlow says “I don't like work—no man does—but I like what is in the work,—the chance to find yourself. Your own reality—for yourself, not for others—what no other man can ever know” (Conrad, p.18). Marlow is devoted to efficiency as a means to guard against corruption and

In Heart of Darkness, Kurtz is depicted as an upstanding European who has been transformed by his time in the jungle- being away from the society he was used to that could have prevented him from becoming such a tyrant. I have experienced being in a situation where I was very different from the people around me. It forced me to figure out their interests so I was able to join in on their conversations. By the end of the day, I no longer felt alone. So that experience taught me that I am going to come across diversity in life, but I need to be open and accepting of it. If I had chosen to just be shy, I wouldn’t have learned this lesson. I didn’t find myself being pulled toward base, cruel instincts as Kurtz, but I think that’s because Kurtz had no one to control him. If a person gains that much power, it may lead to the transformation that Kurtz experienced. –pg. 144 “But his soul was mad. Being alone in the wilderness, it had looked within itself, and, by heavens! I tell you, it had gone mad.”

Darkness is a major theme in The Heart of Darkness. Kurtz is unaware of his own darkness which leads to his downfall. He cannot see what kind of person he has become and how the darkness of the jungle has completely taken over him. The jungle is so secluded and mysterious that it actually influences Kurtz’s bad behavior. Kurtz becomes greedy and powerful but never realizes that this behavior is bringing him down until he is on the verge of death. Kurtz last words, “The horror! The horror!”(63) show Kurtz’s realization that the darkness had consumed him. Kurtz himself is one of the biggest examples of darkness in this book.

     Each character has a special role in the novel; Kurtz and Marlow are the most important, through these two characters we are able to see how good and evil balance each other out. Marlow?s journey into the heart of darkness can also be seen as a journey into his own soul. He was in search of the darkest of objects, the ivory. Unlike Kurtz, Marlow was able to withstand the darkness from controlling him. Kurtz soul became the darkness and caused him to forget everything else there was to life. His last words were not that of love but rather of hate, ?The horrors the horrors.?

     The film also depicts the character of Kurtz in a very different light. Conrad builds up the appearance of Kurtz so much that his first scene is intentionally anti-climactic. He is discovered to be an ailing, elderly gentlemen, malnourished and on the verge of death. Marlow himself is simultaneously impressed with and disappointed by Kurtz. He enjoys listening to the old man’s philosophies, but he is let down by Kurtz’s lack of realistic thinking. He has clearly lost his mind, and with it, some of his credibility and mysticism.

Marlow tells us about the Ivory that Kurtz kept as his own, and that he had no restraint, and was  " a tree swayed by the wind” (Conrad, 209). Marlow mentions the human heads displayed on posts that “showed that Mr. Kurtz lacked restraint in the gratification of his various lusts” (Conrad, 220). Conrad also tells us "his... nerves went wrong, and caused him to preside at certain midnight dances ending with unspeakable rights, which... were offered up to him” (Conrad, 208), meaning that Kurtz went insane and allowed himself to be worshipped as a god. It appears that while Kurtz had been isolated from his culture, he had become corrupted by this violent native culture, and allowed his evil side to control him.

“The bitterest contradiction and the deadliest conflicts of the world are carried on in every individual breast capable of feeling and passion” (Raskin 116). It is possible that those with the best intentions can create some of the deadliest atrocities as passion can take control over one's emotions. This emotional instability can be seen in Heart of Darkness as Joseph Conrad illustrates how one’s “passion” of saving others slowly turns into madness that causes hundreds of fatalities. We wonder, what could cause a man, such as Kurtz, in Heart of Darkness, to enter another country with the best intentions, to become so violent and be the reason behind thousands of brutal and torturous killings without

 Marlow's journey leads him in an urgent search for Kurtz, the one man who can provide him with the truth about himself. Like Marlow, Kurtz came to the Congo in hopes to bring "light" and civilization to a backwards society. He is a highly-educated, refined gentlemen; yet, in the end, the brutal nature of the Congo forces him to resort to the life of a murderer and pilferer. The name Kurtz itself has symbolic meaning. "The physical shortness in Kurtz implies a shortness of character and spirit" (Heart of Darkness: A systematic evaluation). Marlow and Kurtz both symbolize the two conditions of human nature. "Kurtz represents what man could become if left to his own intrinsic devices outside protective society. Marlow represents a pure untainted civilized soul who has not been drawn to savagery by a dark, alienated jungle." (Heart of Darkness: A systematic evaluation). When the two come face to face, each man sees a reflection of what he might have become in the other. In Kurtz, Marlow sees the potential

Kurtz, a mystery throughout the whole novella, is known as a prodigy by the people back home. Marlow first hears of him when he goes to accept the job that his aunt arranged for him. Since evil is not a universal constant, it changes according to each observer and the