Essay On Heart Of Darkness - 720 Words

Book Review: Heart of Darkness When reading Joseph Conrad’s stunning work of literary fiction, Heart of Darkness, one is transported to the Congo’s jungles itself and has to ferociously fight until the end. The novel is readable to those determined to reach the end; the words are arranged almost in a way that makes the reader feel the struggle of the Congo. Reading the novel is indeed a journey itself, making the end worth the struggle. In Heart of Darkness, the narrator is in fact not the real storyteller. Marlow, an experienced seaman, recounts his journey in search of an agent of an ivory trading company, Kurtz. He begins his storytelling by stating the colonization of Africa â€Å"was just robbery with violence, aggravated murder on a†¦show more content†¦Many important symbols are used in a way that they relate to the meaning of the novel as a whole. Marlow mentions a â€Å"whited sepulcher† when visiting the Company’s office in Brussels. It symbolizes European imperialism since it often represents death. The idea of European imperialism is falsely beautified, yet inside it is hollow and dark, just like a sepulcher. Ivory is also another important symbol in the novel since it relates to the greed of the Europeans. It shows that the only thing the Europeans truly care about is money; and they will do anything for it, including inflicting violence upon the natives. Both of these symbols un dercover a larger theme in the novel: imperialism is an evil and violent path. The novel, being based in the late nineteenth century, is not expressed in modern English. The language is hard to understand at times since the text often contains inverted syntax. Also, profane words are used several times throughout the novel to describe the Africans. The author includes this to get a closer, more personal, sense of Marlow’s story. The language also helps make the story more realistic within the time period; it provides the reader with a better background and grasp on the novel and certainly contributes to the novel in a positive way. Personally, I would give this book a three-star rating. The excellent work of the storytelling was diminished by the difficulty in reading level. The first chapter of the novel was especially confusing andShow MoreRelatedHeart of Darkness Essay1292 Words   |  6 PagesHeart of Darkness Essay Morality has been interpreted in different ways throughout life, but there is only one true definition, which leads to the reality of what society truly is. Joseph Conrad uses narration in Heart of Darkness to explain and analyze human’s moral values. It is true that all humans are savages, but this savage nature does not make someone a bad person. If a person uses one’s savage features for evil and do not restrain from doing so, then it is the lack of restraint thatRead MoreHeart Of Darkness Essay1426 Words   |  6 PagesJoseph Conrads novel Heart of Darkness uses character development and character analysis to really tell the story of European colonization. Within Conrads characters one can find both racist and colonialist views, and it is the opinion, and the interpretation of the reader which decides what Conrad is really trying to say in his work. Chinua Achebe, a well known writer, once gave a lecture at the University of Massachusetts about Joseph Conrads Heart of Darkness, entitled An image of Africa:Read More Heart of Darkness Essay2840 Words   |  12 Pages Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness does not explicitly deal with a struggle between war and peace: the conflict is a psychological, moral one; however, the text’s implications that society is a thin veil over our innate savagery, the darkness at the roots of Western civilization, reveals disturbing truths about the peaceful, orderly lives we take for granted. The key to understanding Conrad’s novella lies in ascertaining the metaphorical significance of the â€Å"heart of darkness,† a search which mayRead MoreEssay on Heart of Darkness981 Words   |  4 PagesHeart of Darkness The nightmare of Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness is found in its stark portrayal of madness under the influence of an environment filled with desolation. Its protagonist, Mr. Kurtz, was raised amongst civilized people, adapted virtues that were regarded proper in society during the Victorian era, yet when he travels into the Congo, where these qualities are of no consequence, he abandons them to become wild. To understand how Kurtz fell to this emotional corruptness, a readerRead MoreHeart of Darkness Essay1068 Words   |  5 Pages1. Some critics believe that in Heart of Darkness Conrad illustrates how ‘’the darkness of the landscape can lead to the darkness of the social corruption.† This statement means that if the environment is dark, then the people in that environment will match the surrounding feeling, which is dark and depressing. For example, if it is a gloomy rainy day, most people feel tired and not as happy. If it is a bright sunny day, the most people feel motivated to get things done and joyful. Yes, thisRead MoreEssay on Heart of Darkness1208 Words   |  5 PagesJoseph Conrads The Heart of Darkness is a dark and haunting tale about the search for a substantial and mysteriously powerful man named Mr. Kurtz. Heart of Darkness centers around Marlow, a sailor and also narrator of the novella. Throughout the work, Conrad uses an array of literary devices to suggest his style of writing. The title of the work itself, The Heart of Darkness, is an example of the use of metaphor. Darkness is a significant part of the books title conceptually. However, it isRead More Heart of Darkness Essay941 Words   |  4 PagesHeart of Darkness Darkness permeates every circumstance, scene, and character in Joseph Conrads novella, Heart of Darkness. Darkness symbolizes the moral confusion that Charlie Marlow encounters, as well as the moral reconciliation he has within himself while searching for Kurtz. Marlows morals are challenged numerous times throughout the book; on the Congo river and when he returns to Brussels. Charlie Marlow characterizes the behavior of the colonialists with, The flabby, pretendingRead MoreEssay on Heart of Darkness934 Words   |  4 PagesHeart of Darkness The dark thoughts, which are usually ignored and not allowed to be brought up in conversation, are pushed back into the remote corners of the mind, but have the ability to run free when man is in his most vulnerable state. Sleep, the unconscious. It is in dreams where twisted stories of malevolence and horror take place. The soul’s core is full of sin from the first minute man is born. Even Adam, the original man, who was born when the earth began its timeline, has sin runningRead More Heart Of Darkness Essay1479 Words   |  6 Pageslet the sexism of her culture keep her down. Adah would dislike the way that women are portrayed in Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness because women are treated as though they do not belong in the real world. Women are treated as objects instead of people with thoughts and feelings. It is this treatment that Adah worked hard to overcome. Part II In Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness, Marlow, the narrator of most of the story, tell th e story of his journey into the Congo searching for the lost ivoryRead MoreEssay about Heart of Darkness1745 Words   |  7 Pages This essay provides an in depth review of Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness, a classical novella that illustrates without bias the motives behind human intentions and the extremes individuals can go to achieve wealth and profits at the expense of others with the aim of shedding insight into the rise of European imperialism, the imperial history, its politics and evil activities in the colonized African tribes along the river Congo during the eighteenth and nineteenth century. The Heart of Darkness