Heart Of Darkness Research Paper
What did Marlow Learn? Marlow is the main character in Joseph Conrad’s novel Heart of Darkness. The protagonist is also the narrator in the story about the experiences of an explorer in the foreign lands in the wake of Western imperialism in Africa. The protagonist, Marlow, is an eloquent storyteller whom the author uses to give an exposition of his own experiences in the Congo, albeit with a touch of fiction. The story line revolves around the experiences of Marlow as a riverboat captain for the Company, a Belgian organization that trades in the Congo. The focus is on the journey that Marlow makes up the perilous Congo River in order to meet the legendary Kurtz who runs an Inner Station of the Company in a remote setting along the Congo River (Conrad 12). The story covers Marlow’s journey, first from England to the Congo, then into the interior to meet the enigmatic Kurtz. The protagonist’s piloting of the boat along the dangerous Congo River symbolizes his tribulations. The title Heart of Darkness highlights the Eurocentric attitude towards Africa, about its lack of civilization and therefore the need to bring light to it through colonization (Moore 19). In the mission that Marlow undertakes, he learns about the West and their imperialistic mission, and finally, he is able to deconstruct some lifelong myths about the West.
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Marlow features as an independent-minded individual who has his own ideologies about many things. He therefore comes out as critical of the imperialism of the West in the so-called “uncivilized world.” This manifests itself in the manner which he questions some establishments of the colonial process, and the real civilizations of the Europeans who have taken it upon themselves to civilize the “uncivilized” people in Africa through their colonization (McCarthy 16). Despite the sentiments that Marlow has about the colonization process, he is also a victim of the same Eurocentric attitudes that he attempts to deconstruct through his actions and philosophies (Parras, 23). Nevertheless, he comes to some important realizations about his own people, the Europeans, the process of imperialism, the conspiracies that come with the entire process, as well as the natives who experience the full force of the imperialism process (Hampson 18). The first thing that Marlow learns in the story is the great similarity that exists between his own people, the English, and the uncivilized people of the colonial world. Marlow is highly introspective, and therefore does not share most of his thoughts with those in his company (Njeng 21). However, the readers are able to penetrate his mind and learn what his sentiments about colonization are through his habitual introspection. Marlow comes to the realization that it is inappropriate for Europeans to view colonized people as primitive and backward in the evolutionary scale (Njeng 11). According to him, the Europeans were, and some of them still are savages just like the Africans and the other races that they have set out to civilize through the colonization process. The British were equally savage before the Romans took over them and civilized them through colonizing them. He makes a comparison between the river Thames and the Congo River and sees little difference between them, because when the Romans first arrived in London in their imperialistic mission, the river was just as treacherous as the Congo River was at the moment of authorship of the book. The state of Congo at the time of Belgium’s occupation of the country was therefore just a reminder of the far the Europeans had come and therefore could not be used as a basis to justify the brutality of the colonial masters towards the colonized people (Moore 12). Secondly, Marlow learns that the civilization hat that the Europeans and those they enlist in the process of “civilizing” the natives put on is indeed an illusion. The Europeans have put up colonial structures in order to civilize the natives, and make them leave their barbarism. What comes to the notice of the protagonist is the barbarity of some of the Europeans who are on the civilizing mission. This in essence comes out as ironical as these individuals contravene the very mission they are supposed to fulfill (Njeng 9). Most of the colonial officers are highly wanting in their skills as well as morality and therefore just as savagery as the natives they purport to civilize. The General Manager, for instance, features as very incompetent and detestable in his conduct. Due to his sense of inadequacy, he feels wary of those he thinks are more skilled than him. He therefore has developed tactics to make these around him feel uneasy so that it becomes easy to exercise his control over them (Moore 13). His hatred for Kurtz, whom he feels is more competent than he is, obvious. During the journey up the river to the Inner Station to meet Kurtz, Marlow opts to keep to himself because he finds the company of the General Manager and the other crewmembers not intellectually stimulating (Parras 153). Ironically, he feels a sense of kinship with the natives, who they occasionally see along the river as they row past. This shows that he feels no difference between himself and the natives, whom the Europeans have labeled savages and they treat them as animals (Conrad 10). Furthermore, the conducts of the pilgrims, who are the agents of the Central Station that the General Manager runs, are a let down to the notion of civilization. These pilgrims carry wooden staves with them everywhere they go, hence the origin of their names (McCarthy 42). The pilgrims display a lot of savagery in their behavior, though they are supposed to be the epitomes of civilization to the natives. The veneer of civilization that the pilgrims put on does little in hiding their uncouth conduct. They act as though they are civilized but their real behavior displays a lot of barbarity, as they hate the natives and treat them like animals (Hampton 19). Furthermore, they are greedy and self-centered which makes them betray the entire notion of civilization. The manner in which the officials of the company treat the natives and conduct their businesses also acts as an exposition to Marlow about the imperialism process. Through his journey and encounters with these officials, Marlow learns about the cruelty with which they treat the natives. The Company’s agents have forcefully recruited the natives to serve the Company. These recruits go through mistreatment and overworking in the station. The brutality that they face further dehumanizes them, instead of making them into better people, which is the chief aim of the civilization process (Njeng 19). The Company puts economic interest before the rights of the natives, which is an undoing of the mission of civilizing the natives. The other irony that comes out of the imperialist enterprise is the alienation that it has created. The Whites’ settlements contrast sharply with the squalor and cruelty that the colonial enterprise has created amongst the natives (Parras 123). The Whites, who are supposedly the “civilizers” of the natives, have alienated themselves from the objects of their civilization thereby putting into question their real interest (Moore 18). Marlow also learns about the conspiracies and pretence inherent in the mission of imperialism.
The General Manager is a naturally conspiring individual who has set out to undermine those he feels are a threat to his authority. He particularly feels that Kurtz might take his position from him, owing to his exemplary abilities. The General Manager and his uncle seem to be under a conspiracy to see a quick demise of Kurtz in order for him to be safe in the position that he occupies (McCarthy 9). From eavesdropping into their conversation, Marlow learns about the deep hatred the two harbor for Kurtz, and their willingness to do away with
him. The General Manager erroneously believes that the African climate has favored him over Kurtz who ails constantly because he is morally fit to serve the Company. He even convinces himself that this is a sign of acceptance by a higher power. He thus thinks that Kurtz constantly ails because his morality is in question (Njeng 17). The Brickmaker also adds onto the conspiracy that is prominent in the novel. He is a conniving individual, and readily spies on others for the General Manager. The Brickmaker is a favorite of the General Manager and fills him in on the happenings in the Central Station. The General Manager, his uncle, and the Brickmaker make a trio of conspirators who plot against Kurtz to see his downfall (Hampson 17). There is however, some sense of poetic justice in the book when the General Manager’s uncle and his crew disappear into the wilderness in the Eldorado Expedition. Nevertheless, the final death of Kurtz brings a sense of relief to the General Manager (Conrad 17). In addition to the things that Marlow learns in Heart of Darkness are the traumatizing consequences that those who set out on the mission of civilization and imperialism face. Kurtz appears as a psychotic character. This has resulted from his experiences in the remote area along the river. To begin with, the climate has been cruel to him and therefore he ails a lot. His failing health is a real set back to his mission in the forest. In addition, he exhibits strange behavior that makes his sanity to be questioned. Through his eccentric behavior, he has been able to establish a strong following among the natives, who accompany him on the missions in which he goes raiding for ivory (McCarthy 21). The stories that Marlow hears about Kurtz create a large than life picture about the man. The Russian particularly idolizes Kurtz very much, declaring that he has great virtue and morality. Marlow is however surprised when he meets the ailing Kurtz who has turned very frail. He learns about his psychotic nature when he finds out that Kurtz has adorned the fence of the Inner Station with severed heads of human beings (Njeng 18). Furthermore, the word “the horror” that he mentions in his last breath as he dies and his slogan of “exterminate the brutes” also serve to highlight the psychotic nature he has developed due to the psychological trauma he has gone through in the jungle (Moore 23). Finally, Marlow realizes that imperialism is nothing but a sham. Through the rebellion that Kurtz exhibits, it becomes clear to Marlow that there is dissonance among those that are involved in the civilization process. Kurtz is clearly at loggerheads with the authorities of the colonial set-up, who are represented by the General Manager. He ignores the rules that govern European conduct, which he feels are hypocritical (Njeng 10). Marlow admires the character of Kurtz because he deconstructs the fallacies of European civilization and embraces the sensuous attitude of the natives. His association with a beautiful native woman who the Marlow assumes is his mistress goes a long way in illustrating his shedding off the prejudices of European supremacy(Parras 21). He is an exceptionally intelligent European yet that does not stop him from associating with the natives, among whom he has established a following akin to a cult (Hampson 18). It is therefore clear that Marlow learns many things in the course of his journey, from Europe and up the Congo River. Most of these insights serve to deconstruct European prejudices and question the process of imperialism. In the process, he interacts with various characters whose conducts help him to deconstruct many myths about European supremacy. This however does not stop Marlow from exhibiting the racial prejudices himself, as there are undertones of the same in his attitude.
Works Cited
Conrad, Joseph. Heart of Darkness. New York: Dover, 1902. Print.
Conrad, Joseph, and Ross C. Murfin. Heart of Darkness: A Case Study in Contemporary Criticism. New York: St. Martin 's Press, 2009 Print.
Hampson, Robert (2011) Joseph Conrad: postcolonialism and imperialism. EurAmerica, 41 (1).
McCarthy, Jeffrey Mathes. (2009) “A Choice of Nightmares’: The Ecology of Heart of Darkness.” MFS: Modern Fiction Studies 55, 3 pp 620-48.
Moore, Gene M. (2010) Joseph Conrad 's Heart of Darkness: A Casebook. Oxford [England: Oxford University Press..
Njeng, Eric Sipyinyu "Achebe, (2006) Conrad, and the Postcolonial Strain." CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture 10.1
Parras, John. Poetic Prose and Imperialism: The Ideology of Form in Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness. New York: Cambridge Universirty. 2006.Print.
Marlow features as an independent-minded individual who has his own ideologies about many things. He therefore comes out as critical of the imperialism of the West in the so-called “uncivilized world.” This manifests itself in the manner which he questions some establishments of the colonial process, and the real civilizations of the Europeans who have taken it upon themselves to civilize the “uncivilized” people in Africa through their colonization (McCarthy 16). Despite the sentiments that Marlow has about the colonization process, he is also a victim of the same Eurocentric attitudes that he attempts to deconstruct through his actions and philosophies (Parras, 23). Nevertheless, he comes to some important realizations about his own people, the Europeans, the process of imperialism, the conspiracies that come with the entire process, as well as the natives who experience the full force of the imperialism process (Hampson 18). The first thing that Marlow learns in the story is the great similarity that exists between his own people, the English, and the uncivilized people of the colonial world. Marlow is highly introspective, and therefore does not share most of his thoughts with those in his company (Njeng 21). However, the readers are able to penetrate his mind and learn what his sentiments about colonization are through his habitual introspection. Marlow comes to the realization that it is inappropriate for Europeans to view colonized people as primitive and backward in the evolutionary scale (Njeng 11). According to him, the Europeans were, and some of them still are savages just like the Africans and the other races that they have set out to civilize through the colonization process. The British were equally savage before the Romans took over them and civilized them through colonizing them. He makes a comparison between the river Thames and the Congo River and sees little difference between them, because when the Romans first arrived in London in their imperialistic mission, the river was just as treacherous as the Congo River was at the moment of authorship of the book. The state of Congo at the time of Belgium’s occupation of the country was therefore just a reminder of the far the Europeans had come and therefore could not be used as a basis to justify the brutality of the colonial masters towards the colonized people (Moore 12). Secondly, Marlow learns that the civilization hat that the Europeans and those they enlist in the process of “civilizing” the natives put on is indeed an illusion. The Europeans have put up colonial structures in order to civilize the natives, and make them leave their barbarism. What comes to the notice of the protagonist is the barbarity of some of the Europeans who are on the civilizing mission. This in essence comes out as ironical as these individuals contravene the very mission they are supposed to fulfill (Njeng 9). Most of the colonial officers are highly wanting in their skills as well as morality and therefore just as savagery as the natives they purport to civilize. The General Manager, for instance, features as very incompetent and detestable in his conduct. Due to his sense of inadequacy, he feels wary of those he thinks are more skilled than him. He therefore has developed tactics to make these around him feel uneasy so that it becomes easy to exercise his control over them (Moore 13). His hatred for Kurtz, whom he feels is more competent than he is, obvious. During the journey up the river to the Inner Station to meet Kurtz, Marlow opts to keep to himself because he finds the company of the General Manager and the other crewmembers not intellectually stimulating (Parras 153). Ironically, he feels a sense of kinship with the natives, who they occasionally see along the river as they row past. This shows that he feels no difference between himself and the natives, whom the Europeans have labeled savages and they treat them as animals (Conrad 10). Furthermore, the conducts of the pilgrims, who are the agents of the Central Station that the General Manager runs, are a let down to the notion of civilization. These pilgrims carry wooden staves with them everywhere they go, hence the origin of their names (McCarthy 42). The pilgrims display a lot of savagery in their behavior, though they are supposed to be the epitomes of civilization to the natives. The veneer of civilization that the pilgrims put on does little in hiding their uncouth conduct. They act as though they are civilized but their real behavior displays a lot of barbarity, as they hate the natives and treat them like animals (Hampton 19). Furthermore, they are greedy and self-centered which makes them betray the entire notion of civilization. The manner in which the officials of the company treat the natives and conduct their businesses also acts as an exposition to Marlow about the imperialism process. Through his journey and encounters with these officials, Marlow learns about the cruelty with which they treat the natives. The Company’s agents have forcefully recruited the natives to serve the Company. These recruits go through mistreatment and overworking in the station. The brutality that they face further dehumanizes them, instead of making them into better people, which is the chief aim of the civilization process (Njeng 19). The Company puts economic interest before the rights of the natives, which is an undoing of the mission of civilizing the natives. The other irony that comes out of the imperialist enterprise is the alienation that it has created. The Whites’ settlements contrast sharply with the squalor and cruelty that the colonial enterprise has created amongst the natives (Parras 123). The Whites, who are supposedly the “civilizers” of the natives, have alienated themselves from the objects of their civilization thereby putting into question their real interest (Moore 18). Marlow also learns about the conspiracies and pretence inherent in the mission of imperialism.
The General Manager is a naturally conspiring individual who has set out to undermine those he feels are a threat to his authority. He particularly feels that Kurtz might take his position from him, owing to his exemplary abilities. The General Manager and his uncle seem to be under a conspiracy to see a quick demise of Kurtz in order for him to be safe in the position that he occupies (McCarthy 9). From eavesdropping into their conversation, Marlow learns about the deep hatred the two harbor for Kurtz, and their willingness to do away with
him. The General Manager erroneously believes that the African climate has favored him over Kurtz who ails constantly because he is morally fit to serve the Company. He even convinces himself that this is a sign of acceptance by a higher power. He thus thinks that Kurtz constantly ails because his morality is in question (Njeng 17). The Brickmaker also adds onto the conspiracy that is prominent in the novel. He is a conniving individual, and readily spies on others for the General Manager. The Brickmaker is a favorite of the General Manager and fills him in on the happenings in the Central Station. The General Manager, his uncle, and the Brickmaker make a trio of conspirators who plot against Kurtz to see his downfall (Hampson 17). There is however, some sense of poetic justice in the book when the General Manager’s uncle and his crew disappear into the wilderness in the Eldorado Expedition. Nevertheless, the final death of Kurtz brings a sense of relief to the General Manager (Conrad 17). In addition to the things that Marlow learns in Heart of Darkness are the traumatizing consequences that those who set out on the mission of civilization and imperialism face. Kurtz appears as a psychotic character. This has resulted from his experiences in the remote area along the river. To begin with, the climate has been cruel to him and therefore he ails a lot. His failing health is a real set back to his mission in the forest. In addition, he exhibits strange behavior that makes his sanity to be questioned. Through his eccentric behavior, he has been able to establish a strong following among the natives, who accompany him on the missions in which he goes raiding for ivory (McCarthy 21). The stories that Marlow hears about Kurtz create a large than life picture about the man. The Russian particularly idolizes Kurtz very much, declaring that he has great virtue and morality. Marlow is however surprised when he meets the ailing Kurtz who has turned very frail. He learns about his psychotic nature when he finds out that Kurtz has adorned the fence of the Inner Station with severed heads of human beings (Njeng 18). Furthermore, the word “the horror” that he mentions in his last breath as he dies and his slogan of “exterminate the brutes” also serve to highlight the psychotic nature he has developed due to the psychological trauma he has gone through in the jungle (Moore 23). Finally, Marlow realizes that imperialism is nothing but a sham. Through the rebellion that Kurtz exhibits, it becomes clear to Marlow that there is dissonance among those that are involved in the civilization process. Kurtz is clearly at loggerheads with the authorities of the colonial set-up, who are represented by the General Manager. He ignores the rules that govern European conduct, which he feels are hypocritical (Njeng 10). Marlow admires the character of Kurtz because he deconstructs the fallacies of European civilization and embraces the sensuous attitude of the natives. His association with a beautiful native woman who the Marlow assumes is his mistress goes a long way in illustrating his shedding off the prejudices of European supremacy(Parras 21). He is an exceptionally intelligent European yet that does not stop him from associating with the natives, among whom he has established a following akin to a cult (Hampson 18). It is therefore clear that Marlow learns many things in the course of his journey, from Europe and up the Congo River. Most of these insights serve to deconstruct European prejudices and question the process of imperialism. In the process, he interacts with various characters whose conducts help him to deconstruct many myths about European supremacy. This however does not stop Marlow from exhibiting the racial prejudices himself, as there are undertones of the same in his attitude.
Works Cited
Conrad, Joseph. Heart of Darkness. New York: Dover, 1902. Print.
Conrad, Joseph, and Ross C. Murfin. Heart of Darkness: A Case Study in Contemporary Criticism. New York: St. Martin 's Press, 2009 Print.
Hampson, Robert (2011) Joseph Conrad: postcolonialism and imperialism. EurAmerica, 41 (1).
McCarthy, Jeffrey Mathes. (2009) “A Choice of Nightmares’: The Ecology of Heart of Darkness.” MFS: Modern Fiction Studies 55, 3 pp 620-48.
Moore, Gene M. (2010) Joseph Conrad 's Heart of Darkness: A Casebook. Oxford [England: Oxford University Press..
Njeng, Eric Sipyinyu "Achebe, (2006) Conrad, and the Postcolonial Strain." CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture 10.1
Parras, John. Poetic Prose and Imperialism: The Ideology of Form in Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness. New York: Cambridge Universirty. 2006.Print.