The Theme Of Greed In Joseph Conrad's Heart Of Darkness
Man has continually struggled with greed. In the pursuit of greed, morality breaks down. Author Joseph Conrad in his novel, The Heart of Darkness, implies that true darkness lies within people who abandon their humanity for greed.
While the Europeans give the appearance of morality, they have no integrity. The accountant best personifies the abandonment of morals. The emphasis that the accountant places on balancing his books in the middle of the jungle confirms the importance of profits to the Company. “‘The groans of this sick person,’” he said, “distract my attention. And without that it is extremely difficult to guard against clerical errors in this climate” (21). Through the quote, the accountant cares more about money than dying person. In this regard, he loses his morality. Also important, the accountant wears “a high starched collar, white cuffs, a light alpaca jacket, snowy trousers, a clear necktie, and varnished boots”(20). Since he epitomizes the greediness of the Company, the all white outfit symbolizes the moral disguise the Company wears, despite the corruption on the inside. The appearance of morality, as Conrad explains through the …show more content…
Throughout the novel, Marlow spends his time obsessing over his eventual meeting with Kurtz. However, these two characters differ in one aspect: their humanity. Kurtz does not see the natives as anything more than animals under his direct control. Marlow, on the other hand, views the natives as human when he states, “No, they were not inhuman…but what thrilled you was just the thought of their humanity-like yours-the thought of your remote kinship with this wild and passionate uproar” (43). Marlow wants to think of the natives as inhuman, the dominant European viewpoint of the time, but realizes he has a shared bond with the natives. Marlow keeps his humanity because he sees the natives as people and does not exploit the natives for
While the Europeans give the appearance of morality, they have no integrity. The accountant best personifies the abandonment of morals. The emphasis that the accountant places on balancing his books in the middle of the jungle confirms the importance of profits to the Company. “‘The groans of this sick person,’” he said, “distract my attention. And without that it is extremely difficult to guard against clerical errors in this climate” (21). Through the quote, the accountant cares more about money than dying person. In this regard, he loses his morality. Also important, the accountant wears “a high starched collar, white cuffs, a light alpaca jacket, snowy trousers, a clear necktie, and varnished boots”(20). Since he epitomizes the greediness of the Company, the all white outfit symbolizes the moral disguise the Company wears, despite the corruption on the inside. The appearance of morality, as Conrad explains through the …show more content…
Throughout the novel, Marlow spends his time obsessing over his eventual meeting with Kurtz. However, these two characters differ in one aspect: their humanity. Kurtz does not see the natives as anything more than animals under his direct control. Marlow, on the other hand, views the natives as human when he states, “No, they were not inhuman…but what thrilled you was just the thought of their humanity-like yours-the thought of your remote kinship with this wild and passionate uproar” (43). Marlow wants to think of the natives as inhuman, the dominant European viewpoint of the time, but realizes he has a shared bond with the natives. Marlow keeps his humanity because he sees the natives as people and does not exploit the natives for