Essay on Heart of Darkness

Submitted By joo5753
Words: 1798
Pages: 8

In Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad depicts the human tendency to succumb to base qualities when placed in a radically different environment from their own. While he uses several characters to criticize the European cruelty, the novel is fraught with preconceptions of the Natives. The demeaning portrayals of the culture, and the environment of the Africans reflect the subtle racism distributed throughout the whole novel. The portrayed racism clearly demonstrates Conrad’s true feelings of condescension and patronization of the natives. Conrad ultimately utilizes Marlow as an epitome of European exploitation of African natives by conveying deep-seated racism within the pejorative representation of the natives. Conrad’s views are exemplified by Charles Marlow, who makes the same excursion that Conrad once made during his time in Africa. However, many of Marlow’s sayings and ideas should not be taken literally, for he lived in a very different society than the egalitarian one of today. Despite blatant racist expressions made against the natives throughout the book, some might argue that the late 19th century was a period when people were subconsciously prejudiced due to the Africans’ way of life and how it was perceived to be inferior by Europeans. Numerous colonialist nations justified this “Social Darwinism,” and continued their exploitation of Africa’s resources. The controversy surrounding the novel of whether or not Conrad is biased is prevalent because the acts that were commonplace when the novel was written are considered today racist. Considering this, it is difficult to definitely define what is and isn't a racist idea or remark. Even Conrad’s apparently demeaning depiction of a native African, “Could we handle that dumb thing... was that thing that couldn’t talk and perhaps was deaf as well.” (26) can be a simple statement describing a person, if it did follow the social norms of the time. A unique aspect of Conrad’s novel was his story within a story, and this might have been done to hide his true feelings, for this would allow one to suggest that Marlow’s viewpoint is not necessarily Conrad’s. Nevertheless, they had similar experiences in Africa, and it cannot be easily disputed that Marlow had a different experience than Conrad. Furthermore, the quote “Heart of Darkness is experience...pushed a little (and only very little) beyond the actual facts of the case” from Conrad himself suggests that the novel is written from the author’s own perspective and experience. If Marlow and Conrad did indeed share the same experiences, many of Marlow’s racist statements indicate that Conrad was a racist as well. Conrad implies that the two continents are social opposites by contrasting the two environments of Europe and Africa, which also plays a key role in demonstrating Conrad's racial bias. As Marlow sees Africa for the first time and says “Nothing could happen. There was a touch of insanity in the proceeding, a sense of lugubrious... - he called them enemies- hidden out of sight somewhere, ” he depicts it as a place in a state of chaos, and describes the disruptive actions of the Europeans who were contributing to that chaos (14). On the other hand, Europe is talked about in a much more eloquent manner, described by Marlow as “Tranquil dignity... venerable stream” (4). Although many of Conrad’s statements about Africa’s environment do not appear as racist when viewed alone, they still show Conrad’s prejudiced connotations by employing a tone of chaos and primitiveness. There is a racist undertone in his work through his acceptance of the fact that Europeans were inherently superior to Africans as he calls them ‘things’ (26), and this justifies many of his actions. The more direct comparison could be found in the contrasting depiction of the two different rivers: the Thames River and the Congo River. Before Marlow starts to talk about his unforgettable journey, the narrator recites serenely: “Forthwith a change came over