Essay on Heart of Darkness

1. 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, this statement is believable because I have noticed that the weather, my surroundings, and even other people’s behaviors around me affect my mood. Today, for instance, it rained all day and the sky was dark, as a result I slept throughout the whole …show more content…
I think from his last words, it shows that the power got to him and he didn’t want to admit it. I think Conrad made this scene so ambiguous because the “horror” that Kurtz could have been anything. I think he chose to keep it unclear so it has a lasting effect on Marlow, because that will live with Marlow the rest of his life. Also, the openness allows the reader to contemplate on what they might think the “horror” could be.
5. Some readers claim that Heart of Darkness is strictly a political novella. Others, however, say it’s really a story about the human condition. Yes a work can be interpreted in different ways, because I believe that this book deals with both of these themes. The political and human condition aspects are interdependent. For instance, Kurtz’s dictatorship (political) on the natives leads to his madness (human condition). Readers should consider the author’s intent when analyzing the story because it will help them understand the themes and symbols more affectively. Conrad’s intent of this story was to show the dark and corrupt ways of a more advanced society on an uncivilized society and how that leads to madness and chaos. If the reader doesn’t understand his intentions then it will be more difficult for them to understand the story.
6. Heart of Darkness can sometimes seem to readers like an incredibly dark, depressing story that paints civilizations in a very negative light. To me, most of the novel was dark and depressing,

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Heart Of Darkness