Heart of Darkness

Name: Date: French van Errors 9 March 2014 Archimedes Teacher Training Institute, university of Utrecht Course: Institute: Highlights of English Literature Essay on the role of women in Heart of Darkness by J. Conrad Assignment: Lovers In a Male-Dominated World: the Witch and the Widow ‘The last word he pronounced – was your name. ‘ It is ironic that this utter lie to a woman concludes the story of a man’s Journey into the dark African jungle. Marrow, the story protagonist, is the one who lies to the fiance©e of the infamous Mr.. Kurt, he reason for his African adventure.

In Joseph Concord’s novella Heart of Darkness (1899), women are scarce. Men drive the story and the two women portrayed In the story are sketchy, nameless characters who only serve as female prototypes: the Witch and the Widow. Both have been lovers of the story’s pivotal Mr.. Kurt and symbolize his transformation. The first woman that appears is the Witch – traditionally an unmarried woman outside the normal structure of society, a priestly woman who possesses unique knowledge of medicine and the supernatural. She comes on stage when the story Is well underway. Until then, only men have played a role In the tale: sailors, company officials, soldiers, station managers, explorers, servants and other staff. The Witch belongs to the tribe where Mr.. Kurt ruthlessly ruled. When he is taken away on Marrows steamer, she stands at the river bank: Along the lighted shore moved a wild and gorgeous apparition of a woman. (… ) bizarre things, charms, gifts of witch-men, that hung about her, glittered and trembled at every step. She was savage and superb, wild-eyed and magnificent. Her long shadow fell to the water’s edge.

Her face had a tragic and fleece aspect of wild sorrow and of dumb pain. ‘ (up. 75-76 Penguin Classics) These words suggest she was Kurt’ lover, but nothing beyond her awe-inspiring presence is revealed. Apart from the powerful African Witch, there is the brittle European Widow: two opposites that symbolize the former Kurt (nurtured by European civilization) and the new Kurt (transformed by African Nature). This black-clad woman also had an amorous relationship with Kurt, but she is completely unaware of Quartz’s ramification and new love.

She was engaged to him, waiting for his return and hoping to get married to him one day. Little did she know of his intentions to stay in the Jungle forever, had Marrow not got him out. She is presented as the prototypical widow that only exists because of her loss: ‘She came forward, all in black, with a pale since his death, more than a year since the news came; she seemed as though she would remember and mourn forever. ‘ (p. 92) We can conclude that males reign supreme in Concord’s novella.

They rule the world and they conquer the dark interior of the African continent. The primps inter pares of these conquerors is Mr.. Kurt, who nearly gets a mythical status in Marrows imagination. The two women that love Mr.. Kurt are the only women that play a role, and they are presented as symbols: the one a strong African Witch, the other a weak European Widow, enforcing the two-sided personality of Mr.. Kurt and his personal battle between the dark powers of Africa against the ‘enlightening civilization of Europe.

Leukocytes Salmon’s situation he schemes to use him to get his hands on an extremely valuable diamond; the Diamond of Salmon’s eye (his son Did) for the large conflict stone. During the first half of the movie Danny is inconsiderate and self-centered; however he is influenced by Salmon’s love, Maydays passion and Benjamin philosophy and slowly transforms into thoughtful man who can see further than the simplistic principles of greed and wealth. 010 Troy Greater pappy, but at great cost to the African civilians. But now we know the truth and we’re not so happy anymore. We should thank Kick for opening our eyes and questioning how far is too far? An obsession with wealth is the driving force for not only antagonists Captain Poison and Van De Kappa but for the star-of-the-show, Danny Archer, too. Danny was born in Rhodesia, the country we know today as Zanzibar and lost his parents when he was seven. His mother was violated before murdered along with his father and Danny was adopted into he army.

After serving his country and being robbed of his family and childhood he felt he deserved to be wealthy and became involved in the illicit diamond trade. As he never had the opportunity to value something other than money, wealth was his highest priority. Lear inning o f Of course, these particular stories are fictional, but they have been created to inform us that these horrific events happen, and have been taking place for over one hundred years. Kick as described his movie as ‘holding up a error to the world, to remind the world of itself, even if this image is unflattering. He has commented shifts in the paradigm only come about when people are willing to do this. Conrad and Kicks works comment on values like wealth, power and family and issues such as exploitation, discrimination and violence. In both stories something small like the desire for a sparkly ring can have a powerful and ongoing unintended effect. The film’s negative situations and human suffering are meant to outrage us so hat we will take action, thereby producing a positive outcome from the film.

This is true for Conrad and Kicks creations, as a single book/ movie has sparked awareness of the horror and inspired people to reach out and make a change. Please Join us in our crusade for a brighter future. Feature Article Not So Crystal Clear The truth about diamonds and proof our values haven’t changed in one hundred years. BY HOLLY SMITH Over time, our core values have remained relatively unchanged, even if attitudes towards them now differ.

The environments surrounding has a huge effect on the culture of the greater number of inhabitants. The indigenous scenery, which is holds an abundant amount of natural resources, is in a state of transition and the way the landscape is treated, directly relates to greed, narcism within the society, violence in a highly numbers populated area, particularly from developed countries. In Joseph Conrad’s book Heart of Darkness , Conrad represents the decay of the indigenous scenery as a metaphor to the decay within developed countries, specifically in England.

This decay is a direct result of the actions taken by the society within this indigenous scenery. Within the book Heart of Darkness greed is a immense description toward the English and the scenery that they inhabit. The English show a excessive rapacious desire for wealth and possessions . There greed and rapacious desire for health and possessions take them to the heart of the congo, where elephants are slaughtered for there tusks that are ivory. The ivory is considered a high commodity in England.

The ivory symbolizes greed and destructive nature of man and agents of the company are so opposed with obtaining ivory that they forget there morals , so called civilized ways. This representations of the greed over the ivory on the landscape can be seen in this quote found in the book Heart of Darkness “ to tear treasure out of the bowls of the landscape was there desire” (Conrad 110). The desire or greed over the land, and all the wealth, and possessions found in it, the effects that it brings upon the landscape can be proven from this statement found in the bible “ The greedy bring ruin to there households” (Psalms 10:3, NIV).

This decay in this indigenous scenery resulted though greed is a direct reason why its decaying The decay of the indigenous scenery within the book Heart of Darkness is a result of violence shown through developed countries specifically England in the book. The violence and cruelty depicted in Heart of Darkness escalate from acts of inhumanity committed against the natives of the Congo to unspeakable and undescribed horrors.

Kurtz who is representing European imperialists has systematically engaged in human plunder. The natives are seen chained by iron collars abut their necks, starved, beaten, subsisting on rotten hippo meat, forced into soul crushing and meaningless labor, and finally ruthlessly murdered. Beyond this, it is implied that Kurtz has had human sacrifices performed for him, and the reader is presented with the sight of a row of severed human heads impaled on posts leading to Kurtz’s cabin.

Conrad suggests that violence result when law is absent and man allows himself to be ruled by whatever brutal passions lie within him. Under such circumstances, anything is possible, and what Conrad sees emerging from the situation is the profound violence that lies at the heart of the human soul and results in the decay of the indigenous scenery “It was just robbery with violence, aggravated murder on a great scale, and men going at it blind—as is very proper for those who tackle a darkness”(Conrad 5).

This limitless violence that Krutz has witnessed forced upon the indigenous scenery within the society of the natives is a direct of the decay within the indigenous scenery of developed countries. Throughout the book Heart of Darkness narcism has a major effect on the indigenous scenery. The English have a narcissistic attitude in the Heart of Darkness. A narcissistic attitude is a person who is overly self-involved, and often vain and selfish. This narcissistic attitude has a prominent effect on the indigenous scenery.

While the English have become so utterly confident in there civilizations powers. In the book Heart of Darkness, the English enter the Congo thinking that they are civilized, because of there overly self involved, and vain and selfishness, they travel into the Congo taking ever considerable valuable natural resource such and destroying the indigenous scenery. In Congo, however, obsessed with ivory that renders him money, status, and power, the original, Kurtz transforms into a mercenary, evil madman, who “takes a high seat amongst the devils of the land”.

Krutz narcissistic attitude being overly self involved, and vain and selfishness takes a immense amount of ivory, killing large amounts of elephants, and killing all the people that got in his way “They would have been even more impressive, those heads on the stakes, if their faces had not been turned to the house”(Conrad 40) showing that a narcissistic attitude is a direct result of why the indigenous scenery is decayed.

This decay is a direct result of the actions taken by the society within this indigenous scenery. The indigenous scenery, which is a direct result of the natural resources before us on the earth , that is in a state of transition and the way the landscape is treated, directly relates to greed and over exceeding numbers of human beings, particularly from developed countries. Conrad represents the decay of the indigenous scenery as a absolute metaphor to the decay within developed countries, specifically in England.

These actions such as greed, violence, and narcissism taken by the developed countries causes the indigenous scenery to decay. Heart of Darkness – Result of decay on society Work Cited: “Heart of Darkness. ” SparkNotes. Ed. Joesph Conrad. SparkNotes, 1 Jan. 2012. Web. 24 Oct. 2012. . Conrad, Joesph. “Heart of Darkness. ” By Joseph Conrad. Search EText, Read Online, Study, Discuss. N. p. , July-Aug. 2012. Web. 24 Oct. 2012. . Conrad, Joseph. Heart of Darkness. New York: Knopf, 1993. Print.

“This too was once one of the dark places of the earth. ” This quote was spoken by Marlow. The quote signifies the beginning of Marlow’s story, and the pretense to his vivid recollection of his journey. Marlow is referring to his current surroundings because he is about to start his lengthy allegory. Basically, Marlow begins by telling the other sailors that every place was at one point unexplored and uninhabited.

“We live in the flicker…may it last as long as the old earth keeps rolling. ” This quote was spoken by Marlow. The “flicker” that Marlow mentions refers to the “light of imperialism” and the development of new land.

Marlow continuously uses the contrast of light and dark to represent the condition of the land and the people. The light is the beneficial aspect of growth and Marlow hopes that these benefits will outweigh their negative counterparts as long as imperialism exists and continues.

“They were men enough to face the darkness. ” This quote was spoken by Marlow. In this quote, Marlow is referring to the imperialist men who adventured into unknown lands to conquer and develop. He describes how brave and ambitious these men were and how they knew the risks yet took them despite all costs.

Marlow even describes the motivating factors that pushed imperialists forward- such as the money and the recognition. “Imagine the growing regrets, the longing to escape, the powerless disgust, the surrender, the hate…. ” This quote was spoken by Marlow. After his rant about how valiant the imperialist explorers were, Marlow then describes how the imperialists are the ones negatively affected by their exploration because they are forced into dark and destitute places. They wish to return to their homes but they serve a great duty by exploring and developing these new places.

Marlow acknowledges this desire to “escape” because he felt it multiple times firsthand when he thrust himself in the midst of a mentally and physically challenging jungle. “Du calme, du calme, adieu. ” The person who spoke this quote was the doctor. When Marlow includes this quote in his story, he also adds a little bit of information which conveys the doctor’s warning tone. The doctor tells Marlow to keep calm on his trip and basically to stay level headed throughout the endeavor. Marlow, of course, does not head this advice, so the quote is almost ironic in a way. I have seen…strong, lusty, red-eyed devils but…I foresaw that in the blinding      sunshine of this land, I would become acquainted with a flabby, pretending, weak-       eyed devil of rapacious and pitiless folly. ” Pg. 71 “I’ve been teaching one of the native women about the station. It was difficult. She       had a distaste for the work. ” Pg. 73“When one has hot to make correct entries, one comes to hate those savages-hate       them to the death. ” Pg. 75 “He was obeyed, yet he inspired neither love, nor fear, nor even respect…he inspired         uneasiness. ” Pg. 78 “The word ‘ivory’ hung in the air.

You would think they were praying to it. ” Pg. 80 “He is a prodigy…We want for the guidance of the cause entrusted us by Europe, so        to speak higher intelligence, wide sympathies, singleness of purpose. ” Pg. 83  “You know, I hate, detest, can’t bear a lie. ” Pg. 85 It was reckless without hardihood, greedy without audacity, and cruel without        courage; there was not an atom of foresight or of serious intention among them. ” Pg. 90.

Heart of Darkness questions: Book 1 Answer the following questions using clear and complete sentences.

1. Describe the setting and the mood at the beginning of the novel. . Describe how Marlow differs from the other men aboard the Nellie.
2. How does the narrator predict that the other men will react to Marlow’s story?
3. Discuss how the Romans would have described England before it had become     civilized.
4. According to Marlow, what redeems “the conquest of the earth”?
5. How does Marlow describe the Congo river? Why is this an interesting comparison? 7. What do the women in the company office symbolize?
6. Why did Fresleven go insane? How did he die?
7. Marlow’s aunt calls her nephew an “emissary of light. ” What does she imagine her he nephew will do in the Congo?

Describe the folly in the outer station.

1. Describe the accountant. Why does Marlow call him a “miracle”?
2. Describe the station manager in the central station. How does he survive?
3. Discuss the irony of the brickmaker’s position with the company.
4. How does Kurtz’s painting connect Marlow and Kurtz?
5. What does the absence of rivets show about the company?

Discuss Marlow’s tone towards the Eldorado Exploring Expedition. Why does he feel this way?

Heart of Darkness quotes:

Book “Wood for you. Hurry up. Approach cautiously. ” Pg. 99 “I laid the ghost of his gifts at last with a lie. Pg. 114 “You don’t talk with that man-you listen. ” Pg. 122“This man has enlarged my mind. ” Pg. 123

Heart of Darkness questions:

Book 2 How does the station manager survive? What do the drums symbolize? What book does Marlow discover and what does he admire about it? How does the helmsman die? Discuss the significance of Kurtz’s report. How have Kurtz’s ideals changed since his stay at the Central station? Describe the harlequin. What doe he represent?

Heart of Darkness quotes:

Book 3 “He made me see things-things! ” Pg. 124 ‘Because the method is unsound. ” Pg. 33 “Mr. Kurtz’s reputation is safe with me. ” Pg. 135 “Oh, he enlarged my mind. ” Pg. 136 “The horror, the horror. ” Pg. 144 “Mistah Kurtz, he dead. ” Pg. 144 “The last word he said –was your name. ” Pg. 154

Heart of Darkness questions:

Book 3

1. Discuss the significance of the heads on stakes facing Kurtz’s hut.
2. Discuss the role of the native woman.
3. What do Kurtz’s last words mean?
4. What does Marlow mean when he says that Kurtz “had something to say”?
5. What conflict does Marlow have when he returns home?
6. Describe the Intended.
7. Why does Marlow lie to her at the end?

Passage 1 “I left in a French steamer: The French Steam Ship and she called in every blamed port they have out there, for, as far as I could see, the sole purpose of landing soldiers and custom-house officers. I watched the coast. Watching a coast as it slips by the ship is like thinking about an enigma. Analogy comparing the coast slipping by the ship to a mystery. There it is before you — smiling, frowning, inviting, grand, mean, insipid, or savage, and always mute with an air of whispering, Personification: Giving humanlike features to the coast. ‘Come and find out. This one was almost featureless, as if still in the making, with an aspect of monotonous grimness. Suggesting that the coast invites us to uncover its secrets. The edge of a colossal jungle, so dark-green as to be almost black by using these two words is the author purposely trying to imply racial discrimination….? , fringed with white surf, ran straight, like a ruled line, far, far away along a blue sea whose glitter was blurred by a creeping mist. The sun was fierce, the land seemed to glisten and drip with steam. Here and there grayish-whitish specks showed up clustered inside the white surf, with a flag flying above them perhaps. Whitish specks” symbolize the white settlements. Settlements some centuries old, and still no bigger than pinheads on the untouched expanse of their background. They looked so small in the huge jungle. We pounded along, stopped, landed Parallelism soldiers; went on, landed Parallelism custom-house clerks to levy toll in what looked like a God-forsaken wilderness, with a tin shed and a flag-pole lost in it; landed Parallelism more soldiers — to take care of the custom-house clerks, presumably. Some, I heard, got drowned in the surf; but whether they did or not, nobody seemed particularly to care.

They were just flung out there, and on we went. Every day the coast looked the same, as though we had not moved; but we passed various places — trading places — with names like Gran’ Bassam, Little Popo; names that seemed to belong to some sordid farce acted in front of a sinister back-cloth. The idleness of a passenger, my isolation amongst all these men with whom I had no point of contact, the oily and languid sea, the uniform somberness of the coast, Using descriptive language to describe the calm motionless sea… seemed to keep me away from the truth of things, within the toil of a mournful and senseless delusion.

The voice of the surf heard now and then was a positive pleasure, like the speech of a brother. The sound of the waves was a calm sound for him and he compares it to the voice of a brother using a simile. It was something natural that had its reason that had a meaning. Now and then a boat from the shore gave one a momentary contact with reality. Sometimes the boat on the shore reminded him of reality…this quote touches the theme of the story, It was paddled by black fellows. “Black fellows” Discriminatory language-(You could see from afar the white of their eyeballs glistening.

They shouted, sang; their bodies streamed with perspiration; they had faces like grotesque masks Is this a caricature, its describing the features of the “blacks” as a grotesque mask which to me sounds exaggerated and inaccurate. How can you say that about someone? Isn’t that a bit condescending, comparing their faces to an ugly mask (simile) these chaps; but they had bone, muscle, a wild vitality, an intense energy of movement, descriptive language describing their sharp features. that was as natural and true as the surf along their coast.

They wanted no excuse for being there. They were a great comfort to look at. For a time I would feel I belonged still to a world of straightforward facts. What are the straight forward facts and who defines them? ; But the feeling would not last long. Something would turn up to scare it away. Once, I remember, we came upon a man-of-war anchored off the coast. There wasn’t even a shed there, and she was shelling the bush. It appears the French had one of their wars going on thereabouts.

Her ensign dropped limp like a rag; the muzzles of the long six-inch guns stuck out all over the low hull; the greasy, slimy swell swung her up lazily and let her down, swaying her thin masts. In the empty immensity of earth, sky, and water, there she was, incomprehensible, firing into a continent. Onomatopoeia(Pop, would go one of the six-inch guns; a small flame would dart and vanish, a little white smoke would disappear, a tiny projectile would give a feeble screech — and nothing happened. Nothing could happen.

There was a touch of insanity in the proceeding ‘Touch of Insanity” is no t the lateral meaning of the word, in this case it can be used as a figure of speech, a sense of lugubrious drollery in the sight; and it was not dissipated by somebody on board assuring me earnestly there was a camp of natives — he called them enemies! — hidden out of sight somewhere. Passage 2: We penetrated deeper and deeper into the heart of darkness. It has a literal and figurative meaning. Literal in that the river shrunk as they continued on with their journey and opened up from the front.

It’s figurative in that the heart of darkness symbolizes the things unknown and the things which represent or hold a larger importance. It was very quiet there. At night sometimes the roll of drums behind the curtain of trees would run up the river and remain sustained faintly, as if hovering in the air high over our heads, till the first break of day. Whether it meant war, peace, or prayer we could not tell. … We were wanderers on prehistoric earth, on an earth that wore the aspect of an unknown planet.

They had gone so far off, that they went able to recognize anything and thus they felt like they were born again as they went further down into the heart of darkness. We could have fancied ourselves the first of men taking possession of an accursed inheritance, to be subdued at the cost of profound anguish and of excessive toil. But suddenly, as we struggled round a bend, there would be a glimpse of rush walls, of peaked grass hoofs, a burst of yells, a whirl of black limbs, a mass of hands clapping, of feet stamping, of bodies swaying, of eyes rolling, Parallelism(‘…of…’) under the droop of heavy and motionless foliage. .. The prehistoric man was cursing us, praying to us, welcoming us-who Parallelism (‘…was’) could tell. Who is to judge whether they were welcoming them or abusing them. This passage shows uncertainty in that nothing seems understandable. ? We were cut off from the comprehension of our surroundings; we glided past like phantoms, Simile in that as the glided past no one noticed them and like a ghost it almost wasn’t real. Nothing seemed real, and their presence was insignificant. They were invisible. ondering and secretly appalled, as sane men would be before an enthusiastic outbreak in a madhouse. Analogy: As they tried to discover the unknown just like men from a mad house released and waiting to get out and notice everything. could not understand because we were too far and could not remember, because we were traveling in the night of first ages, of those ages that are gone, leaving hardly a sign-and no memories. The earth seemed unearthly. Paradox We are accustomed to 1ook upon the shackled form of a conquered monster, but there – there you could look at a thing monstrous and free.

It was unearthly, and the men were–No, they were not inhuman. Well, you know, that was the worst of it-this suspicion of their not being inhuman. I would come slowly to one. They howled and leaped, and spun, and made horrid faces; 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. Ugly. Yes, it was ugly enough; They were horrified and unable to recognize there surroundings. They felt like they had been born again into a world waiting to be re discovered. ut if you were man enough you would admit to yourself that there was in you just the faintest trace of a response to the terrible frankness of that noise, a dim suspicion of there being a meaning in it which you -you so remote from tile night of the first ages–could comprehend. And why not? The mind of man is capable of anything-because everything is in it, all the past as well as the future. What was there after all? Joy, fear, sorrow, devotion, valor, rage-who can tell? -but truth-truth stripped of its cloak of time. Let the fool gape and shudder-the man knows, and can look on without a wink.

But he must at least be as much of a man as these on the shore. He must meet that truth with his own true stuff-with his inborn strength. They were searching for the truth…but what was really the ‘truth’? Principles won’t do. Acquisitions, clothes, pretty rags–rags that would fly off at the first good shake. No; you want a deliberate belief. An appeal to me in this fiendish row-is there? Very well; I hear; I admit, but I have a voice, Parallelism (‘…I… ’) too, and for good or evil mine is the speech that cannot be silenced. Of course, a fool, what with sheer fright and fine sentiments, is always safe.