Author: Joseph Conrad was a Polish-born novelist who had a long and fruitful career at sea before taking up writing. His experiences as a sailor had a large influence on many of his works, including Heart of Darkness.
Setting: the Belgian Congo, late 19th-century
Significant characters: Marlow, the Manager, the Brickmaker, the Russian, Kurtz, the Mistress, the Intended
Plot:
Marlow, the narrator, and other acquaintances are sitting aboard The Nellie, a “cruising yawl.” Marlow alludes to the Roman conquest of ancient Britain before beginning a story about his experiences working for a Belgian trading company in the Congo. An unspecified amount of time ago, Marlow is appointed “skipper of a river steamboat” through his aunt’s contacts in the Company. He then leaves the “whited sepulchre” of Brussels and begins his travels to Africa.
After passing a French warship aimlessly firing into the wilderness, Marlow reaches the first station, where he witnesses the cruel mistreatment of the natives at the hands of the Europeans. After meeting the Company’s chief accountant -- who briefly mentions the mysterious Kurtz -- he waits ten days before travelling to the Central Station. Here, Marlow meets the Manager and the Brickmaker (both of whom he despises) and is also told that he will need to wait several months there to repair his sunken steamer. As time passes, Marlow becomes more and more infatuated with meeting Kurtz, and eventually he begins his steamboat travels up the Congo River along with some natives and “pilgrims.”
As Marlow and his crew journey further and further into the “heart of darkness,” progress becomes both slower and more tense. They reach a dilapidated hut about “fifty miles below the Inner Station” where Marlow finds a book marked up in indecipherable writing, and continue towards Kurtz. A couple days later, the boat is enveloped in a deep fog, and suddenly the natives attack from all sides. Marlow manages to scare the attackers away with the steam whistle, but not before his African helmsman is killed. The boat finally reaches the Inner Station, where Marlow meets one of Kurtz’s devoted followers whom Marlow dubs “The Russian.”
The Russian explains that the local natives view Kurtz as a god, but that he is deathly ill. As they leave with his emaciated form, the natives consider another attack but ultimately stand down due to his African mistress’ orders. The steamboat begins to travel back down the river. Marlow converses extensively with Kurtz, and stops him when he attempts to return to the natives under his control. Finally, Kurtz succumbs to his disease, whispering “The horror! The horror!” right before his death. Marlow becomes very sick as well, and is never the same after his recovery. He resolves not to betray Kurtz to the Company, instead opting to go and speak with Kurtz’s Intended. When she asks him what Kurtz’s last words were, Marlow cannot bear to tell her the truth; instead, he lies and says that it was her name. Marlow finishes his story, and the narrator sits in silence, contemplating how the Thames itself “seem[s] to lead into the heart of an immense darkness.”
Analysis:
Narrative Voice/Style:
Heart of Darkness’s main narrative is told in Marlow’s first-person as a recollection of his past experiences, while its frame is also told in first-person through the narrator. Interestingly, Marlow breaks his narrative several times throughout the novella to directly address the others aboard The Nellie. In terms of tone, Marlow uses many different ones: he sarcastically mocks the incompetence of the Europeans, is blatantly racist in his description of the African natives, and uses a foreboding tone to characterize the wilderness of Africa itself. Imagery is present throughout as well, often to describe the utter savagery of the African jungle and its native peoples; indeed, Conrad’s style seems to be centered around extensive descriptions and flowery yet powerful language. Symbolism in Heart of Darkness is a vast topic -- notable examples include darkness and its multiple meanings, Marlow’s journey itself as a representation of a quest into Hell, and Kurtz as a Faustian figure.
Theme:
In Heart of Darkness, Conrad highlights the faults in the human condition to illustrate how similar we all are.
Conrad supports this theme in a variety of ways throughout Heart of Darkness. In a sense, the title itself refers to a commonality within the human condition; that is, we all have a “heart of darkness” inside ourselves. While certainly racist in its depiction of the natives, Conrad’s narrative tone also lampoons the bumbling and conniving Europeans, bringing them down closer (though not equal to) the “savage” natives. Another example is with the character of Kurtz, who enters the jungle as a man seemingly devoted to moralizing and civilizing the natives but ends up in a far darker spot. It is in this sense, then, that Kurtz can be considered a Faustian figure: someone who perhaps was very much an ordinary man beforehand, but who ended up selling his soul to the jungle and the pursuit of ivory.
Significant Quotes:
“The horror! The horror!” -- Kurtz.
Perhaps one of the most well-known quotes from the novella, Kurtz’s last words have prompted countless discussions about what he’s truly so terrified of in his final moments. Is it because he’s reflecting on the terrible crimes he’s committed during his lifetime, or is he more horrified that he never got to fully realize his ambitions? Marlow seems to favor the former, but I suspect that it’s a mixture of both.
“The heavens do not fall for such a trifle. Would they have fallen, I wonder, if I had rendered Kurtz that justice which was his due? Hadn’t he said he wanted only justice? But I couldn’t. I could not tell her. It would have been too dark, too dark -- too dark altogether… “ -- Marlow.
This grim quote concludes Marlow’s ill-fated story, bringing the reader back to the frame. What makes it significant is Marlow’s earlier insistence about how he detests lies -- now, faced with the moral dilemma of lying or telling the truth and breaking the Intended’s heart for a second time, Marlow reluctantly opts for the former.
Setting: the Belgian Congo, late 19th-century
Significant characters: Marlow, the Manager, the Brickmaker, the Russian, Kurtz, the Mistress, the Intended
Plot:
Marlow, the narrator, and other acquaintances are sitting aboard The Nellie, a “cruising yawl.” Marlow alludes to the Roman conquest of ancient Britain before beginning a story about his experiences working for a Belgian trading company in the Congo. An unspecified amount of time ago, Marlow is appointed “skipper of a river steamboat” through his aunt’s contacts in the Company. He then leaves the “whited sepulchre” of Brussels and begins his travels to Africa.
After passing a French warship aimlessly firing into the wilderness, Marlow reaches the first station, where he witnesses the cruel mistreatment of the natives at the hands of the Europeans. After meeting the Company’s chief accountant -- who briefly mentions the mysterious Kurtz -- he waits ten days before travelling to the Central Station. Here, Marlow meets the Manager and the Brickmaker (both of whom he despises) and is also told that he will need to wait several months there to repair his sunken steamer. As time passes, Marlow becomes more and more infatuated with meeting Kurtz, and eventually he begins his steamboat travels up the Congo River along with some natives and “pilgrims.”
As Marlow and his crew journey further and further into the “heart of darkness,” progress becomes both slower and more tense. They reach a dilapidated hut about “fifty miles below the Inner Station” where Marlow finds a book marked up in indecipherable writing, and continue towards Kurtz. A couple days later, the boat is enveloped in a deep fog, and suddenly the natives attack from all sides. Marlow manages to scare the attackers away with the steam whistle, but not before his African helmsman is killed. The boat finally reaches the Inner Station, where Marlow meets one of Kurtz’s devoted followers whom Marlow dubs “The Russian.”
The Russian explains that the local natives view Kurtz as a god, but that he is deathly ill. As they leave with his emaciated form, the natives consider another attack but ultimately stand down due to his African mistress’ orders. The steamboat begins to travel back down the river. Marlow converses extensively with Kurtz, and stops him when he attempts to return to the natives under his control. Finally, Kurtz succumbs to his disease, whispering “The horror! The horror!” right before his death. Marlow becomes very sick as well, and is never the same after his recovery. He resolves not to betray Kurtz to the Company, instead opting to go and speak with Kurtz’s Intended. When she asks him what Kurtz’s last words were, Marlow cannot bear to tell her the truth; instead, he lies and says that it was her name. Marlow finishes his story, and the narrator sits in silence, contemplating how the Thames itself “seem[s] to lead into the heart of an immense darkness.”
Analysis:
Narrative Voice/Style:
Heart of Darkness’s main narrative is told in Marlow’s first-person as a recollection of his past experiences, while its frame is also told in first-person through the narrator. Interestingly, Marlow breaks his narrative several times throughout the novella to directly address the others aboard The Nellie. In terms of tone, Marlow uses many different ones: he sarcastically mocks the incompetence of the Europeans, is blatantly racist in his description of the African natives, and uses a foreboding tone to characterize the wilderness of Africa itself. Imagery is present throughout as well, often to describe the utter savagery of the African jungle and its native peoples; indeed, Conrad’s style seems to be centered around extensive descriptions and flowery yet powerful language. Symbolism in Heart of Darkness is a vast topic -- notable examples include darkness and its multiple meanings, Marlow’s journey itself as a representation of a quest into Hell, and Kurtz as a Faustian figure.
Theme:
In Heart of Darkness, Conrad highlights the faults in the human condition to illustrate how similar we all are.
Conrad supports this theme in a variety of ways throughout Heart of Darkness. In a sense, the title itself refers to a commonality within the human condition; that is, we all have a “heart of darkness” inside ourselves. While certainly racist in its depiction of the natives, Conrad’s narrative tone also lampoons the bumbling and conniving Europeans, bringing them down closer (though not equal to) the “savage” natives. Another example is with the character of Kurtz, who enters the jungle as a man seemingly devoted to moralizing and civilizing the natives but ends up in a far darker spot. It is in this sense, then, that Kurtz can be considered a Faustian figure: someone who perhaps was very much an ordinary man beforehand, but who ended up selling his soul to the jungle and the pursuit of ivory.
Significant Quotes:
“The horror! The horror!” -- Kurtz.
Perhaps one of the most well-known quotes from the novella, Kurtz’s last words have prompted countless discussions about what he’s truly so terrified of in his final moments. Is it because he’s reflecting on the terrible crimes he’s committed during his lifetime, or is he more horrified that he never got to fully realize his ambitions? Marlow seems to favor the former, but I suspect that it’s a mixture of both.
“The heavens do not fall for such a trifle. Would they have fallen, I wonder, if I had rendered Kurtz that justice which was his due? Hadn’t he said he wanted only justice? But I couldn’t. I could not tell her. It would have been too dark, too dark -- too dark altogether… “ -- Marlow.
This grim quote concludes Marlow’s ill-fated story, bringing the reader back to the frame. What makes it significant is Marlow’s earlier insistence about how he detests lies -- now, faced with the moral dilemma of lying or telling the truth and breaking the Intended’s heart for a second time, Marlow reluctantly opts for the former.