Heart of Darkness Essay
When is the symbolism of black and white in Heart of Darkness most apparent?
Heart of Darkness is categorized as a novella, written in 1899 by Joseph Conrad. The story is narrated by Marlow, who describes his voyage up the Congo River and his search for the mysterious ivory trader, Mr. Kurtz. The question of ever present contrast between black and white is best illustrated by a painting that Marlow encounters early in his journey. This painting depicts white blindfolded woman placed in a black background, who is holding a torch in her hand. She is supposed to be the symbol of light that Europeans are ‘’bringing’’ to Congo.
However, the reality is much less transparent and Conrad does not easily see such a clear distinction between light and dark, in the jungles of Congo. Later, it becomes more evident that he believes the true darkness to come from within the depths of human soul, as was shown by the example of Mr. Kurtz. To contrast the darkness of Kurtz’s soul, we have an example from the beginning of the novel, when Marlow was on a steamboat with his African crewmen who he refers to as cannibals. His representation of Africans as cannibals, and comparing their customs to those of violence, madness and death, is mostly based on the racist views of the Victorian society.
Although Marlow knows that these men have eaten human flesh, he notices their ability to ‘’restrain’’ themselves from eating his entire crew, as they his crew was outnumbered at least six to one: “Restraint! I would just as soon have expected restraint from a hyena prowling amongst the corpses of a battlefield” (Conrad, 1902). Restraint is something he did not notice when he finally met Kurtz and realized where the true darkness is coming from. These black cannibals made him see the light in their souls, by honoring the deal and not giving in to their cannibalistic nature. So here, it is very clear that the darkness which Victorians use when referring to Africa is merely a product of their own fear and vanity, mostly characteristic of white societies.
The last part of Marlow’s story is where we feel the strongest connection to the darkness. Upon Kurtz’s dying breath he utters the words ‘’the horror, the horror’’ (Conrad, 1902). Although Conrad leaves this for reader’s interpretation, I believe we can safely say that Kurtz himself had finally delved deep into his own soul and seen what had become of him, how corrupt and dark his soul had become. Marlow’s story ends as it began, with a veil of darkness shrouding the scene, but the darkness of the jungle was cast into shadows by the darkness of one man.
Works Cited
- Rickard, J. (2007). Eating Like a White Man: Nibbling at the Edges of Heart of Darkness. Retrieved from http://www.facstaff.bucknell.edu/rickard/RickardEssay.htm
- https://heartofdarknessproject.wordpress.com/symbols-and- motifs/ Conrad, J. (1902). Heart of Darkness. Retrieved from
- http://www.planetpublish.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Heart_of_Darkness_T.pdf
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