Historical, Sociological, and Philosophical Elements of Heart of Darkness

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Historical, Sociological, and Philosophical Elements of Heart of Darkness

An awareness of the historical, sociological, and philosophical climate prevalent during the time in which Heart of Darkness was written plays a key role in understanding the significance of Conrad's complex work. Joseph Conrad began work on Heart of Darkness in 1898 and completed it the following year in 1899. During this time the impressionist movement was in full swing, European colonization was at its peak, racial tensions were rapidly increasing, and man was confronted with the fall of the traditional view that held man as the eminent ruler the world. Each of these issues significantly influenced Joseph Conrad's writing of the novel as well as its collective meaning for all mankind.

A look at Conrad's writing style will allow us to infer his possible intent upon writing Heart of Darkness and therefore how the reader should approach it. Conrad's writing style is centered upon the literary sense of impressionism. Literary impressionism is characterized by the use of details and mental associations to evoke subjective and sensory impressions rather than the re-creation of objective reality ("impressionism"). Conrad is trying to communicate to the readers in a way that transcends the written word. The intent here is not to abstract orderly ideas about experience, rather they try to re-create and communicate the rich complexities of experience itself, with all its darkness, messiness, and ambiguity intact (Dintenfass). Some critics have argued that Conrad presents so much detail and chaos in his works that it becomes too much for him to analyze. Conrad responded to this attack in a letter directed toward critic Richard Curle:

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...enfass, Mark. "Heart of Darkness: A Lawrence University Freshman Studies Lecture." 14 Mar. 1996. *http://www.acsu.buffalo.edu/~csicseri/dintenfass.htm* (2 Feb. 2000).

Guerard, Albert J. Conrad the Novelist. Cambridge, MA.: Harvard U. Press, 1958.

Hayes, Dorsha. "Heart of Darkness: An Aspect of the Shadow," Spring (1956): 43-47..

Hillman, James. "Notes on White Supremacy: Essaying an Archetypal Account of Historical Events," Spring (1986): 29-57.

Jean-Aubry, George. Joseph Conrad: Life and Letters. Vol. 1. New York: Page, 1966.

McLynn, Frank. Hearts of Darkness: The European Exploration of Africa. New York: Carol & Gey, 1992.

Mellard, James. "Myth and Archetype in Heart of Darkness," Tennessee Studies in Literature 13 (1968): 1-15.

Yatzeck: Marlow's Lie - http://cwis.lawrence.edu/www 4. french in Africa - www.sas.upenn edu/ AF._Studies

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