Loss of Innocence in Heart of Darkness
Heart of Darkness is Joseph Conrad's tale of one man's journey, both mental and physical, into the depths of the wild African jungle and the human soul. The seaman, Marlow, tells his crew a startling tale of a man named Kurtz and his expedition that culminates in his encounter with the "voice" of Kurtz and ultimately, Kurtz's demise. The passage from Part I of the novel consists of Marlow's initial encounter with the natives of this place of immense darkness, directly relating to Conrad's use of imagery and metaphor to illustrate to the reader the contrast between light and dark. The passage, although occurring earlier on in the novel, is interspersed with Marlow's two opposing points of view: one of naïveté, which comes before Marlow's eventual epiphany after having met Kurtz, and the matured perspective he takes on after all of the events leading up to his and Kurtz's encounter.
Almost immediately after the start of the passage, the reader is exposed to the prejudices of the white inhibitors. The indigenous people of the area are repeatedly compared to animals, dehumanizing them and depriving them of the common respect that all people deserve, regardless of race or creed. On page 24, Marlow says "A lot of people, mostly black and naked, moved about like ants." Reinforcing this idea, he lends them other animal-like qualities, calling the sickly ones "creatures" and describing their movements as being "off on all fours...to drink," and even the act of drinking is described as the native having "lapped out of his hand," reminiscent of something a dog would do (28).
Another interesting employment of language used by...
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...s of the jungle, which sought to swallow him whole like the snake devouring its prey, sending it deeper within its body digesting it by stripping it of its layers one by one, paralleling the snake-like qualities of the river that drew Marlow deeper and deeper into its dark nothingness. And just like the Ancient Mariner, who is doomed to tell his tale for the rest of his life for the sake of penitence, Marlow, too, seems to retell his story of the tragic loss of innocence, of death and rebirth. Regardless of how many times the story had been told before it got to the narrator who eventually transcribed the events, it is one of great importance. It tells us that we must not judge a book by its cover, regardless of how convinced we may be of what is inside.
Works Cited
Conrad, Joseph. Heart of Darkness. New York: Barnes & Noble Books, 1994.
with a knife, Tom hit him over the head with a shovel, and killing him in the
Elie’s loss of innocence and childhood lifestyle is very pronounced within the book, Night. This book, written by the main character, Elie Wiesel, tells the readers about the experiences of Mr. Wiesel during the Holocaust. The book starts off by describing Elie’s life in his hometown, Sighet, with his family and friends. As fascism takes over Hungary, Elie and his family are sent north, to Auschwitz concentration camp. Elie stays with his father and speaks of his life during this time. Later, after many stories of the horrors and dehumanizing acts of the camp, Elie and his father make the treacherous march towards Gliewitz. Then they are hauled to Buchenwald by way of cattle cars in extremely deplorable conditions, even by Holocaust standards. The book ends as Elie’s father is now dead and the American army has liberated them. As Elie is recovering in the hospital he gazes at himself in a mirror, he subtly notes he much he has changed. In Night by Elie Wiesel, Elie loses his innocence and demeanour because he was traumatized by what he saw in the camps, his loss of faith in a God who stood idly by while his people suffered, and becoming selfish as he is forced to become selfish in the death camps to survive.
in with Jim and that's shown by the horn breaking. Tom then realizes that and
As Marlow tells his story we see and understand the situations Marlow faced. In his first encounter with the tribes men, Marlow steps into a "gloomy circle of some inferno", where dark figures surrounded him. He compares this incident with that of a massacre, the starving and wasting bodies lying in "confusion". Marlow then encounters a young black boy with a piece of white cotton string tied around his neck. This simple piece of string symbolizes the young boy's innocence. Shortly after Marlow offers the boy a biscuit, another one of the shapes approaches the river , crawling, and drinks of the water. Marlow could not stand the sight of the suffering any longer. It was as though he felt what they were feeling and just when he was willing to help, he stands up and walks away. The path where Marlow meets those that had traveled to an unknown land, and walked uncertain of where they where but sure of what they wanted, started here.
The world’s coral reefs are quintessential to global biodiversity, so much so that they are often referred to as the "rainforests of the sea". Although their actual space occupied by reefs is relatively small, constituting less than 0.1% of the world's ocean surface, they support over 25% of all marine species on earth. They provide complex and varied marine habitats that support a wide range of other organisms including, but not limited to, fish, mollusks, worms, crustaceans, echinoderms, sponges, tunicates and other cnidarians. Some of these animals feed directly on the corals, while others graze on algae on the reef. The reef also provides a protective habitat for many of these animals.
in with Jim and that's shown by the horn breaking. Tom then realizes that and
The novel, Heart of Darkness, by Joseph Conrad, is literally about Marlow’s journey into the Belgian Congo, but symbolically about the discovery of his heart and soul during his journey, only to find that it is consumed by darkness. He realizes that the man he admired and respected most, is really demonic and that he may be just like him. He is able to come to this realization however, before it takes the best of him.
Coral reefs, which are underwater structures created by calcium carbonate secretions, are some of the richest interdependent ecosystems on Earth. According to Wikipedia, coral reefs occupy less than 0.1% of Earth’s ocean surface, yet they provide a home for 25% of all marine species. Often referred to as the “rainforests of the ocean,” coral reefs are home to thousands upon thousands of species of plants and animals (“Coral Reef”). Not only are they an important part of ocean environments, but coral reefs are also extremely important and beneficial to humans; these reefs protect shorelines and provide countless people with food, jobs, and income sources. However, coral reefs are disappearing at an extremely alarming rate. From overfishing to pollution to sedimentation, the world’s coral reefs are in grave danger and humans must actively work to protect and restore these oceanic rainforests.
Marlow’s story begins with him telling the story of Fresleven, a European who lost restraint and could not control himself. Fresleven, being born into civilization, never learned proper restraint. Fresleven, known as, “the gentlest, quietest creature that ever walked on two legs” (Conrad 6) shows how easy restraint can be lost. Freselven went mad because civilization never forced him to be restrained. Fresleven lost restraint because he went from the sophisticated society of Europe to the uncivilized, jungle of Africa. The people who grow up in the chaos and uncivilized jungle adapt to restraining themselves to survive.
Heart of Darkness is a kind of little world unto itself. The reader of Conrad’s Heart of Darkness should take the time to consider this work from a psychological point of view. There are, after all, an awful lot of heads and skulls in the book, and Conrad goes out of his way to suggest that in some sense Marlow's journey is like a dream or a return to our primitive past--an exploration of the dark recesses of the human mind.
The coral reefs on our planet are sorted into three categories; the fringing reefs, the barrier reefs and the atolls. A fringing reef is a reef that grows directly from the shore and towards the sea with no water between the sand and the reef at all. These reefs create borders around islands and shores, and boats often destroy them because they are in the shore’s way. Barrier reefs border shorelines a...
"Heart of Darkness , which follows closely the actual events of Conrad's Congo journey, tells of the narrator's fascination by a mysterious white man, Kurtz, who, by his eloquence and hypnotic personality, dominates the brutal tribesmen around him. Full of contempt for the greedy traders who exploit the natives, the narrator cannot deny the power of this figure of evil who calls forth from him something approaching reluctant loyalty."[1]
Coral reefs do have a structure. “Coral reefs begin to form when free-swimming coral larvae attach to the edges of island or continents.” There are three types of reefs, fringing, barrier and atoll. Beds of sea grasses often develop in sandy regions. The three reefs share the same similarities from their bottom to pogramph their temperature. But they do have various zones which vary according to their location and their type of reef. There are more than a few thousand reefs that range close to flat. A reef has a highest point and it’s lowest point; it’s highest point is called the reef crest or algal ridge. The width of this zone typically varies, but they are usually 50 meters. These types of reefs produce hundreds of marine life; from small crabs o tiny little
Located in tropical ocean waters, coral reefs provide priceless resources to both human and marine life. They exist in an area about 30 degrees on either side of the equator. Coral reefs are home to more species than any other marine ecosystem. This includes over 1500 types of fish and 500 different types of algae. (Encarta) However, nearly 60% of coral reefs are in serious danger due to both natural and man-made causes.
At the beginning of the novel, Marlow is traveling the jungle and the many scenes of life can be seen. Africa has seems to be taken over by many travelers which makes one wonder what is there ulterior motive? Africa is a third world country, which makes it easy for someone to come in and talk on their soapbox. It is very easy to tell that these men are not the biggest fans of colored people, so it is plausible that they have come to instill a sense of imperialism. As Marlow passes through the waters of the Congo it is easily visible the trouble of the natives. “Black shapes crouched, lay, sat between the trees, leaning against the trunks, clinging to the earth half coming out, half effaced with the dim light, in all the attitudes of pain, abandonment, and despair.” (20) Show that the holding of these colonies has started. The soldiers have come in and taken the inhabitants and are destroying them and taking from them the one thing they deserve over everything, life. The imperialists seem to not care about the Africans and are just there for their land.