Heart Of Darkness Imperialism

Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness discusses the destruction of a man’s soul as a result of imperialism.

As the main character Marlow travels up the Congo River he encounters the true horrors of imperialism and witnesses the mistreatment of the natives. They were very much exhausted with the never ending work routines by the colonizers. The brutal oppression was very much visible in the description, “They were dying slowly – it was very clear. They were not enemies, they were not criminals, they were nothing earthly now – nothing but black shadows of disease and starvation, lying confusedly in the greenish gloom” (14). The dehumanization of the natives by the Europeans highlights their development of an extreme sense of self-importance and

This description represents the brutality of the Belgian imperialists. They were torturing them violently and doing manual labor work by them, “Six black men advanced in a file, toiling up the path. They walked erect and slow, balancing small baskets full of earth in their heads, and the clink kept time with their footsteps. Black rags were wound round their loins, and the short ends behind waggled to and fro like tails. I could see every rib, the joints of their limbs were like knots in a rope; each had an iron collar on his neck, and all were connected together with a chain whose bights swung between them, rhythmically clinking” (12). Heart of Darkness is a perfect example of the misuse of the Imperial system in a wrong way. First of all, we have to understand that imperialism has a very significant relation with Colonialism. From the system of Imperialism, Colonialism occurred. As we know, the meaning of Imperialism is the policy of controlling another country. In this way, Colonialism occurred from Imperialism to install political power, settlement on the people on the land of another society. Colonialism began drastically when the European overseas expansion started at 1500. We

While it is easy to dismiss his state of mind as the effect of greed and arrogance--his ability to accumulate massive amounts of ivory has rendered him a god-like entity in the eyes of both the British (19), and the natives within the Congo (51)--there is decidedly more to Kurtz’s madness than monetary lust. Stemming from this, the question of the true reasons as to why these men go mad arises. In tracing the elements that contribute to the perception of madness within the narratives, it becomes clear that both men’s madness allows for a god-like mentality to emerge. As the men develop an extreme sense of self-importance, they ultimately become disconnected from the world. Simultaneously, their madness is furthered by lust, leading to greater alienation. While Kurtz’s lust arises out of his environment and is developed by the native woman, Gerald’s lust is established through a sexual relationship with Gudrun. As a result of their unrestrained desires, the men completely lose their sanity, ending in both their deaths. In analyzing Kurtz’s madness, it is important to examine the aspects of his character that indicate