Joseph Conrad’s use of light and darkness to represent good and evil in the Heart of Darkness helps in developing the theme and the plot of the novel. Conrad uses the symbol of light and darkness repetitively throughout the novel in order to disclose his insight to the reader; Conrad uses light and darkness when referring to the Thames and
Congo river, the skin color and hearts of the whites and blacks, and the black mistress and the Intended.
Conrad’s use of light and darkness is evident from the opening of the novel. The story opens on the tranquil Thames River aboard the cruising yawl called the Nellie. All is calm on the water as the lights of London twinkle around the boat. The Thames River, which is seen as calm, ‘civil’ and bright, is an obvious contrast to the Congo River that
Marlow navigates in Africa. The Congo is full of darkness and fractiousness. Ironically, the bright Thames is described similarly to the dark Congo. In the closing lines of the novel, the Thames seems to be flowing "into the heart of an immense darkness”( ). During the onset of the novel, in which none of Marlow’s story is disclosed, the narrator is ignorant to the horrors of European imperialism, and he subsequently describes the
Thames as bright and lit. However, during the closing of the novel, in which the startling cruelty of the Europeans is divulged, the narrator describes the Thames as strikingly different: immensely dark. Through the use of lightness and darkness Conrad inveighs that regardless of where the white man exists, in civilized London or deepest Africa, he seems to bring darkness: inhumanity to his fellow man.
Conrad uses light and darkness in context of the color of skin of the whites and blacks, as well as the corresponding good and evil of their hearts. In contrast to the greed and cruelty of the white men in Africa, who voraciously and recklessly seize ivory at any cost to human life, Conrad depicts the black natives as having more self-control. The
Manager is starving the cannibals on board Marlow's steamer to death, and although they eagerly eye the body of the dead helmsman and also the physique of the plump Russian, they restrain their native urges and do not attack the living or the dead. In a similar manner, the ‘savages’ along the Congo do not attack the steamer bearing the greedy
Europeans even though they know the intent is to be evil and destructive. It is only a white
Watts, Cedric. 'Heart of Darkness.' The Cambridge Companion to Joseph Conrad. Ed. J.H. Stape. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996. 45-62.
The contrast between light and dark is very important when attempting to understand Conrad's thoughts and ideas about civilization and what it really is.
While forging into the unknown forests along the Congo River, Marlow notes that the farther they go, the more sinister everything seems. He comments that nature itself, “‘…seemed to beckon with a dishonouring flourish before the sunlit face of the land a treacherous appeal to the lurking death, to the hidden evil, to the profound darkness of its heart’” (Conrad 65). This passage hints that there are perhaps deeper, more malicious evils hiding within the jungle. The sunlight does not even seem to penetrate the incomprehensible dark, and Marlow feels the anxiousness of the unknown creeping upon him. As the Company continues on the river, they face a fog that disorients them for days. Marlow narrates the journey: “‘The rest of the world was nowhere, as far as our eyes and ears were concerned. Just nowhere. Gone, disappeared; swept off without leaving a whisper or a shadow behind’” (81). Through all the abnormal and frightening sounds that pervade the endlessly dense mist, Marlow senses they are approaching something that does not wish to be uncovered because the world disappears in the face of it. Demonstrating this concept, he says a few pages later, “‘The woods were unmoved, like a mask—heavy, like the closed door of a prison...’” (118). The so-called mask of the jungle hides what Marlow wants to find most: the elusive Mr. Kurtz, who later shows that the natural darkness in which he lives
Marlow stands on the Thames River and remarks that the land he and his comrades is standing on was once a place of darkness and an uncivilized wilderness
Asking the right questions is indeed an art form . It is however an even bigger burden to try to answer from an analytical presepective these subjective questions which inspire answers and explanations to the ultimate “why” and “how” . As readers we are obligated to carry with us an open mind, an analytical eye and room for suggestive arguments when trying to dissect a piece of writing. Joseph Conrad's novella Heart of Darkness offers the perfect platform for interpretation. With a dozen shades of foggy gray's, the short story is begging for a set of eyes that can see it through. Without proceeding too far into the novella, one can draw out a great deal of analytical suggestions as to what the title itself implies. The word Darkness seems to be a consistent theme throughout the book. So much so, that the amount of weight it carries has given it a special place on the cover. Many critics have found common ground on deciphering the interpretation of the word .The concept of darkness could be respresenting evil. However, some significant subjective questions remain unaswered: Exaclty which character in the novella has fallen victim to this evil? Is it Conrad himself, Marlow, Kurtz or the natives? All of them? Are there different forms in which this evil can manifest itself? Is it talking about darkness in the literal or figurative sense? Would we be considered naïve if we thought evil could be contained or is darkness a necessary evil we all posses and an undeniable part of our reality?
Conrad uses light and dark imagery to help create the setting for the story; light represents civilization while darkness suggests the uncivilized. The novel opens on the deck of a boat called the Nellie, as we are introduced to the passengers we are told how the sun is slowly fading, and soon darkness will engulf the area. This image is Conrad?s first use of light and darkness; he uses it to foreshadow the ultimate darkness Marlow will face. Conrad is warning his readers to be careful, lest they let down their guard and allow the darkness to come them. The other character in the book, Kurtz, is taken over by the evil embodied in the darkness. During Kurtz?s journey into the heart of darkness the isolation, darkness and power all made him lose control of himself and allowed the darkness to take over.
Throughout its entirety, Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness utilizes many contrasts and paradoxes in an attempt to teach readers about the complexities of both human nature and the world. Some are more easily distinguishable, such as the comparison between civilized and uncivilized people, and some are more difficult to identify, like the usage of vagueness and clarity to contrast each other. One of the most prominent inversions contradicts the typical views of light and dark. While typically light is imagined to expose the truth and darkness to conceal it, Conrad creates a paradox in which darkness displays the truth and light blinds us from it.
Heart of Darkness was a huge milestone in the history of literature do to the impeccable way Conrad used ambiguity to describe his story. He does this by using symbols, themes, and archetypal images. These include light and dark, the Congo river, colors, and by not explaining everything to the reader. While reading the novel, the reader is actually required to interpret the text and really think about what certain details mean. The way Conrad wrote the novel is for the reader is to look for clues and develop ideas. It is completely subjective and trying to find exact answers is not an option. This writing style opened the eyes of many writers and changed the way literature was understood.
Conrad also employs the literary device of symbolism to further display the theme, the duality of human nature in his novella Heart of Darkness. Three major examples of symbolism are evident in this novella. These examples include, light and dark, the Congo River, and ivory. Similar to Stevenson, Conrad uses light and dark symbolism throughout his novella. Yet curiously in Heart of Darkness, light does not symbolize genuine goodness nor does dark symbolize pure calamity. Marlow proves this when he says as a comment to the Nellie’s sailors that, “I know that the sunlight can be made to lie, too” (Conrad 1944). The true essence of the light and dark symbolism is portrayed when Marlow compares the white men to the black men, concluding that these men are all the same. In Heart of Darkness, the symbolizing of light and dark actually represents the duality of human nature, a universal condition, which affects all men despite their skin color. In Heart of Darkness, Marlow’s voyage up the Congo River represents Marlow’s own inward journey. As Marlow advances up the river in search for Kurtz, he begins to learn more and more about himself. Nearing the end of his voyage up the Congo River, Marlow realizes he has more in common with the natives than with the European imperialists. At the end of his journey, when Marlow finally reaches Kurtz, he has learned that everybody has a dark side, but some people learned how to conceal it better than others. The third example of symbolism is ivory. In Heart of Darkness, ivory symbolizes greed and the calamitous nature of man, or the evil side. All throughout the novella the agents and managers of the Company are consumed by obtaining ivory. So much so, that they abandon all their moral principles and...
* Watts, Cedric. “‘A Bloody Racist’: About Achebe’s View of Conrad” in Joseph Conrad; Critical Assessments, Keith Carabine, ed., Volume II: ‘The Critical Response: Almayer’s Folly to The Mirror of the Sea’ (Mountfield: Helm Information Ltd., 1992)
Works Cited Conrad, Joseph. A. The Heart of Darkness. Middlesex, England: Penguin Publishers, 1983. Gillon, Adam.
The "Heart of Darkness," written by Joseph Conrad in 1899 as a short story, is about two men who face their own identities as what they consider to be civilized Europeans and the struggle to not to abandon their themselves and their morality once they venture into the "darkness." The use of "darkness" is in the book's title and in throughout the story and takes on a number of meanings that are not easily understood until the story progresses. As you read the story you realize that the meaning of "darkness" is not something that is constant but changes depending on the context it used.
Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness is a great example of a Modernist novel because of its general obscurity. The language is thick and opaque. The novel is littered with words such as: inconceivable, inscrutable, gloom. Rather than defining characters in black and white terms, like good and bad, they entire novel is in different shades of gray. The unfolding of events takes the reader between many a foggy bank; the action in the book and not just the language echoes tones of gray.
Heart of Darkness is a story in which racism presents itself so deliberately that, for many, the dilemma of race must be tackled before anything else in the book may be dealt with. Conrad used derogatory, outdated and offensive terminology to devaluate people’s color as savages. This use of language disturbs many readers who read this book. Although Conrad uses racist language in this book, it doesn’t mean that he is really racist. When we look at the language, we are just looking at the very surface of the story.
"Heart of Darkness" is Conrad's journey to the Self/Autobiographical elements in the "Heart of Darkness"