The Importance Of Imperialism In The Heart Of Darkness By Joseph Conrad

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In The Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad, a seaman named Marlow examines European imperialism before his very eyes and how it is affecting the natives in the area they are imperializing, which is the Belgian Congo. Conrad conveys to the reader that multiple people have multiple views on the natives and their habitat. On the other hand, Conrad also displays how the natives have different feelings for the Europeans that are intruding on their land. Through Marlow’s eyes, we see a very prospective view as he speaks of how he does not favor the treatment of the natives yet he does nothing to stop it. However, we are also able to see the viewpoints of others. Conrad shows us that the Europeans do not have feelings for the natives and their main motive is to gain more ivory. …show more content…

He first gets his job and we see how excited he is just to begin to explore the seas. However, this begins to change when starts to explore the Congo. When he begins to arrive to the stations and such, we see how he does not appreciate what he is seeing. Conrad uses very descriptive diction at this point to emphasize what kind of point of view we receive from Marlow. When speaking about the slaves chained up together, Marlow says he “could see every rib, the joints...like knots in a rope”(18). Conrad uses this descriptive language to not only show how terrible the conditions were of the natives but also to show how Marlow also can see how terribly they have been treated. This also shows a comparison between what Marlow sees and what the Europeans view. Conrad does not blatantly say what the other Europeans view but as a reader we can assume that they basically feel nothing towards the natives because they are the ones creating the problems and troubles for the natives. Conrad also shows that the Europeans feel like they are helping the “savages” by civilizing them with their own culture and traditions. The motives of these two also contrast greatly and that affects their view

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