Heart of Darkness By Joseph Conrad

Born Dec. 3, 1857 Parents political activists, father also artist/writer Experiences in the Merchant Marines, especially his ten years in the British MM shaped most of his stories Died of a heart attack in 1924 Buried in Canterbury Cathedral

Heart of Darkness First published as a serial in London’s Blackwood Magazine in 1899 First unified publication – 1902 Considered by many to be the finest short novel ever written in English Bridges the Victorian and Modern literary periods Modern criticism sharply divided over merit due to racist/imperialist themes

Factual/Historical Viewpoint –The Congo River was discovered by Europeans in 1482 No one traveled more than 200 miles upstream until 1877 Is 1,600 miles long and only impassable to water traffic between two places, creating a two-hundred mile overland trip –Matadi (the Company Station) –Kinshasa (the Central Station)

History of the Congo 1878 – King Leopold II of Belgium asked explorer Henry Morton Stanley to set up a Belgian colony in the Congo –Wanted to “end slavery and civilize the natives” –Actually interested in more material benefits 1885 – Congress of Berlin forms Congo Free State –This was ruled by Leopold II alone –The Congress of Berlin is referred to in the book as “the International Society for the Suppression of Savage Customs.” –Leopold never even visited the Congo. He set up “the Company” to run it for him.

Colonial Africa, circa 1892

Ivory and “the white man’s burden” Most Europeans in the 1890s felt that the African peoples needed exposure to European culture and technology to become more evolved. This responsibility was known as “the white man’s burden” and the fervor to bring Christianity and commerce to Africa grew. In return for these “benefits,” the Europeans extracted HUGE amounts of ivory.

Ivory, cont. Uses of ivory in the 1890s –Jewelry and other decorative items –Piano keys –Billiard balls From 1888 to 1892, the amount of ivory exported from the Congo rose from 13,000 pounds to more than a quarter million pounds – Leopold declares all natural resources in the Congo are his sole property –This gave the Belgians free reign to take whatever they wanted however they wished. –Trade expands, new stations are established farther and farther away

The Results of Ivory Fever Documented atrocities committed by the Belgian ivory traders include the severing of hands and heads. Reports of this, combined with Conrad’s portrayal of the system in Heart of Darkness, led to an international protest movement against Belgium’s presence in Africa Leopold outlawed these practices, but his decree had little effect Belgian parliament finally took control away from the king Belgium did not grant independence to the Congo until 1960

Criticism – Early and Modern Early –Hailed as a portrayal of the demoralizing effect life in the African wilderness supposedly had on European men –Praised as a study of the collapse of the white man’s morality when he is released from the restraints of European law and order Modern –Criticized for the blatantly racist attitudes it portrays Some believe Conrad was simply reflecting the attitudes held common at the time Others believe he may have been holding the ideas up for scorn and ridicule

Victorian and Modern Literature Victorian (1837 – 1901) –Because it’s a 60 year span, it’s usually divided into early (pre 1870) and late (post 1870) –Deals with issues of the day, including Social, economic, religious, and intellectual issues Industrial Revolution Class tensions, early feminist movement, pressures for social and political reform Impact of Darwin’s theories on evolution Modern (post WWI – WWII) –Authors experiment with subject matter, form, and style –Sprang from the horrors of WWI Massive loss of life, loss of faith –Expanding technology and science –Also encompassed/is related to Postmodernism

Heart of Darkness, the bridge between Conrad presents themes of moral ambiguity, but never takes a side himself –The nature of truth, evil, and morality are never fully defined The reader is forced to decide for him/herself

Circle of Influence Thomas Pynchon T.S. Eliot Hemingway Fitzgerald Faulkner –Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Mario Vargas Llosa Jorge Luis Borges Carlos Fuentes George Orwell Saul Bellow Eugene O’Neill Graham Greene

Democratic Republic of the Congo 1908 Belgian Congo 1960 Independence 1964 People’s Republic of the Congo 1971 Republic of Zaire 1997 Democratic Republic of the Congo

HEART OF DARKNESS NARRATIVE FRAME LEVELS OF INTERPRETATION IMAGERY & SYMBOLISM Conrad’s Experience Narrative Construction [Conrad as “Hyphenated white man” cf. M.L. Pratt]

HEART OF DARKNESS Marlow’s tale Search for Kurtz The idea of an empire The journey Quest

Blankness - Darkness Blank space = Space of darkness Emptiness/ Primitivism DISORDER

The Imperial Map “A passion for maps” “A large shining map, marked by all the colours of the rainbow” RED (cf. use colors) RAINBOW (cf. harlequin)

The Imperial Map cont’d.

Harlequin Paul as Harlequin Painted by Pablo Picasso

Places White City/Sepulchral City (Brussels, Belgium) Outer Station (Company Station – Matadi) Central Station (General Manager – Kinshasa) A hut of reeds – Bumba? Inner Stations (Stanley Falls-Kisangani;

The African Landscape MYSTERY – ENIGMA WILDERNESS personified COAST (“formless”) RIVER = SNAKE (serpent? Evil? Devil?) FOREST (“impenetrable”)

The African Landscape cont’d. Inferno Primeval MUD “Wall of vegetation” Unknown PLANET

DARKNESS Imagery River Thames – Congo River Jungle = dark, foreboding Night – Death SUNLESS HOLE (abyss): –“His was an impenetrable darkness. I looked at him as you peer down at a man who is lying at the bottom of a precipice where the sun never shines.”

Mental – Physical Illness Mental changes that individuals undergo in the wilderness (cf. the doctor, “the changes happen on the inside”) Various illnesses, fever, delirium, death Kurtz’s weakness of mind (“his nerves went wrong”) and body Corruption, degradation

OTHERNESS The people of Africa and the land they live on remain inscrutably alien, other Idea of intrusion (impenetrable and treacherous nature) “Inhumanity” of natives : “This suspicion of their not being inhuman” [emphasis Ms. Hooper- Jones] LanguageSilence (cf. sounds)

The African Woman THE BODY OF AFRICA Cf. female characters –“They – the women – are out of it – should be out of it” –Cf. the Intended –Cf. the aunt, the two women knitting black wool

CHARACTERS COLONIZERS – COLONIZED “Pilgrims” (Eldorado Exploring Expedition – “to tear treasure out of the bowels of the land”) EUROPEANS – AFRICANS WHITE – BLACK

MAIN ISSUES EXPLOITATION EVIL MISCEGENATION: marriage or cohabitation between the races (mixing of races) “Going” NATIVE Civilization vs. Savagery AMBIGUITY

Works Cited Brazzelli, Nicoletta. “The Heart of Darkness.” The Imperial Otherness.” 05 Nov May Picasso, Pablo. Paul as Harlequin May Steele, Kathie. Heart of Darkness _Heart_of_Darkness.ppt 11 May _Heart_of_Darkness.ppt 11 May 200 Waters, Shauna Rynn. Heart of Darkness. ppt 10 May ppt