Heart of Darkness Free Essay Examples And Topic Ideas

Imperialism in “Heart of Darkness” and “Things Fall Apart”

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Throughout the novels, Heart of Darkness and Things Fall Apart, both illustrate the complexity and the morality surrounding imperialism, which struck the continent of Africa in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. By comparing and contrasting the two different perspectives on the effects of imperialism shown in Heart of Darkness and Things Fall Apart, the authors’ messages correspond to the overarching message of the evils of imperialism, yet the little action that could be done to end it. In […]

Joseph Conrad’s : Heart of Darkness

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Joseph Conrad’s, Heart of Darkness, displays the effects of imperialism and the invasive brutality on natives during the late nineteenth century. These effects are also displayed in Rudyard Kipling’s poem, “The White Man’s Burden.” These works showcase the themes of darkness and savagery among the colonization of natives. Heart of Darkness and “The White Man’s Burden” can reveal the racism and inhumane actions of the time. Conrad and Kipling display many themes, imagery, and symbols relating to the racial critique […]

Review of Criticism

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“Heart of Darkness” is a very unique story in which it has a much deeper meaning and impact to society, than people actually might think. Throughout its time of release, many readers have had different interpretations on what message it tried to convey. In the story, one of the significant moments was when Charles Marlow, the narrator, tells a lie to The Intended. However, several critics have discussed, that what Marlow says to The Intended about Kurtz’s last words is […]

The Hollowness of Civilization Theme in Heart of Darkness

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At its roots, Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness serves as an investigation into the hollowness of man and the society man finds himself within. Through the conveyance of a variety of metaphors, all essentially amounting to the same idea, the great façade of charisma and morality is stripped away from that which is deemed noble and underneath reveals a truth about the world consisting of no depth, nor morals – only a heart of darkness. Time and again the notion […]

Symbols and their Meanings in “Heart of Darkness”

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Symbols are a common literary device used by authors. Some authors use symbols to make the readers think and find the deeper meanings. Other authors use symbols to help tie together different parts of the story. In Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad many symbols are shown to the readers throughout the literary work. Three of the major symbols the author uses in this book are the color black, the color white, and buzzing flies. In the book Heart of […]

Antithesis Definition and Meaning

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Antithesis: two opposite ideas are put together in a sentence to achieve a contrasting effect Example: “The earth seemed unearthly. We are accustomed to look upon the shackled form of a conquered monster, but there— there you could look at a thing monstrous and free. It was unearthly” (36) Conrad, Heart of Darkness Function Context: After Marlow’s ship is repaired, he and the Manager along with a few pilgrims and cannibals travel up the river to find Kurtz. Marlow describes […]

Marlow in “Heart of Darkness” by Joseph Conrad

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Within Conrad’s Heart of Darkness, Marlow discovers a young Russian boy along his journey who reminds him of a harlequin.The harlequin represents a character Marlow can relate to and share similar ideas and beliefs with. He delivers the most information about Kurtz so far as he emphasizes Kurtz’s power and strength. The effect of Kurtz on the harlequin forces him to fuel the rumors and beliefs of Kurtz. The description and reference of the “harlequin” is even created by Marlow […]

Imperialism in Heart of Darkness

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"Throughout “Heart of Darkness” by Joseph Conrad, a sense of imperialism is present. Imperialism is defined as “acquiring and holding colonies and dependencies” according to google. Through the novel many of the travels Marlow encounters contain imperialist ideas and also in the way people are treated. Conrad’s novel takes place in the final years of the nineteenth century which follows Marlow one of the main characters as he travels through Africa on the Congo River. Heart of darkness tells the […]

The Game of Allusion in Hearth of Darkness

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Heart of Darkness is considered one of the greatest novellas in the English language. On the surface it is a surreal tale of mystery and adventure set in Central Africa; however, it is also the story of a man's symbolic journey into his own inner being. A plenitude of vivid details that are significant on both literal and symbolic levels add to the obscurity of Conrad's narrative and has led to incongruous interpretations of its meaning. One of the core […]

Heart of Darkness Marlow

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In Heart of Darkness Marlow and Kurtz set on opposite ends of the spectrum. In my opinion, neither men are heroes and I wouldn’t argue who was more of the hero, but rather who was more of the villain. I couldn’t tell you who was more of a hero, but I could tell you who wasn’t. Kurtz set out to do amazing and extraordinary things, but when it didn’t go the way he planned, and he came face to face […]

Comparative Study on Heart of Darkness and Things Fall Apart

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Things Fall Apart and Heart of Darkness illustrate the various ways of representing Africa in the form of literature. Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad presents Africa through the perspective of colonization by the Europeans who depict the African continent as savages, uncivilized, and underdeveloped. Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, on the other hand, tend to respond to Conrad’s perception of Africa by portraying the native Africans as focused, cultured, and productive. Through Okonkwo, Achebe depicts Africans as proud […]

“The Heart of Human Nature” by Joseph Conrad

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The journey in Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad traverses not only the capricious waters spanning Africa but also the darkness which lies in the human heart. Through Marlow’s journey to the heart of darkness, it reveals the enigmatic human nature is a dark force. This voyage into the deepest aspect of the soul unveils the evils in man while questioning every aspect of their identity. Some characters surrender imperceptibly to the darkness without being able to restrain themselves from […]

Heart of Darkness and Modernism

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In 1899 a Polish-British novelist Joseph Conrad wrote a novel called Heart of Darkness. This novel is a narrated voyage up the Congo River into the Congo Free State in the so-called heart of Africa. Charles Marlow, the narrator, tells his story to friends aboard a boat anchored on the River Thames. Throughout this book we can see how this can be considered a Modernist novel because of its use of language and general “darkness” that is portrayed throughout the […]

Imperialism in the Heart of Darkness

Words: 882 Pages: 3 5140

Joseph Conrad’s The Heart of Darkness is a tale of imperialism and its debilitating effect on the world told from a narrower perspective of the Congo Free State. Charles Marlow, the captain of a river steamboat, shows how colonization had adversely affected the natives, despite its claims of inculcating the aspects of civilization into the “uncultured” tribespeople of Africa. John A. Hobson defines imperialism as “the endeavour of the great controllers of industry to broaden the channel for the flow […]

Review of ‘Heart of Darkness’ by Joseph Conrad

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Heart of Darkness is a novel written by Joseph Conrad and first published as a book in 1092. The story is biased by Conrad's own experiences as captain of a Belgian steamboat, it takes place in Africa, specifically in the Congo. The novel fall in the category of Modernism in Literature due to its components and characters. As the story progress the two principal characters of the novel seems to be different but as the time passes the reader can […]

Heart of Darkness: Themes, Motifs & Symbols

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Heart of Darkness is well written book by Polish- British Novelist, Joseph Conrad, wherein, he tries to explore the heart in contrast to the outward setting of Civilisation, which reveals the dark and complex nature of a human by the voice of Charles Marlow’s narrative. Kurtz is a very relevant character in the master-piece, through his character analyses and tragedy, the writer tried to shed a light on darkness of human nature and the destroying influence of the same on […]

Social Identities of Different Groups of People

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Our society manages collective ideas about who gets to belong to our group and which types of people are seen as different- the other. Social identities are relational- groups typically define themselves in relation to others. This is because identity has very little meaning without the existence of “the other”. In Conrad’s “Heart of Darkness”, Marlow defines the white European people as “His people” and the Africans are portrayed as someone who are different from him. Marlow describes the Africans […]

Heart of Darkness Research Essay

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"Colonial Congo was seen from the outside as a place of great economic success in the trade of ivory, rubber, and minerals. At the time of legal and successful ivory trade, King Leopold II was the sole, self-appointed representative of the Congo Free State. In simpler words, he owned Congo and everyone or thing within it. The Congo and Belgian trade was a mighty business but had a negative impact on the country. The ivory trade during Colonial Congo caused […]

Character of Kurtz in Heart of Darkness

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Marlow's feelings towards Mr. Kurtz go through different phases. Let's start, not to lose the habit, for the beginning. The first time Marlow mentions Kurtz he describes him apathetically; Marlow is not "too interested in him". It is not until he hears Kurtz's story when he returns to the jungle that Marlow becomes fascinated. This is when he "[sees a] Kurtz for the first time", as a lonely white man who lives among black men. Soon after, Marlow confesses that […]

Themes of Imperialism and Civilization in Heart of Darkness

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"Themes are ideas and beliefs that the writers utilize to refers to the main underlying meaning of a literary work. Joseph Conrad has been known to use notable recurring ideas hidden in complex language. In his famous novella Heart of Darkness, he deals with some important themes such as imperialism, the ""white man’s burden"", lack of truth, work, colonialization, civilization, exploitation, racism, isolation, morals, violence, and human greed. One of the major themes of Heart of Darkness is imperialism. Imperialism […]

Analysis of Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad

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Heart of Darkness is Conrad's shortest, greatest, and highest achievement. It is considered as one of the best short novels that are written English. It is something between a short story and a novel; therefore it can be called a 'novella'. It was first published in 1899, in Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, a popular journal of its day in London. Heart of Darkness is based on Conrad's personal experience to the Congo region of West Africa. The novella is a kind […]

The Rise and Decline of European Morals and Society

Words: 1926 Pages: 6 4756

Progression and Destruction Europe during the early to mid-twentieth century was an unstable Europe and in stark contrast to the Europe of the nineteenth century. Devastated by two World wars and political revolutions pitting western Europe against Eastern Europe, many were left questioning the progress made over the past century and whether all of this change was for the better or indeed for the worse. But this disenchantment of European civilization was far from new. As imperialism spread some Europeans […]

The Imperialism of Heart of Darkness

Words: 717 Pages: 2 4298

Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad was interesting to me because I like stories like these because it was an exploration gone wrong. The whole story centers round Marlow who was a sailor and was trying to sail up the Congo River in central Africa to meet Kurtz. Kurtz went to the jungle to originally find ivory and to help the “savages” but, failed since he ends up transforming into one of them. The story showed how the spread of […]

Modernist Features in Heart of Darkness

Words: 928 Pages: 3 4537

Heart of Darkness, a novella written by Joseph Conrad, was first published as three installments in Blackwood’s Magazine in 1899 following his journey into the Belgian Congo. The work is revered for its examination into the frightening depths of human corruption, and social disdain under the guise of a metaphor of a journey to the heart of Africa. The following articles are literary criticisms addressing colonialistic bias, atmosphere and the narrative frame, and mimesis in the story. In Frances Singh’s […]

The Acts of Imperialism and Racism in “The Heart of Darkness”

Words: 1862 Pages: 6 6409

In the novel The Heart of Darkness, the reader is introduced to the acts of imperialism and racism. The story tells of Europeans who have established a colony in Africa that is being used for trade purposes. However, the background of the story is that the Europeans are trying to colonize the Africans and introduce them to the European way of living. The white traders are not only trying to change the Africans way of life, the whites also view […]

Novel “Heart of Darkness” : Usage of “The Horror. the Horror”

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Written by PapersOwl author

Mr. Kurtz’s last words in the “Heart of Darkness” were “The horror. The horror” has various meanings. First, the words show his reaction to what he witnessed in Africa. The terms horror depicted the exploitation that was seen in Africa and the evil practices of humans. It is something terrifying and thus pushed for his terms “The horror. The horror” at the end. During the colonization period, the Europeans did various things to Africa in the name of progress such […]

The Literary Works of Joseph Conrad

Words: 1031 Pages: 3 4465

Joseph Conrad, a Polish-British novelist, seek to expose the horrifying realities of European Colonialism and the harsh consequences of Imperialism. His most celebrated piece, Heart of Darkness, written in 1899, explores the alleged differences of two distinctive peoples: the “cultured” Europeans and their “savage” African counterparts. Conrad’s intended audience is wide-spread, with a particular focus given to fellow European citizens and explorers. The primary source employs a unique combination of colonial and post-colonial discourse within a thought-provoking narrative. Conrad draws […]

Representing of Imperialism in Heart of Darkness

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Since the beginning of the seventeenth century, Europeans began to explore and conquer creating the idea of imperialism. In Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness the main character, Marlow, an introspective sailor, is sent on a journey up the Congo River to meet Kurtz. Kurtz is a ivory trader in Africa and commander of a trading post, he receives a position as the god the among native Africans and uses his position to profit. Marlow takes a job as a riverboat […]

Heart of Darkness Literary Analysis

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Though European countries had been invading lesser developed countries for centuries, their involvement in other countries thrived in a period known as the Age of New Imperialism as their thirst for power grew. Author Joseph Conrad, in his novella Heart of Darkness, addresses this topic of imperialism in a social criticism of the European colonization in Africa. This literary piece was revolutionary during the time period, as it addressed the issue of the rampant racism, mistreatment, and destruction that European […]

Heart of Darkness & Things Fall Apart

Words: 1223 Pages: 4 5820

Authors write to tell stories to the reader, but they also write to communicate personal opinions and ideas to show the reader. Readers are able to be bias with their own personal beliefs that they have in common with the novel, usually with their own race or religion. Throughout the novel, Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad expresses his opinions through the main characters Marlow and Mr. Kurtz with their attitudes and actions. By the same way, Chinua Achebe displays his […]

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