Conrad's critique of colonialism, November 11, 2003

Joseph Conrad’s story, “Heart of Darkness”, reiterates a journey into the heart of Africa during the colonialism era. The author went to the Congo himself as captain of the ship “Roi des Belges”. When he arrived there (the Congo), he witnessed the awful truth of imperialism. The main character of the novel, Marlow, also sailed on a Belgium ship to the Congo. Thus, most of “Heart of Darkness” is based on Conrad’s actual trips to the Congo. Conrad used Marlow to represent his feelings about the Congo and his voice in the story. This novel is described as a powerful critique against colonialism and western imperialism. The story boldly attacks the “white man’s burden”, which represents the responsibility of the “superior breeds” to help civilize the “inferior ones”. It is shown in the story that the true motives of the “civilizing mission” were greed and exploitation. I personally agree with Conrad’s piece of art, which exposes the real truth about western imperialism that many authors in that era refused to acknowledge. In this essay, we will closely analyze Conrad’s work and go through some symbols, images and ironies that are present throughout the whole novel.

First of all, we will discuss the essential parts in “Heart of Darkness”. The characters in the story represent the Europeans’ psychology and attitude in the colonialism era. Those who were in charge of the ivory business at the Congo were supposed to support a civilizing mission, which consisted of introducing the natives to civilization and modernization. However, they did not help the natives or the country develop. Instead, they enslaved them and traded all the country’s goods (especially ivory in exchange for money). The Europeans dehumanized the natives so much that they even behaved like animals. “While I stood horror-struck, one of these creatures rose to his hands and knees, and went off on all-fours towards the river to drink.” (27) Some of these people talk about the remarkable Kurtz, who is the manager of the inner station. He painted a picture that symbolizes the blindness of the company toward the needs of the Africans, which also shows that he understood the truth and horror of imperialism. Absurdly, the same people who mention the greatness of Kurtz dislike him. This is due to the fact that Kurtz’s authority is a threat to their power. These “money-grabbers” rate themselves according to the amount of ivory traded. Conrad clearly shows us the characters’ attitudes: evil, jealousy, greed, and ignorance of the civilizing mission. Kurtz, on the other hand, is even worse. He’s not only greedy and possessive, he’s purely evil too. He proudly displays the skulls on a poll of those he has conquered, while seizing their ivory and induces the natives to treat him like a god. The report, which Kurtz wrote for the International Society of the Suppression of Savage Customs clearly describes that whites must appear to the “savages” as superhuman beings, exercise great power over the natives, and then “exterminate all the brutes!” (84) This report exposes excellent evidence of materialism and ignorance of the European civilizing mission in the Congo. It was only the money and exploitation that motivated the so-called “emissary of light” in the goal of “weaning those ignorant millions of their horrid ways” (18).

Secondly, we will analyze the images, the symbols, and some of the irony used in “Heart of Darkness”. During Marlow’s journey to the Congo, he saw a French ship shell the African coast. This image shows how brutal and ruthless the Europeans are. Their necessity of power and superiority are also described by the pointless bombardment of the jungle. His trip was no more a pilgrimage but a nightmare. When Marlow and his crew arrived in the Outer Station, he heard “objectless blasting” and saw a large number of Africans starving and dying. In an ironic way, Marlow respected the Chief Accountant of the Outer Station, who was perfectly dressed in white, in contrast to the dying black natives and the dark chaos caused by the ivory trade. With this citation we can see the destruction of the Africans and their land caused by the white man’s greed for money and power. In other words, the Europeans took the land of the natives, and enslaved them, all in the name of “developing the civilization”. During the story, Marlow also found a corpse of a black man who had been shot in the head, which reminded him of the brutality of imperialism. There is also another extract in the novel that describes the recklessness and selfishness of Europeans in the colonialism era: “When the manager, escorted by the pilgrims, all of them armed to the teeth, […] ‘They [the natives] are simple people,’ […] ‘Oh, they meant no harm,’ he said.” (89) This undoubtedly illustrates that the Europeans have no interest in helping the Africans develop and progress. Instead, they only wanted to find and steal Kurtz’s ivory. Another meaningful statement which strongly critiques western colonialism is “faithless pilgrims”, which describes the typical European in the Congo. Pilgrims are people who leave their own country for ethical and religious missions such as enlightening the natives. However, the white men in the Congo totally ignored their real obligation as a pilgrim, because they only wanted money and power. At some point, they even brought darkness and inhumanity to the natives. The way they became greedy, possessive and evil ironically turns them into “faithless pilgrims”.

In conclusion, Conrad’s writing styles, techniques and the use of imagery, symbolism and irony in “Heart of Darkness” gave the novel a perfect combination of elements that form a powerful critique about colonialism. This story boldly reveals the true motives of western imperialism (greed and exploitation). The “white man’s burden” was nothing more than lies and propaganda, so that they can create a good image for themselves. After reading Conrad’s “Heart of Darkness”, the reader will be more aware of the truth that lies within the inner soul. He/she will be able to open their eyes and see beyond the surface to have a better understanding of reality.


Bibliography

Conrad, Joseph. Heart of Darkness and The Secret Sharer.
A Bantam Classic, March 1981.

Conrad, Joseph. Heart of Darkness: The Congo Diary and Up-River book.
London, 2002.