“Heart of Darkness” : A Critical Appreciation

“Heart of Darkness” : A Critical Appreciation

Conrad’s agonizing Congo experiences of 1890 were re-worked nine years later into

Heart of Darkness which is generally regarded as one of the greatest short novels in the

English language.

It is a crucial work in the development of modem literature, in that it establishes the

dominant theme of twentieth-century writing: fear and disillusion about the western

man’s place in the world and the values by which he lives. The narrator and central

character, Marlow, travels up the Congo to meet the demonic trader, Kurtz. He witnesses

the violence and hypocrisy of his colonizing culture and his faith in the western world,

and even his own sanity is threatened.

Heart of Darkness is based upon Conrad’s own experiences of the Belgian Congo

when he visited that country in the year 1890. It is a largely personal and

autobiographical book. Being based upon what Conrad actually witnessed during his

travels through what he calls the “heart of darkness”, the book has the stamp of

authenticity. Knowing Conrad’s integrity as a writer, we have to accept Heart of

Darkness as a truthful account of the conditions in which the savages of the Congo, a

country of the dark continent of Africa, lived under the imperialist rule of the white man,

and also a truthful account of the behaviour and the attitudes of the white men who

went to that country as traders or as the agents of a trading company, or as explorers.

The fictitious character called Marlow, who narrates the story, is Conrad himself in

disguise. Most of the experiences of Marlow, and most of Marlow’s reactions to what he

beheld in the Belgian Congo, were Conrad’s own experiences, observations, and

reactions.

The theme of Heart of Darkness is the conditions prevailing in the Congo under the

imperialist rule of the Belgian KingLeopald II. These conditions include the impact of

the white traders and explorers on the life of the African savages, and the influence of

the native way of life on the white men, with special reference to one man who is given

the name of Kurtz. (Kurtz is a German word meaning “short”). There is another theme

also which is equally important for the thoughtful reader i.e.reality versus dream. As

Marlow voyages to the Belgian Congo by a French steamer, he observes closely the

sights on the coast and falls into a meditative mood. The sights which he witnesses now,

and those which he beholds subsequently, appear to him to be half real and half unreal.

The unreality of these sights becomes the basic condition of Marlow’s experiences

Heart of Darkness is replete with symbolism. The very title of the novel has a

symbolic meaning, in addition to its literal meaning, Literally, “Heart of Darkness” means

the interior of a dark country, namely the Congo. Symbolically, the title means the

depths of the human mind or the human consciousness. The book describes not only

Marlow’s exploration of the Congo but also his exploration of his own mind and of the

deeper layers of his mind. Then there are other symbols in the novel also. The women,

knitting wool, symbolize the Fates of ancient classical mythology. Mr. Kurtz, who is the

dominating character in the novel, is a symbol of the modem western man’s lust for

power and pelf. The chief accountant of the Belgian trading company is as telling an

image of modem man as the demonic Mr. Kurtz and there are other symbolic

suggestions in the novel also.

Heart of Darkness is a remarkable book by virtue of its imagery also. Conrad here

gives us ample evidence of his descriptivepowers. The imagery in this book is remote

and wild; but it is described in such a graphicmanner that we begin actually to

visualize it. There are, first of all, the sights which Marlow witnesses along the coast as

he sails by a French steamer. Then there are the sights which Marlow witnesses on

landing from the Swedish captain’s sea-going steamer. These are memorable sights

indeed. We can never forget the boiler lying uselessly in the grass, the steep path, and

the several pieces of decaying machinery and the rusty rails, the blasting of the rock, the

clanking of the chain-gang criminals, and so on. Soon afterwards, Marlow feels as if he

had stepped into the gloomy circle of some Inferno and thus the description and the

imagery continue throughout the novel.

Heart of Darkness is a profound book. Part of its profundity is due to its

philosophicalcharacter and to the writer’s psychologicalinsight. There are a large

number of philosophical passages in the book. Marlow is not only a man of action and an

adventurer, but also a thinker and a kind of philosopher. He tends to reflect and

meditate upon whatever he observes and beholds. At the very time of setting out on his

voyage, he makes the remark that he felt for a second or two as though, instead of

going to the, centre of a continent, he was about to set off for the centre of the earth

Now, this is a philosophical remark, though not a deeply philosophical one. Soon

afterwards, he makes the remark that, as he entered into a grove near the Company’s

first station, he felt as if he had stepped into the gloomy circle of some Inferno. But a

more philosophical remark comes when he says that, at one point, in the course of his

experience, he found it difficult to distinguish between reality and dream. When the

brick-maker is talking to Marlow about Kurtz, Marlow feels that he does not at this

moment see Kurtz. In fact, it seems to him at this time that he is seeing a dream and

experiencing a dream-sensation. Then Marlow goes on to make the following

philosophical observation: “It is impossible to convey the life-sensation of any

given epoch of one’s existence that which makes its truth, its meaning, its

subtle and penetrating essence. It is impossible. We live, as we dream alone”.

There is also plenty of psychological analysis in Heart of Darkness. In the course of

his narration, Marlow gives us a peep into the minds of the various characters, at the

same time making it possible for us to look into his own mind as well. Much of the

interest of this book lies in its psychological studies of the various characters. For instance, Marlow gives us a penetrating portrayal of the chief accountant of the

Company. That man is able to maintain a neat and tidy appearance even in the midst of

the chaotic conditions around him. Everything at the station is in a muddle (disorder),

but the accountant’s clothes and his account-books are being excellently maintained.

Similarly, Marlow gives us a penetrating portrayal of the manager of the Central

Station. He makes a significant remark when he says that perhaps there was nothing

“within” the manager, and that, after commenting upon the effect of the climate on the

white visitors to this region, the manager smiled in a manner which showed as if his

smile had been a door opening into a darkness which the manager had in his keeping.

Again, Marlow enables us to look into the working of the brick-maker’s mind. Marlow

quickly perceives that the brick-maker wants to know exactly where Marlow stands in

relation to the higher officials of the Company which has sent him to the Congo. But it is

in his descriptions of Kurtz that Marlow shows his real psychological insight. He skilfully,

subtly, and effectively brings to our notice Kurtz’s passion for ivory, Kurtz’s passion

for power, Kurtz’s influence over the savages, Kurtz’s secret ambitions, Kurtz’s surrender

to the rites and customs of the savages, Kurtz’s love for his “intended”, and so on.

Indeed, we are able to form a comprehensive picture of Kurtz’s moral character and his

mental make-up’ though Kurtz still remains a mysterious figure to us.

Heart of Darkness is an interesting mixture of the traditional and the modem in

several ways. The Company’s doctor, who examines Marlow before Marlow leaves for the

Congo is, for instance, very much a modem figure. This doctor is something of a

psychiatrist, having an interest in analysing the mental changes of individuals. The

sciences of psychology and psychiatry are modern sciences which were being developed

in Conrad’s own time. And Marlow, in the course of his narration, himself shows a keen

interest in tracing the mental processes of the various persons with whom he comes into

contact. At one point in the story; Marlow speaks of the mental change going on within

himself. Here he remarks that he was becoming a fit subject for scientific study by a

psychologist. Furthermore, Marlow experiences a feeling central to the literature of

modernism. He experiences the anarchy and the futility of modem life. He keenly

experiences the truths of the modern western world whose products include its

colonialism and a sense of racial superiority. The “powers of darkness” to which Marlow

refers at one point are the powers of European culture to which Kurtz belongs, and which

Kurtz had imbibed. In this context Marlow says that Kurtz would be claimed by the

powers of darkness to whom he really belonged. These powers of darkness, according to

one interpretation, are the influences of European culture on Kurtz: “All Europe

contributed to the making of Kurtz.” The trader Kurtz is a demonic person who

writes and speaks with inspiring eloquence but who yet performs rites of unspeakable

savagery. Kurtz is also the embodiment of the colonial appetite for possessions

and power. At the same time this story has to be read as a myth. The mythical

elements in it belong to tradition. There are the two ominous women knitting black wool

who suggest the Fates of classical mythology. There is Marlow’s journey through a

certain region of the Congo which resembles Dante’s Inferno. Such elements in the novel

suggest that it should be read as we read a myth. Thus looked at, the novel would seem

to be a statement on the timeless problems of mankind in its existence on the planet

known as the earth.

Heart of Darkness has an unusual kind of structure. Conrad was an innovator so far

as the structure of most of his novels was concerned. The structure of Heart of Darkness

is very complex. In the first place, there are two narrators in this novel. The first

narrator appears before us at the very beginning of the book. It is this first narrator who

tells us about the boat “Nellie”_ lying anchored in the river Thames and about the men

on the deck of this boat. It is this first narrator who introduces to us the second narrator.

While the name of the first narrator is not given to us, the second narrator’s name is

given as Marlow or Charles Marlow. Now, the real story comes from the lips of this

second narrator; and yet the first narrator also, intervenes occasionally in the course of

the novel. This mixing up of the two narrators confuses the average reader. It is not

really necessary for a novelist to adopt a device of this kind except as a point of

departure from the traditional way of telling a story.

Heart of Darkness is a masterpiece of an unusualkind. It is a profound book, and it is

at the same time a starkly realistic book. It excels both in respect of external description

and imagery, and in respect of its analysis of the mental processes of its characters and

its probing of the conscious and the subconscious

mind.