Megan Yelekli

AP LAC 12
Grecco pd 2
3/16/14

In Heart of Darkness, by Joseph Conrad, the ever-present darkness of the African jungle
is showcased through dramatic imagery and dialogue. During the time the novella was written,
British imperialism was at its height. Africa was divided into colonies, and the native peoples
were inundated with foreign influence and presence. Marlow, the main character who tells his
story through frame narrative, signed up to travel to one of these colonies. The darkness of the
jungle Marlow experiences affects him both physically and mentally, and helps readers to
understand the true meaning of the novella.
Throughout the novella, Marlow is affected physically by the darkness he encounters.
Marlow lived in the city his entire life, and the dramatic changes in scenery he witnesses show
much more primitive ways of living. He went in search of a change, and he found it. As he
travels further from civilization, further into the darkness of the jungle, Marlow becomes more
isolated. He repeatedly compares this journey to traveling back in time. This isolation leads to
him clinging to sanity by threads. As he treks through the jungle with the caravan, Marlow
remarks that he was, "becoming scientifically interesting" (Conrad 17). The never ending
journey through paths, abandoned villages, thickets, rivers, and foliage begins to wear on
Marlow's sanity. The doctor who examined him before the journey into Africa would have found
the loss of sanity and purpose interesting to study. Marlow leaps at the challenge of physically
rebuilding his steamer later on in the first installment because the physical labor kept his mind
sharp and his sanity intact. The occasional Englishman he sees, the physical labor, and the
mystery of Kurtz keep Marlow clutching his sanity and his sense of purpose. The never ending
jungle merely became darker as Marlow traveled further and further into it, and the darker it
became, the more enlightened Marlow became to the true disaster that was British colonialism.
In the beginning of the novella, Marlow shows interest in the surface of the jungle more
so than the meanings and truth behind it. He describes the shores, the skin colors of the natives,
the jungle, and things he sees in descriptive mannerisms. As he is removed further and further
from social influence, Marlow is able to become enlightened to the truth and corruption of the
British colonial system and to himself. This is shown when the imagery in the novella turns away
from surface descriptions and more towards purposes, violence, and problems he sees. Marlow
recognizes the problems with colonialism to be caused by ignorance rather than violence. The
imperialists did not care about the people they enslaved or the land, merely the resources and the
money they would bring. As his own mind is cleared of the ignorance many people live in,
Marlow sees the legitimate facts and observations, those uncolored by ignorance or bias. Marlow
is alarmed by this, and he tries to distance himself with the violence imperialism causes. When
the helmsman is struck down and Marlow's shoes are covered in blood, he throws them
overboard. The blood is a product of imperialism, and Marlow physically distances himself from
the blood. This is one of the first glimpses readers get of Marlow's ignorance clearing (Conrad
42). The true darkness Marlow encounters is not with the jungle itself, nor the natives, but with
the English colonization system, the power it abuses, and the land it uses.
The hidden meanings in Marlow's description of actions and sights allow readers to see
the meaning of the novella. The violence of the ships firing into the shore, the native carrying
water with a bucket that had a hole in it, and the presence of the brickmaker where there are no
bricks show the futility or pointlessness of European presences in Africa. As Marlow learns the
truth about both himself and Kurtz, Conrad seems to show readers that they too can learn the
truth about themselves. The cleansing of ignorance from Marlow is the only reason he gains his
epiphany about imperialism and humanity. A main portion of the imagery used in the novella
points to the author's reason for writing Heart of Darkness; to showcase the dangers and truths of
imperialism and the ignorance of a misinformed society.