Theme Of Racism In Heart Of Darkness - 782 Words

Depicting actual events and scenarios in a fictional setting can shed a new light on certain topics, but when the real and fictional meet problems can sometimes arise. In Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness, the theme of race and white or national superiority is prevalent in the text, but it leaves the reader wondering if the text is truly racist or not. There are two sides to this argument, but for the most part the story is not racist. On the side on racism, the signs can be seen relatively early on in the work as show when Marlow is retelling about the death of Fresleven at the hands of the village chief’s son. Before Fresleven’s ruthless attack was described, the reader is given a description of him that is supposed to draw in sympathy†¦show more content†¦The reader also gets views and reactions of Marlow that shows that he’s has a better moral compass than the rest, as he is uneased by his aunt’s words, offers a dying native laborer a b iscuit, and being able to work with the so called â€Å"cannibals† to make it further along the river. Marlow is the saving grace in this story and helps it from being deemed entirely spiteful or even racist. When comparing other characters for example Kurtz to Marlow, he appears to be the most sensible or morally sound character. Both of these characters can be seen as two sides of the white Europeans. Kurtz demonstrates the superiority and more aggressive side as he initiates the conflict between the natives, uses the natives to his own advantage and for his own purposes, for example cheating on his fiancà © with a native, and having his last words or final request being â€Å"exterminate all the brutes!† (1990). Whereas Marlow demonstrates the more rational side who is fine with working with the Africans and using heir help to reach their goal, feels general unease on how people comment on the extermination of the â€Å"ignorant†, and he even laments the Afr ican helmsman’s death. That is one thing that Heart of Darkness was able to accomplish and that was showing both sides of the conflict and inflect upon them in a critical manner. Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness was considered by Chinua Achebe as being racist but that really is not the case. If anything, Heart of Darkness isShow MoreRelatedTheme Of Racism In Joseph Conrads Heart Of Darkness1008 Words   |  5 Pages6.13.17 Racism is misleading: Theme of TFA Racism is still a problem today, even though it has changed over time. In the past, it was more open and something that was normal. Now, there are less people who are racist, or, those who are racist have just gotten better at hiding their thoughts and changing their words so that they seem like normal comments. In Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness, the main character, Marlow, journeys the Congo and describes what he sees. In a response to Heart of DarknessRead MoreComparing Shakespeares Othello with Conrads Heart of Darkness738 Words   |  3 PagesOthello with Conrad’s Heart of Darkness It is often that when we read great works of literature we come across similar themes. Authors use powerful ideas that they believe will move their readers and relate to them so they become engaged in the words written. 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