The level of contamination on the things we use on daily basis - Essay Example

Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad Joseph Conrad, son to Apollo Korzeniowski and Ewa nee Bobrowska was born on 3rd December 1857 in Berdychiv, Ukraine. His parents were Polish and spiritual Roman Catholics who belonged to a local Szlachta, landowning gentry-nobility. At the age of 12 Conrad had lost both his parents to tuberculosis. Conrad father was a translator while he was still alive and thus exposing Conrad to a wide range of literature from many nations, which were in English, French, Spanish, and American. Despite a tragic beginning, Conrad could have a good introduction to rich literary atmosphere. After his parents demise he was to stay under the care of his maternal uncle, Tadeusz Bobrowski. His uncle introduced him to a new chapter in life, which was contrary to what he learned from his father. He was fed with notions of conservatism and strict social discipline. The different ways of life that he had when he was young made Him realize that he was a homo duplex. He was torn between chivalric and egalitarian, revolutionary and conservative, and pragmatic and romantic tradition (Watt, 14). At the age of 14 onwards, Conrad disliked the Christian religion, ceremonies, festivals, and its doctrines. This was the best decision that he made, but it was contrary to his family beliefs. At the age of 17, Conrad left Poland to become a sea man and at some point attempted to commit suicide because of problems he experienced at the sea. His career to literature came to be when he was 40 with his first novel The Nigger of the Narcissus, which characterized Conrad’s in-between position as a writer. This was the introduction to prime of Conrad career as a writer. The most famous novel by Joseph Conrad is Heart of Darkness, which he primarily based it on his experience in the Congo. This book is full of paradoxes and has deeply symbolic text (Watt, 37). His main goal was to make a symbolic use of color. Conrad makes constant references of light and dark, black and white. The different characteristics that he gives make the reader to confuse the two states normally associated with the terms. Many instances of moral and physical darkness are topics that Conrad has touched on for example He signifies the corruption of one important character in the book. In addition, the title of the novel Heart of Darkness brings about a clear picture of the dark and gloomy way of life in the heart of Africa. There is a good connection between the characters used in this book and the events together with the experience that he had in 1890. This novel is a commentary touching upon the tough reality of imperialist control. Symbols are character, objects, figures or color used to show an abstract idea or concept. One symbol used is fog. This symbolizes darkness, and it not only distorts, but it also obscures. Conrad explains that one should make decisions based on the information given and he or she should never try to judge the accuracy of the information (Shmoop, 46). Darkness is also used as a symbol. It is very hard to tell what darkness stands for in this context. However, everything in this book has a dark coating. In addition, the inability to see is also viewed as darkness. Failure to sympathize happens when one fails to see another human being and thus having a hard time trying to understand that person Conrad uses Marlow to show that women are the keepers of naive illusions. This role is crucial although it can be seen as condemnatory. Kurtz and his intended mistress function as blank slates, and this brings about the value of wealth of their respective societies. Other symbols include the river, and the white sepulcher. This book is about a story of a European seaman, who sets on a journey to explore the Congo River. His primary role is helping Kurtz, a very prominent ivory trader who was employed by the Belgians. Also a successful writer, Kurtz has a good reputation and Marlow likes him even before their meeting. His writings were concerned with the civilization of the African continent, something that was of interest to Marlow. When they eventually meet, Marlow is disappointed to learn that Kurt is not as good as he seems. In reality, Kurtz is a greedy man out to obtain power and subjugate Africans. This causes Marlow to hate the effects that colonialism has had on Africans as most of them were dehumanizing and inhuman. In this effect, he decides to come out and attack the corruption that Kurtz instigates. He also deals with the temptations within him that threaten to make him commit the mistakes that Kurtz is committing. Around this time, Marlow gets news that Kurtz is very sick and almost near death (Conrad & Cedric, 23). Shortly afterwards, Kurtz succumbs to his illness and passes on. This makes Marlow to return to Belgium. Kurtz’s fiancee visits Marlow and starts to deceive him about the activities that Kurtz was involved in. she even claimed that Kurtz called her name before he died. The intentions behind these lies that Marlow was told are controversial. Some critics argue that it was an act of arrogance on the fiancees part while others hold the view that Marlow did not want to share his thoughts regarding Kurtz to anyone. For some, the lies were acts of compassion that bring out the difference between the good hearted Marlow and the greedy and inhuman Kurtz. The novels’ political meaning has attracted a wide range of criticisms. There is a strong belief that the novel has attacked two Victorian standards, which are the Carlylean belief of work ethics and social Darwinism. The former is a justification for European countries to exploit Africans and other people all over the world, in the pretense that these other people were in need of European technology, and religious beliefs and systems (Mairowitz, Anyango, & Conrad 65). According to Conrad, the reason European countries have poor moral values and practices are as a result of the way they failed to enforce their ideas and beliefs to Africans during the colonial period. In the literature work, themes are fundamental and often seen as universal idea. One of the major themes in the novel is Hypocrisy of imperialism. This novel looks into matters surrounding imperialism in a confusing way. Marlow experiences encounter of cruelty, torture, and near slavery when he travels from outer to central station and concludes by travelling to the inner station. There is a harsh picture of colonial enterprise, which is least observed in this book. In addition, Kurtz admits that he takes ivory by force rather than trading and that he has been treating the native with intimidation and violence. He is open with how he treats the native, and He even describes his actions with two words extermination and suppression (Watts, 36). Kurtz willful honesty eventually brings him to his downfall. The evil practices behind the activities carried out by European in Africa are also threatened by his choice of honesty. In addition, Conrad presents a set of issues that surround race and are ultimately troubling as well as condemning the hypocritical dealings of imperialism. In this novel, Heart of Darkness, Conrad closely links madness with imperialism. He tries to make it clear how Africa is responsible for the physical illness and the mental disintegration. Conrad has used madness for two major functions. The first function is that he uses madness as an ironic device that engages the reader to be sympathetic. From the beginning both Marlow and the reader know that Kurtz is mad. However, his madness is only relative to the view of the company. This makes the reader and Marlow to sympathize with Kurtz and view the company with distrust. The necessity if social fiction is another function of madness in the novel. There has been comprehensive explanation regarding how madness has been used in this novel. Removal from one social context and being left to be the only arbiter of one own actions is seen to be madness. Madness is also explained in the view that Kurtz can only answer to himself for he has no authority on who he answers to, and this is more than he can (Watts, 56). Another theme is the Absurdity of Evil. Conrad explains how Marlow is driven to a point of being malicious and hypocritical. According to Kurtz, an act of folly is whereby one tries to judge evil by look of moral standard and social value. The personal experiences of Conrad have been the basis of his writings. Heart of Darkness is no exception to his other novels and short stories. After being a seaman for many years Conrad asked to be tagged along to a Belgian steamer, which was on its way to Africa. During the journey, he keeps a diary, which shows that many of his characters, situations and the impressions he gives in his book are proof that Heart of Darkness is a novel based on facts. Some critics view the novel as a way of manipulating the African continent. This is because the novel explores the different ways in which greed portrays itself, leading to destruction and psychological regression. In addition, a rich area of intense discussion is seen in context to the relationship between Marlow and Conrad (Conrad & Cedric, 42). In this novel, Marlow is seen as Conrad’s spokesman, and He is considered to be a separate and complex creation and also someone with both characters. One of the most vital relationships in this book is the empathy relationship between Kurtz and Marlow. According to some critics the scenes that require a wide range of crucial interpretation in the book are Kurtz death scene and the scene where Marlow has to lie to Kurtz’s fiancee about Kurtz death. A keen eye is set to the use of imagery in this novel, which is perceived to be one of Conrad’s suggestive powers. He can describe the African natives and jungle through evocation of a disturbing atmosphere, which is objectively considered to grow. There is a habitual and unclear tone of work, which is primarily dependent on the contrasting patterns of light and dark. Conrad is constantly seen to have used the symbolic concept of light and dark to show the moral ambiguity of life, and this globe in general. Therefore, the white color that he uses does not symbolize the good, or the use of black color in the novel does not symbolize evil. These two symbols are used in such a way that they can easily be interchanged. (Mairowitz et al, 79). The complexity of description takes the reader into a deeper end of the story therefore creating a clear picture of the event and principle character. However, some critics have argued that Conrad imagery is confusing and unclear in such a way that it leaves the reader in the dark. This book will remain to be a work both popular to the reader and to the critics. It is one book that has been viewed in a critical perspective in terms of racial, psychoanalytical, feminist, and political context. Conrad is considered to have forerunner of modern literature technique, which is seen through his complex presentation of the relative nature of morality and truth hence making the reader of this novel to have an active understanding of this book. This is one reason this novel from the nineteenth century is seen as a twentieth century novel. This novel has been named as the best English novel by many critics because of its imaginative cohesion of theme and image, the way Conrad evocates the colonial oppression, and the comprehensive representation of mental rot and disloyalty. Work Cited: Conrad, Joseph, and Cedric T. Watts. Heart of darkness and other tales. Oxford, New York: Oxford University Press, 2002. Print. Mairowitz, David Z., Catherine Anyango, and Joseph Conrad. Heart of darkness: adapted from the original novel by Joseph Conrad. London: SelfMadeHero, 2010. Print. Shmoop, Heart of darkness by Joseph Conrad. Sunnyvale, Calif: Shmoop University, 2010. Print. Watt, Ian. "Heart of Darkness: Joseph Conrad Biography." The Richard Stockton College of New Jersey. (2000). Web. 25 June 2013. Watts, Cedric Thomas. Conrad's Heart of Darkness A Critical and Contextual Discussion.. Amsterdam: Editions Rodopi, 2012. Print. Read More