What’s in it for me? Discover a classic literary critique of colonialism.
Heart of Darkness (1899) is an absolute classic of English literature. It tells the story of sailor Charles Marlow, who becomes a steamship captain for an ivory trading company in the Congo.
The book depicts the very real horrors of European colonialism. But did you know that it’s based on the author’s own experience? Eight years before he started writing the novella, Joseph Conrad actually held a similar job with a Belgian trading company. He sailed up the Congo River on a steamboat, and even briefly held command of the ship. A large part of Heart of Darkness is inspired by his travel journals from that time.
Conrad got to witness the greed and cruelty of his fellow Europeans up close. Perhaps that’s what makes Heart of Darkness such a powerful critique of colonialism. In this Blink, we’ll explore the themes of imperialism, power dynamics, and morality present in the book – and examine why it’s such an important piece of literature.
Chapter 1: Marlow’s Sailor’s Yarn
Heart of Darkness begins on the River Thames near London. The British steam ship Nellie is anchored there, with its five passengers waiting to embark on a journey to Africa.
The passengers include the captain of the ship, referred to as the “Director of Companies,” a lawyer, an accountant, our unnamed narrator, and sailor Charles Marlow – the protagonist of the story.
The mood on board is somber. Everyone seems lost in their own thoughts. As the sun sets, Marlow begins to spin a sailor’s yarn for the others: the story of how he became captain of a river steamboat in Africa.
Marlow explains that his fascination with the unknown began from an early age. As a child, he loved looking at maps – especially at the uncharted territories of Africa. He became particularly fascinated with the Congo River, which looked like a winding snake to him.
As a young adult, Marlow seeks to quench his hunger for exploration by applying for a job with “the Company” – a Belgian ivory trade firm. He gets in with the help of his aunt’s influence. One of the Company’s captains is killed by an African in a petty dispute, and Marlow is the only one willing to replace him.
Marlow is excited to finally see more of the world, but he feels apprehensive about the details of his new job. When he signs his contract in the Brussel offices, he’s beset by the ominous feeling that he’s made a mistake.
But he boards the ship to Africa regardless. After thirty days, the ship finally reaches a Company station on the outer coast of Africa. Here, Marlow is supposed to get acquainted with the job before taking command of his own ship. Instead, he gets his first glimpse of the horrors of colonialism.
ANALYSIS
The first chapter of Heart of Darkness sets the stage for the story to come. It introduces us to our protagonist Charles Marlow, a travel-hungry sailor who takes a job with a Belgian ivory trading company. Marlow is depicted as introspective and philosophical, with a deep desire to explore the unknown. As becomes clear throughout the book, he’s actually somewhat obsessed with exploring the “darkness” at the heart of humanity.
Marlow recounts the story of what happened to him to other passengers on a ship. This gives him the power of hindsight – and allows him to interrupt the story with retrospective musings. For example, he ponders how many atrocities that have been committed in the name of progress actually just served the pursuit of profit.
Chapter 1 [cont.]: Company Men
When the ship reaches the Company station on the outer coast, Marlow gets his first impressions of colonial horrors. He sees African slaves chained together by the neck, and stumbles upon a group of sick, starving men who’ve hidden in the bushes. He tries to share some food with one destitute young man, but he dies right in front of him.
In stark contrast, the Company accountant Marlow meets soon after is dressed in a fine English suit. He tells Marlow about a mysterious Company agent called Mr. Kurtz, who mans an outpost deep in the jungle. Kurtz is a revered figure within the Company because he harvests more ivory than anyone else.
After ten days at the camp, Marlow leaves with his crew to travel to the river station where his steam ship lies. But when they arrive, the ship has sunk. The repairs are lengthy and complicated. Marlow takes the time to get acquainted with the Manager of the river station, whom he quickly deems to be an “idiot” who got his job by accident. The Manager informs Marlow that Kurtz has fallen ill. He's very worried about the potential chaos this could cause in the colonies.
Marlow is also accosted by a brickmaker, who hopes to get in good graces with Marlow’s influential aunt in order to move up in the Company. Marlow uses the opportunity to milk him for more information about Kurtz. He finds out Kurz is the Chief of the Inner Station. The brickmaker also tells him that Kurtz is a “special being.”
Here, Marlow interrupts his story to tell his listeners aboard the Nellie that he hates when people lie. That’s why he’s so appalled by the machinations of his overambitious coworkers, such as the brickmaker.
Later, a band of freelance raiders called the Eldorado Exploring Expedition arrives at the river station. They're led by the uncle of the unsympathetic Manager.
ANALYSIS
When Marlow arrives in Africa, he begins to understand the terrifying realities of colonialism. One important stylistic device that author Joseph Conrad uses here is the omission of proper names. For instance, the Belgian ivory trading firm is simply referred to as “the Company,” and its employees are often referred to only by title, such as “the Manager.” In fact, Conrad doesn’t even specify the African country where the story takes place. We can only assume that he’s describing the Congo based on his own biography.
The lack of specificity serves to underscore the universality of the story. The characters are archetypes rather than concrete people – their greed, power hunger and violence have existed in one way or another throughout human history. And the horrors of colonialism extended far beyond just the Congo.
Chapter 2: The Mysterious Mr. Kurtz
Marlow becomes more and more obsessed with the enigmatic ivory trader Kurtz. One day, he eavesdrops on the Manager and his uncle talking about Kurtz. They refer to rumors about his “strange behavior,” talk about his influence in the Company, and wish him ill. But this only makes Marlow more fascinated.
The Manager’s uncle and his Eldorado Exploring Expedition soon venture back into the jungle. A little later, Marlow receives news that their donkeys have been killed – implying that the men have died, too.
Finally, the ship is repaired, and Marlow can begin his journey upstream towards Kurtz's Inner Station. On board with him are the Manager, a couple of European “pilgrims,” and a group of natives, who turn out to be cannibals.
The journey up the river takes two months, and is filled with surreal experiences. Marlow describes the trip as feeling like traveling back to the beginning of time. Often, he’s downright terrified of the unnerving darkness of the wilderness.
Shortly before they reach the Inner Station, Marlow’s traveling group find a pile of firewood. Attached to the wood is a warning message: “Wood for you. Hurry up. Approach cautiously.”
Soon after, the ship is attacked with arrows. The native African chief on board tries to fight off the attackers with a gun, but he’s killed by a spear in the chest. Marlow eventually manages to scare off the attackers by blowing the steam-whistle of the ship. The violent attack makes him wonder whether Kurtz has long been killed too.
At this point, the Marlow in present time interrupts the story. He tells his listeners aboard the Nellie of a report that Kurz wrote for the International Society for the Suppression of Savage Customs. In it, Kurtz suggests that the colonists should approach the native Africans as if they were supernatural beings to exert maximum influence over them. As if this weren’t enough, Kurtz ends this report with a call to “Exterminate all the brutes!” Marlow also foreshadows that Kurtz entrusts him the report at one point, and that Kurtz's “Intended” will play a part in the story.
ANALYSIS
The second chapter of Heart of Darkness builds up the intrigue around the character of Kurtz. Marlow’s obsession with him becomes the plot device that propels forward his journey into the African wilderness.
But the way in which he recounts the story raises questions about the supposed distinction between his “civilized” fellow Europeans and their supposedly “savage” Africans subjects. During his journey up the river, Marlow begins to recognize a shared humanity with the natives. On the contrary, he describes many of the white men he meets – for example the Manager – as stupid, sleazy, or outright despicable. At one point, Marlow even describes himself as “savage” with hunger. But the mysterious Kurtz is the epitome of a white man gone “wild” with power. Marlow’s musings suggest that “savagery” is not a question of background, but of choices.
Chapter 3: The Horror! The Horror!
After two months of travel, Marlow and his crew finally reach Kurtz's Inner Station. They’re greeted by a young Russian sailor, dressed in a strange harlequin costume. The sailor turns out to be Kurtz's disciple. He proudly tells Marlow about the incredible influence Kurtz holds over the local tribes – and the atrocities he’s committed to cement his power.
The Russian explains that the natives attacked Marlow’s steamship with arrows because they didn’t want Kurtz to leave. Kurtz has succeeded in making the natives revere him like a God. He even takes them on ivory raids to other local villages.
Marlow is as appalled as he’s fascinated with Kurtz's savagery. To him, Kurtz is a man consumed by his own power, driven to madness by his pursuit of wealth and status. When he finally meets Kurtz, he’s shocked by his physical appearance. Kurtz is gravely ill, and looks like death himself. The native Africans have to carry him onto the steamship on a stretcher.
Marlow also encounters a native warrior woman who’s rumored to be Kurtz's lover. She briefly follows Kurt on the ship, but then quietly disappears into the jungle. On board, Marlow overhears Kurtz and the Manager arguing. The Manager is dissatisfied with Kurtz's “unsound method,” and intends to take him back to Europe. The Russian harlequin informs Marlow that it was Kurtz himself who ordered the attack on his steamer, because he didn’t want to return to Europe.
In the middle of the night, Marlow wakes to the beat of drums. He notices that Kurtz has fled his room. Marlow finds him in the jungle, crawling through the grass. Kurtz pleads to let him stay there so he can realize his “immense plans.” But he eventually collapses, and Marlow carries him back to the steamer.
The next day, Marlow, Kurtz and the Manager leave aboard the steamer – not without protest by the natives, led by Kurtz's lover. On board, Kurtz's health rapidly deteriorates. He begins to insist he sees nothing but darkness. He entrusts Marlow with some papers, including the report mentioned earlier. And just before Kurtz dies, he utters his very famous last words: "The horror! The horror!"
Marlow and the crew bury Kurtz in the jungle, and eventually make it back to Europe. In Brussels, Marlow tries to figure out what to do with Kurtz's papers. The Company is eager to get a hold of them, thinking they might contain some important information about the ivory trade. Instead, Marlow hands the papers to Kurtz’s fiancée. He describes her as the opposite of Kurtz – sweet, sincere, and innocent. He also quickly realizes she has no idea about what kind of monster her fiancé had become out in the jungle.
He decides it would be “too dark” to tell her the truth. He tells her that Kurtz’s last words were her name. Here, Marlow ends the story he’s been telling the passengers of the Nellie. The flood has receded, and the ship is ready to disembark. Staring down the waterway, our unnamed narrator feels as if looking onto a path into the “immense heart of darkness”
ANALYSIS
When Marlow arrives at the station, he begins to understand the full extent of Kurtz's madness. Kurtz has made himself into a deity to the natives, and manipulates them into carrying out his brutal conquests.
Despite this, Marlow continues to be fascinated with Kurtz. He sees him as a tragic figure rather than a villain. He recognizes the brilliance of Kurtz's mind and the depth of his soul, even as he witnesses the darkness consume him. The darkness is so powerful it has started eating away at Kurtz's body. Gaunt and ill, he’s become but a shadow of a man – yet he still dreams of fulfilling his grand plans of obtaining total power.
One might read Kurtz as the embodiment of Europe, his soul corrupted by his mindless pursuit of wealth and power. His famous last words – "The horror! The horror!" – underscore the darkness at the heart of Europe’s colonial ambitions.
Final Summary
The novella by Polish-English novelist Joseph Conrad centers around a sailor named Marlow, who becomes captain of an ivory trading steam ship in colonized Africa. Marlow tells a group of travelers about his journey up the Congo River. Along the way, Marlow witnesses the brutality of European colonialism.
He becomes obsessed with a man named Kurtz, a company agent who has gone rogue and is rumored to have become a tyrant over the local tribes. When he finally reaches Kurtz's station deep in the jungle, he finds a man who has descended into madness over his hunger for power.
Kurtz has become so consumed by darkness that it eventually makes him physically ill. He dies aboard Marlow’s steam ship on the way back to Europe, uttering his very famous last words: “The horror! The horror!”. Back in Europe, Marlow hands a stack of Kurtz's writings to his oblivious fiancée. He can’t bring himself to tell her about the monster that Kurtz had become – and comforts her with lies.