Who's at Fault, Conrad or Marlow?
Joseph Conrad is regarded as one of the greatest English
writers of all time. That is why it is of no surprise that his novella Heart of
Darkness was such a successful work of literature. The story was originally published
in 1899, but it is still being talked about up until today. The book itself is
filled with dense layers of imagery and symbolism as well as complex theme that’s
reveal the darkness that lies within the hearts of mankind. It is a common
opinion amongst critics that this novella awe- inspiring. But Chinua Achebe who
was a Nigerian critic, novelist, poet, and professor disagrees with this common
belief that is widely accepted by many. On the 18th of February in
the year 1975, the great African writer Chinua Achebe presented a Chancellor’s
Lecture at the University of Massachusetts, entitled ‘An Image of Africa:
Racism in Conrad’s Heart of Darkness.’ The African writer voiced his opinion on
how he believed Conrad was,
"a thoroughgoing racist"
for depicting Africa as "the other world". If you refer to the how
Conrad depicts the Congo and the indigenous peoples that are native to that
part of the region one can see how Chinua Achebe might have come to this
conclusion. Take for example “We were wanderers on a prehistoric earth, on an
earth that worse the aspect of an unknown planet... The prehistoric man was
curing us… wondering and secretly appalled as sane men would be…” Through
Marlow, Conrad portrays the Congo as a place that is completely separate from
the world as if it were something that had never been touched and was
undeveloped. The people were described as prehistoric as well meaning that they
were like the land that they resided on, separate from mankind. In addition,
when Marlow refers to himself he calls himself a “sane man.” Nowhere in the text
does Conrad paint the natives in a positive light as he does with the
Europeans. When I read the book the first time I did not take these descriptions
with defense, but now that I am rereading the text through the light of Chinua
Achebe I have developed a sense of resentment for the author. The fact that not
one African is shown in a positive manner causes me to ask the question why?
Even the people who are not important, as long as their European when being explained
by Marlow they are always more than “savage” or “black shapes”. It is as if the
people are not even human. But the problem with this is this is the story of a
fictional character. One cannot jump to the conclusion that this is what Conrad
was feeling because he could have just been writing from a European perspective.
At the time this is how they viewed anyone who was not European. The purpose of
Heart of Darkness was to bring to light the issues that are occurring in areas
that people normally do not pay attention to such as the Congo. Because this
was written from a European perspective and the author was trying to teach his
readers about issues today, could he have used this as a strategy to show how
harsh Europeans were to the African. By allowing the reader to know the
thinking of Marlow could that have just been Conrad’s way of showing the
Europeans how they are unfair towards those who were different from them. I
would disagree with Chinua Achebe, but there is one factor that prevents me
from doing so. Marlow is the fictional embodiment of Joseph Conrad. The large
amount of similarities between the fictional character and the author have
caused me to believe that Marlow’s story is really Conrad’s experiences on the
Congo. But if that is that case that would mean that Marlow’s thoughts match
what the author was thinking. Based on how he describes the Africans, he would
be considered racist. “yet to understand the effect of it on me you out to know
how I got out here, what I saw, how I went up the river to the place where I
first met the poor chap.” In the introduction of the author of Heart of
Darkness, it says “Much of what Conrad witnessed on this journey is reflected
in Heart of Darkness…” Going back to the point of Marlow, he says that one must
understand how he get where he is the things that he saw and where he met the
poor chap. That quote and what is said in the introduction is what has persuaded
me believe that this is Conrad’s experiences, his thoughts, what he saw. Marlow
serves as the cover to what he believed in so that he would not be criticized
for his thinking. Everything is not as it seems. There is always another side
to the story. This is why I agree with Chinua Achebe in his reasoning that
Joseph Conrad was a racist. The fact that this work of literature has been
critically analyzed over the course of years has also caused me to believe that
white racism is so embedded in our society that we cannot differentiate
prejudice when it is masked, just as Conrad masked his thinking by disguising
himself as Marlow. Because this story is said be “fiction” no one pays much
attention to the offensive language that is used towards the Africans. But
behind everything that one says, whether one claims that it untrue, there is
always some sort of truth behind it. Conrad being racist is the truth behind
the thoughts and ideas of Marlow.
