History Heart of Darkness by joseph conrad Essay

History Heart of Darkness by joseph conrad - Essay Example I do not think that he likes or dislikes Romans but he does not appear to think that their approach of bringing light to the heart of darkness was right. This also presents Conrad’s ideas about New Imperialism which he does not agree with but remains a part of the process since his life and livelihood is connected with that. Considering the fact that Conrad found a bastion of imperialism at the heart of darkness, it is easy to see that Conrad is not comfortable with the idea of subjugating a nation and exploiting the natural resources of the land as a means for getting rich. The journey to the heart of darkness certainly clears his vision and he understands that the ideals of imperialism may not necessarily be correct. However, his approach to opposing imperialism and towards defending the natives seems rather lukewarm. For example, his vision of the African lady Kurtz was living with remains clouded by what she was wearing and how wild her appearance was to him. He notes the silence of the natives and gives the reader the impression that they were simplistic people indeed with few values which could be considered as culturally strong measures. I feel that the only African character in the book was Kurtz himself since he tried to become a part of his surroundings. However, even he was not truly a native and their absence remains a rather pointed example of Marlow’s viewpoint. This viewpoint certainly does not come from any sympathy which Marlow might have felt for the natives or for other characters he met in the Congo since his objective of going on with his journey was to see Kurtz. He knows that Mr. Kurtz is â€Å"a first-class agent (Conrad, 1902, Pg. 27)† and that he is â€Å"a very remarkable person (Conrad, 1902, Pg. 27)† who is known to outperform all other ivory agents. His curiosity about him is only increased further when he is told quite clearly that Kurtz is, â€Å"an exceptional man, of the greatest importance to the Company