Heart of Darkness: Heart of Controversy
Chinua Achebe believes that Joseph Conrad's Heart Of Darkness is
racist based on Conrad's descriptions of Africa and it's people.
author of Things Fall Apart, stresses Conrad's depiction of Africa as
antithesis of Europe and civilization, and the animal imagery present
Heart of Darkness, written in 1899 during the period of British
Imperialism, concerns a British trading company and their expedition
the Congo for ivory. The African natives are treated brutally by the
Europeans, and despite Conrad's casual condescension towards the
one cannot help feeling resentment at the unnecessary cruelty they must
endure. The novella stands as a document against the imperialist
-- Conrad was quite liberal for the time.
The natives are referred to as "savages" several times throughout
the story, but Conrad is not using any particularly strong words for
time. The European audiences who would be reading would not find
racist about it. By today's more sensitive standards, such deference
more serious, but turn-of-the-century England was sure to expect far
harsher. Educated people reading Conrad's novel should understand the
differences between the past and the present, and be forgiving of his
The deeper the expedition progressed into the center of the
continent, the more isolation was felt by the crew. In a sense,
Africa IS the antithesis of Western Europe -- it lacks not only the
urban structures but also the Social Darwinist attitudes of the time.
is in this remote environment that man must face his true self without
illusions, and the darkness of the human soul is apparent. The
environment may mock western civilization's refinement, but this is not
derogatory towards the jungle, but rather an eye-opener to the European
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