Dec 22, 2009

Heart of Darkness | Characters

Conrad has referred to Heart of Darkness and all of his fiction as "autobiography as fiction," and this tale is based upon his own Congo journey of 1890, first aboard the Ville de Maceio from France to the Belgian Congo and then on the S.S. Roi des Beiges up the Congo River. In large measure Conrad is his own narrator in the persons of Marlow and the "frame" narrator; this makes him a chief character in two guises in addition to his authorial role. Next in importance is Marlow, a veteran sailor who, like his listeners — the Director of Companies, the lawyer, the accountant, and the...