Dec 27, 2009

Heart of Darkness | Literary Precedents

Heart of Darkness has precedents in the tales of Chaucer and Boccaccio, the epic poetry of Virgil and Dante, in the literature of the Romantic Rebellion and, in its vision of the universe, in the novels of Thomas Hardy. One must also recall Conrad's earlier fiction as setting precedents for this and his other work. With the traditions of the Victorian novel and the history of Empire behind them, Conrad and several of his contemporaries began to develop tales of adventure and travel set in exotic places. Writers of the Romantic Revival in the late Victorian era such as Robert Louis...