Heart of Darkness (Masterplots, Revised Second Edition)
At a glance:
- Author: Joseph Conrad
- First Published: 1899
- Type of Work: Novella
- Type of Plot: Psychological realism
- Time of Work: Late nineteenth century
- Setting: Belgian Congo
- Principal Characters: Marlow, Mr. Kurtz, The District Manager, A Russian Traveler, Kurtz’s Fiancée
- Genres: Long fiction, Psychological fiction
- Subjects: Africa or Africans, Traveling or travelers, Colonialism, Murder or homicide, Nineteenth century, Antiheroes, Mental illness, Oppression, Good and evil, Greed, Rivers or waterways, Corruption, Adventure, Steamboats
- Locales: Congo, Belgian Congo
The Story:
A group of men were sitting on the deck of the cruising yawl, The Nellie, anchored one calm evening in the Thames estuary. One of the seamen, Marlow, began reflecting that the Thames area had been, at the time of the invading Romans, one of the dark and barbarous areas of the earth. Dwelling on this theme, he then began to tell a story of the most barbarous area of the earth that he had experienced.
Through his aunt’s connections, Marlow had once secured a billet as commander of a river steamer for one of the trading companies with interests in the...
[The entire page is 2545 words long]
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