In Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness the ultimate goal for Marlow is Kurtz, a station manager deep in the Congo. Surrounding Kurtz was an image of a well presented, civilized man who could bring the light of European civilization. However, an illusion such as this and is very fragile to closer inspection. Kurtz’ image decomposed with the coming of Marlow and the critical observation he brought. Kurtz even worked as the bringer of his own destruction, yet Marlow never allowed the outside, Western world to know of the despair and wrongdoings of Kurtz. In Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness disillusionment about Kurtz occurs throughout the book in Marlow’s admiration, Kurtz’ absurd control of the natives, and the intended’s false understanding
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However, nobody really knows him, for his only company other than the natives is a Russian, who after an extended time in the wild appears to be losing his sanity, and even this man goes weeks at a time without seeing Kurtz because Kurtz is in the interior raiding for ivory. Kurtz was a larger than life figure among the natives. He manipulated them to achieve his selfish goals and further his career, ultimately, at the expense of his soul. Kurtz set off into the jungle with what he assumed were noble intentions of bringing the light to the natives that he and the rest of Europe called savages. The native people never had a chance, though, they were a simple people who had never seen the kind of technology and power Kurtz had, “He came to them with thunder and lightning”(Conrad 84). Kurtz made himself the larger than life figure the natives needed and in return they took him deep into the darkness to retrieve his precious ivory. All of the new power went to Kurtz’ head and he became power-crazed and mentally broken. Kurtz knew that he was not the same person but nothing he did could change him, “He hated all this, and somehow he couldn’t get away” (Conrad 85). The noble intentions he arrived with quickly deteriorated and Kurtz became the truly savage one, not the natives. Kurtz had gone so far to amaze and control these people that in the frenzy he began to “forget himself amongst these people” (Conrad 85). The goodness that Kurtz left with turned sour and after a time in the country Kurtz was never able to regain his former self. His craze and obsession was to never be known by the rest of the world, for it was a trade
However, nobody really knows him, for his only company other than the natives is a Russian, who after an extended time in the wild appears to be losing his sanity, and even this man goes weeks at a time without seeing Kurtz because Kurtz is in the interior raiding for ivory. Kurtz was a larger than life figure among the natives. He manipulated them to achieve his selfish goals and further his career, ultimately, at the expense of his soul. Kurtz set off into the jungle with what he assumed were noble intentions of bringing the light to the natives that he and the rest of Europe called savages. The native people never had a chance, though, they were a simple people who had never seen the kind of technology and power Kurtz had, “He came to them with thunder and lightning”(Conrad 84). Kurtz made himself the larger than life figure the natives needed and in return they took him deep into the darkness to retrieve his precious ivory. All of the new power went to Kurtz’ head and he became power-crazed and mentally broken. Kurtz knew that he was not the same person but nothing he did could change him, “He hated all this, and somehow he couldn’t get away” (Conrad 85). The noble intentions he arrived with quickly deteriorated and Kurtz became the truly savage one, not the natives. Kurtz had gone so far to amaze and control these people that in the frenzy he began to “forget himself amongst these people” (Conrad 85). The goodness that Kurtz left with turned sour and after a time in the country Kurtz was never able to regain his former self. His craze and obsession was to never be known by the rest of the world, for it was a trade