Heart Of Darkness Greed Quotes Analysis

Improved Essays
Often people are blinded by their lust for power and wealth. Joseph Conrad, in the novella “Heart of Darkness”, explores greed through character, imperialism and symbolism to show the corrupting power of greed.
The novella follows Marlow’s character as he embarks on his journey within the Congo. Marlow encounters Kurtz’s public persona, which Marlow is intrigued by. This persona for the reader, and Marlow, is tarnished by the obvious craving for wealth and power. It is emphasised by Kurtz’s claiming that everything is his. He says “‘…my Intended, my ivory, my station, my river…’” (89). His words reflect upon how he views himself, “god-like”. He is tainted by greed, enough to consider himself better than anyone else which is accentuated by the

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    "Men! The only animal in the world to fear" (Lawrence). This quote by D.H. Lawrence makes a statement about the fact that man is capable of the most heinous and despicable acts. Though man is not an animal, he is inclined to be much more cruel than any other living thing. Humans have a moral guideline to live by, but throughout many generations, they have proved themselves to be less than civilized.…

    • 1017 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    This quote important as it tells a lot about the goals of the Europeans in such a short piece. The dreams of men refers to African and the wealth that it can bring to them. The seeds of commonwealths represents the exploited Africans and how they are providing the wealth to the Europeans. The germs of empires represents the evils that the European are encaged in. It represents the greed and cruelty that they unleash on the world.…

    • 324 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Kurtz Greed

    • 183 Words
    • 1 Pages

    In his life prior to the Congo, before greed took over, Kurtz was a well-rounded and highly admired character. He was not yet obsessed with money and ivory. After Kurtz’s death, Marlow went home and met Kurtz’s colleagues. They informed him of Kurtz’s many abilities; Kurtz was a musician, painter, and journalist. One of Kurtz’s friends from England even insisted that Kurtz was so popular and well spoken, that he should have led a radical political party.…

    • 183 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Kurtz Imperialism

    • 1158 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Imperialism’s Imbalance of Id Insanity is a byproduct of imperialism. In Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness, Kurtz is a high ranking employee of the Company, an imperialist Dutch organization exploiting the Congo for ivory. After gaining his position, Kurtz rapidly becomes consumed by greed, establishes himself as a veritable god among men, and leads natives in raids against other villages to steal their ivory. Kurtz is overwhelmingly dominated by his id, and his downfall stems from the imbalance of his psyche; thus, as a symbol of imperialism, Kurtz serves as a warning of the dangers of the imperialist mindset that allows the id to grow unchecked. Kurtz exemplifies the id as evidenced by his bestial nature and his demonstrated rapacity.…

    • 1158 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    When looking at Marlow, it clearly shows that he was a good man, but as he stays in the jungle longer he begins to lose his good morals and becomes blind to darkness (Conrad). Marlow had what looked like such a bright future because he had such good morals and wanted to do great things, but he went into the Congo and became evil and corrupt just like the others, because he was blind to the truth and light that he originally wanted to bring. He viewed Kutrz so great that he wanted to be just like him and do everything he could to achieve that. Kurtz, however, was already evil and blind to his wickedness as well. Kurtz was so caught up in collecting Ivory he forgot that everyone else collecting it was a human too (Conrad).…

    • 859 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Scramble For Africa Essay

    • 1338 Words
    • 6 Pages

    How did Europe become such a major power in the 1800s and 1900s when all it was was a group of various countries with diverse customs and languages? Europe during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries was in what historians call the “Scramble for Africa”. This is where European powers tried to divide and imperialize parts of Africa that they were rewarded because of their power and prestige. Certain parts of the imperialist, European African continent were tamer than others. Other sections were more humane in the treatment of slaves, but none were as terrifyingly horrendous in brutality and inhumane practices as the Belgian-controlled Congo.…

    • 1338 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Heart of Darkness makes the readers question the values of white civilization. They gain their values from exploiting a continent in the name of ‘civilizing project’. Likewise, Conrad describes that the civilized white people are greedy because they are obsessed with the natives’ wealth which is ivory. The character Marlow also reveals the darkness existing in civilized whites instead of black people of the Dark Continent. The book Heart of Darkness shows how ignorant the civilized people…

    • 983 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In the “Heart of Darkness” by Joseph Conrad, a man, Kurtz, has some confrontation with his dark self. This is both dangerous and enlightening. In the novel, the term "darkness" and “light” have a few different meanings. The difference between dark and light is uncivilized and civilized. Heart of Darkness is about a man 's journey into the darkness.…

    • 1129 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    However, in the beginning of the story, Marlow was not interested in this highly praised man. According to the Jago text’s Heart of Darkness, Marlow says, “I had plenty of time for meditation, and now and then I would give some thought to Kurtz. I wasn’t very…

    • 1173 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Great Essays

    At the beginning, Marlow lives in a moderately civilized world where “A narrow and deserted street in deep shadow, high houses, innumerable windows with venetian blinds, a dead silence, grass sprouting right and left, immense double doors standing ponderously ajar”(Conrad 7). Marlow…

    • 2457 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Everybody is mad in some way and each person has a method to their madness that helps them succeed. Aristotle said, “There is no great genius without some touch of madness”. Throughout many works of literature madness can be seen in many characters and is used as a catalyst to help move the plot along. Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad explores the journey of Marlow, a steamboat captain, journey into the heart of Africa, and the changing of his objective to meeting Kurtz when almost everyone glorifies him. Madness is commonly seen throughout Kurtz’s life in the Congo, and clearly alters his behavior.…

    • 1120 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    “We penetrated deeper and deeper into the heart of darkness” (43). This is one of many passages where Marlow uses darkness to tell his personal story about the journey he took through the Congo. This quote has both a literal and figurative meaning, where the reader must go beyond the text to truly comprehend the message of the author, Joseph Conrad. When reading this passage, it may appear that as Marlow and his crew go deeper into the Congo, the men become savage-like due to all the darkness, or evil, they are surrounded by. Joseph Conrad’s novella, Heart of Darkness, is a story about two men’s realization of their own inner evil.…

    • 1375 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Postcolonial, Why? Postcolonial is studied to help gain a better understanding of the consequences of having control and about the economic exploitation of native people and their lands have on the rest of the world or one selves. Two theories that is demonstrated is the control and exploitation of others are diaspora and oppression. These postcolonial themes are found in literature works like The Epic of Gilgamesh, The Tempest, and Heart of Darkness and they exemplify the interdependence between the two theories. Diaspora refers to the displacement of others either by force or by choice and oppression is to deprive someone of their voice and power.…

    • 973 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    The Congo in The Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad is one of the greatest obstacles that Marlow (protagonist) must face when he decides to journey to Kurtz’s station to meet the legendary ivory collector. On Marlow’s journey nature provides a constant and arduous threat that Conrad embodies as the jungle in the Congo. Nature itself in the book has a multitude of meanings and uses, such as an antagonist for Marlow, and a constant theme throughout the book. For Marlow, while on his journey he finds a great veneration for nature as he sees its raw power when left unchecked by humanity. Eventually, Marlow comes to believe that nature cannot be domesticated or controlled by man due to nature 's overwhelming power.…

    • 1265 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Marlow makes this statement about the Russian harlequin. Although Kurtz let the power and control of the Congo capture him mentally, the Russian harlequin had no interest in the power. He ventured into the Congo just for the sake of adventure. Once Marlow realized that the Russian still didn't let the darkness of power get to him after he had witnessed and been taught by Kurtz, he was able to understand that the exploration of the country was all that kept him there. This fits in with the theme of curiosity and adventure because the harlequin was similar to Marlow and Kurtz in the adventurous aspect of life.…

    • 134 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays