Insanity In Joseph Conrad's Heart Of Darkness

Marlow’s all-consuming drive to find Kurtz and search for Ivory is just that--a drive-- without it, Marlow would have never gone on his journey down the Congo. Marlow’s pursuit, going back into the Heart of Darkness, is misunderstood by the others on the ship as madness because they don’t understand or share his desire and willingness to sacrifice everything for the end result. Marlow is not mad, but instead possesses a passion which he is unwilling to relinquish. His steadfast persuit suggests that madness is judged by others with conflicting views and passions and who lack understanding of the motive of the “mad” person. Madness must be re-evaluated to better understand the intent and the viewpoint instead of labeling it as mad just as Marlow …show more content…
Marlow’s response to this information is not to retreat from his expedition but instead to go see his dear aunt and to say goodbye. Marlow is facing the fact that he may meet his end on this journey and still decides to go, to risk his life for the end result of fining ivory and Kurtz. After Marlow’s aunt gets him a job on the steamboat as the captain, Marlow learns of the previous captain’s fate; Fresleven was a man with the most innocent intentions was changed by the darkness and ended up being killed over hens and a few dollars. Marlow is still willing to go on his journey, to take a dead obsessed man’s job, to risk his life, his sanity all for his anticipated …show more content…
Fresleven was a innocent minded man that was driven to beating someone over a few dollars, Fresleven hadn’t even entered the forest yet but it had already manipulated his character into something that it wouldn’t normally have been. Kurtz was considered to have a “soul that was mad” after being in the forest for so long, the forest had changed the way they he thought and acted “he feared neither god nor devil, let alone any mere man”. After going into the forest for the second time, Marlow realizes what is being done and turns around and leaves “the playful paw strokes of the wilderness”. Each of these men had been changed by the forest but were able to admire each other for their reasons for going into it because they shared the motives that drove their explorations. Only the ones who did not share their motives that believed them to me mad, obsessed, or