Joseph Conrad

Heart of Darkness (Penguin Popular Classics)

A republication of the great Joseph Conrad novel

Heart of Darkness

Julie <3

My destiny! Droll thing life is— that mysterious arrangement of merciless logic for a futile purpose.

I went no more near the remarkable man who had pronounced a judgment upon the adventures of his soul on this earth. The voice was gone. What else had been there? 

But both the diabolic love and the unearthly hate of the mysteries it had penetrated fought for the possession of that soul satiated with primitive emotions, avid of lying fame, of sham distinction, of all the appearances of success and power.

We live in the flicker— may it last as long as the old earth keeps rolling! But darkness was here yesterday.

We looked at the venerable stream not in the vivid flush of a short day that comes and departs for ever, but in the august light of abiding memories.

On a boat in the Thames estuary, Marlow tells his travelling companions of his reconnaissance expedition for a Belgian trading company to its most outpost in central Africa, which brought him on the trail of the elusive Kurtz, a brilliant idealist gone rogue. His account relates not only the perils he encounters on his quest, but also the deterioration of his state of mind as he is confronted with a world that is hostile and alien to him.

Heart of Darkness and the Complete Congo Diary

Hated it! If you would like to know why, read Chinua Achebe's brilliant essay "An Image of Africa: Racism Conrad's 'Heart of Darkness'". 

Grace Frost

Colleen

4 Stars

Heart of Darkness a love it or hate type of book. It's not for everyone, and I can see why so many people cannot stand this book. Despite being a very short book, it is dense and slow. There is almost no plot. And the fact that many people read this as assigned reading increases their loathing. But if you can get past that, there is something beautiful here. Heart of Darkness may not have as high a standing among other Classics, but there is a reason why has stuck around.

What I loved most about this book were Conrad's descriptions. His writing is beautiful. Like many old works, his words have a cultured quality that most modern language completely lacks. That is why I love reading classics. They tap into a lexis that people no longer bother with and are overall more poetic. Conrad's words are a wonderful balance of elegance, erudition, and perception. Here are some examples:
“It seems to me I am trying to tell you a dream--making a vain attempt, because no relation of a dream can convey the dream-sensation, that commingling of absurdity, surprise, and bewilderment in a tremor of struggling revolt, that notion of being captured by the incredible which is of the very essence of dreams...No, it is impossible; it is impossible to convey the life-sensation of any given epoch of one's existence--that which makes its truth, its meaning--its subtle and penetrating essence. It is impossible. We live, as we dream-alone...” 

“You know I hate, detest, and can't bear a lie, not because I am straighter than the rest of us, but simply because it appalls me. There is a taint of death, a flavor of mortality in lies - which is exactly what I hate and detest in the world - what I want to forget.”

“Droll thing life is -- that mysterious arrangement of merciless logic for a futile purpose. The most you can hope from it is some knowledge of yourself -- that comes too late -- a crop of inextinguishable regrets.”

“I don't like work--no man does--but I like what is in the work--the chance to find yourself. Your own reality--for yourself not for others--what no other man can ever know. They can only see the mere show, and never can tell what it really means.”

“They trespassed upon my thoughts. They were intruders whose knowledge of life was to me an irritating pretense, because I felt so sure they could not possibly know the things I knew. Their bearing, which was simply the bearing of commonplace individuals going about their business in the assurance of perfect safety, was offensive to me like the outrageous flaunting of folly in the face of a danger it is unable to comprehend. I had no particular desire to enlighten them, but I had some difficulty in restraining myself from laughing in their faces, so full of stupid importance.”  The story has a suspenseful element but it is by no means a Thriller. It does not have the flashy formulaic structure that modern Suspense stories do. Rather, this is a slow burn. A first person narrative that seems simply at first - just a traveling companion relaying his experiences - but it slowly builds not towards some epic action or plot twist. No, it builds inward looking deep into the heart and mind. More than just pretty words, there is a psychological depth. It also features beautiful symbolism. The dominate symbolism of Darkness might seem overdone at times but I thought it was wonderfully done.

As with most old writing, it might seem time dated to some. People often get caught up when old writing contains terms considered politically correct any more. But that does not make the writing racist. Heart of Darkness contains cultural and societal commentary - that evil inside all of us. The ironic juxtaposition of the white Europeans trying to "civilize the savages" while at the same time devolving into barbaric actions. It also looks into Imperialism. This book was written at a time when the Europeans were divvying up Africa with no regards to the indigenous people. Conrad put his own personal experiences and views of colonization into this story. So while some of the language and attitudes seem very out of line with twenty-first century political correctness, it really needs to be emphasized that Conrad was basically villainizing colonization. Unfortunately many of these issues still apply all these years later. 

So while the story may not have a guns blazing plot, it is beautifully written and has a deeper message. It is a must read for any lover of classic literature.

“But his soul was mad. Being alone in the wilderness, it had looked within itself and, by heavens I tell you, it had gone mad.”

“He struggled with himself, too. I saw it -- I heard it. I saw the inconceivable mystery of a soul that knew no restraint, no faith, and no fear, yet struggling blindly with itself.” 
RATING FACTORS:
Ease of Reading: 3 Stars
Writing Style: 5 Stars
Originality: 5 Stars
Character Development: 4 Stars
Plot Structure and Development: 3 Stars
Use of Literary Devices: 5 Stars

Beau

The Heart of Darkness is a novel encapsulated in adventure, existential thought, darkness, and inquisitiveness. The book follows the journey of Marlow and his recollection of memories once serving as a steamboat captain along the dangerous bends of Congo river. It's written as a frame narrative (story within a story), which does demand attentiveness considering the story often jumps in and out of first-person account, philosophical pondering, and so on. Light and darkness is explored predominantly throughout, as is the duality of human nature (albeit pessimistic at times). I'll more than likely come back and read this again one day - as it's full of themes and underlying currents which only several reads allow for. This book is small in length, but long and rich in content.

Ben Jenkins

Kathy Jedrzejczyk

I wasn't really a fan of this book. I think this is one of those that would have been easier to read if someone was guiding me along. It was on my "to read" list, so I dragged through it. I would like to look more into the history of this book and read some things about it, then maybe I'll have a better respect for it.

Alyssa 

Couldn't get into it. Only read a little bit for school.

Emelie

Kirsten Simkiss

I can definitely see how this book is overanalyzed in high school classes. Of the two stories, I preferred The Secret Sharer, though I felt the title was poorly selected. The Secret Keeper might have been more accurate. Heart of Darkness, on the other hand, was essentially a man going into the Congo with illusions of grandeur and coming out a much more hollowed out person, much more aware of reality than he had been before. The character, Marlow, approaches the world as a white man with a great deal of privilege who enters a world he doesn't know and assumes it all to be savage. As his ship breaks down and he learns more of the people along the Congo, he's forced to reevaluate his positions and it emotionally breaks him in some ways.

I didn't particularly enjoy this book. The pace is slow and the details are so extensive that the plot of the story gets lost in it quite a bit. I kept wanting to put it down and stop reading, but I persevered. It isn't something I would recommend to others and I highly doubt I will ever commit myself to reading it again.

isaac b

Probably the most pointless book I’ve ever been forced to read.

Valentina

Ashlyn

I started this book more than 4 times over the past 15 years and never managed to finish until this most recent attempt. This is clearly a work full of meaning and intention, the choice of each word deliberate and heavy. It is not a page-turning adventure story, but rather a slow-burning piece of existential horror. I now understand why this book is a classic, and I also can see how it is not a favorite among students forced to read it. This is a book one should read when they are ready to read it instead of being told they must.

Heart of Darkness (Vintage Classics)

Sara Hakkoum

Possibly the stupidest and most useless book I have ever set my hands on. I’ve never read any book whose each page makes me want to shoot myself, till now. Without all the metaphors and figures of speech, the book would be a quarter of its original size. I like the use of figurative language and all, but not when it’s used in an excess that would make me mentally incapable of anything after the first read. I read it as fast I could just so I could get rid of it. I dream of burning it. I read pages and pages and had no idea what the hell was going on. I specifically despise the author’s idea of putting a story in a story and how 99.9% of the book is a quotation. I don’t give a shit how much it influenced English literature or whatever.

They seriously should have put a “CAUTION: Big words that will waste many hours of your life inside.” sticker on the cover for people like me.

What pissed me off the most is the fact that I actually paid for this torture.

I know I went a little too far there, but it was seriously a waste of my time and money.

Joy KBA

0 stars - I had to read this for school. It’s literally one guy who tells a story, but he isn’t the narrator. He’s repeating what another person tells him in the most boring way I’ve ever read. And it was sooo slow omg. It was horrible.

Dark allegory describes the narrator's journey up the Congo River and his meeting with, and fascination by, Mr. Kurtz, a mysterious personage who dominates the unruly inhabitants of the region. Masterly blend of adventure, character development, psychological penetration. Considered by many Conrad's finest, most enigmatic story.

Lily

Heart of Darkness is a book written by guilt. Conrad spent six months working in the Congo in 1890, an inadvertent agent of the first genocide of the modern era. Millions of Congolese were slaughtered to generate revenue for king Leopold II. They died in frontier wars between his agents and Arab slavers, and were persecuted. Colonial agents found horrendous ways to increase production: prisoners' hands would be hacked off to show what happens to the disobedient. Millions are thought to have died. What Conrad saw in the Congo burnt in his soul for years until he wrote his short, yet ever-haunting novella. Some of its power comes from its eloquent denunciation of the self-adulation behind colonialism and some from the harrowing thought that humanity has actually behaved like this.

'Twas racist and honestly doesn't really deserve this much emphasis in English curricula (I read this for AP Lit). There are better books that can accomplish the same sort of teaching

baelgia

3.5/5

Didn't enjoy the story but Conrad's mastery of the English language is astounding.

HEART OF DARKNESS*AN OUTPOST OF PROGRESS*KARAIN*YOUTHThe finest of all Conrad's tales, 'Heart of Darkness' is set in an atmosphere of mystery and menace, and tells of Marlow's perilous journey up the Congo River to relieve his employer's agent, the renowned and formidable Mr Kurtz. What he sees on his journey, and his eventual encounter with Kurtz,horrify and perplex him, and call into question the very bases of civilization and human nature. Endlessly reinterpreted by critics and adapted for film, radio, and television, the story shows Conrad at his most intense and sophisticated.The other three tales in this volume depict corruption and obsession, and question racial assumptions. Set in the exotic surroundings of Africa, Malaysia. and the east, they variously appraise the glamour, folly, and rapacity of imperial adventure. This revised edition uses the English firstedition texts and has a new chronology and bibliography.

Heart of Darkness and Other Tales

Sarah Escorsa

Although this book is supposed to be a classic it really didn't do it for me. I found it uneventful and boring and didn't enjoy reading it at all...

Heart of Darkness has been considered for most of this century as a literary classic, and also as a powerful indictment of the evils of imperialism. It reflects the savage repressions carried out in the Congo by the Belgians in one of the largest acts of genocide committed up to that time. Conrad's narrator encounters at the end of the story a man named Kurtz, dying, insane, and guilty of unspeakable atrocities.

Flavia Louise

I really did not really like this one. 
I don't know what it was but I just thought it was boring.
Actually I did not really see a story worth reading.
Well it was short enough....

Jeff Brown 

Through happenstance, I came upon "Heart of Darkness" on my reading list right after having read Chinua Achebe's "Things Fall Apart", and I thought that this would be an interesting comparison of a region by two acclaimed writers of different ethnicities, and having been written over 50 years apart.

Well. Even though this was the first book that I have read by Joseph Conrad, I guess I am not a Conrad fan. This book was a struggle to get through for me. First, the opening pages were told by the narrator regarding an upcoming sea voyage by a number of men, which was set up in a promising manner. But the entire rest of the book was told in first person by Marlow, a member of the traveling party, about a past voyage. And even though it is a fairly short book, it was a grueling, long-winded affair told through this character.

I would have hated being a member of that traveling party.

Let there be no doubt the major theme of the book -- DARKNESS. Conrad used some interesting visuals to convey the darkness by the narrator. But it didn't take long for Conrad to simply beat the reader over the head with the use of "dark" and "darkness" through Marlow. And this didn't take into account the liberal use of the n-word (which didn't surprise me given the times) or savages, plus a couple of other similar words he only rarely used when he became tired of using the first two.

It was more difficult to overlook the disparity portrayed between the white and African cultures. I expected a "white was better" approach, but on a range of 1 to 100, Conrad definitively put the two cultures on the opposite ends of the scale. And in an ugly manner.

 And (for better or worse, I'm not sure), this "darkness" theme took any interest from the reason Marlow went to the Congo -- to meet a guy named Kurtz for some business. Very tedious.

Why two stars instead of one? Hmm, it was simply written -- you didn't feel that you needed to check your dictionary 2-3 times a paragraph like a Cormac McCarthy book. That's the best I can say. If you like Conrad's approach, the easily-written narrative might appeal to you. I just can't fully recommend the book.

EDIT: After posting, I went to read some reviews to see what I was missing. Depending on the person, "nothing" or "a lot", but that's okay. 

I came back to post the following link, which is an essay by Chinua Achebe about "Heart of Darkness". Excellent read: https://polonistyka.amu.edu.pl/__data...

Autumn 

I would have been fine not reading this if it wasn't mandatory class reading. Not a bad book. I'm pretty neutral about it all.

Saskia P

Melody Izard

I have read this before. But I remember struggling with it then. I know I should have loved it - but I couldn't. 

His dark soul is lurking somewhere in the jungle and in his heart - but I couldn't see it or appreciate the significance.

Heart of darkness

Jason Porterfield

Simon Elliott Stegall

The two star rating I give this book is entirely subjective. I have a lot of faith in the erosive effect of collective opinion on the literary canon; that this novella influenced some great mid-century novelists is enough proof of its greatness for me. But I did not like it. 

I do not understand why Kurtz is such a fascinating figure for Marlowe. He is supposedly a great orator, but we only get three or four brief lines of dialogue from him. And what is the "darkness" in his soul? Avarice? Colonialism? Racism? None of those things were particular to Kurtz in this story. 

It seems as if Conrad spends 60 pages trying to establish Kurtz as a terrifying and awesome figure; but by the last pages we are left with vague descriptions of a character that we have no awe for or terror of and not even an emotive hint as to the "heart of darkness" that Conrad is clearly trying to illustrate.
 
I wonder if the themes are just so skillfully woven, the threads so fine and subtle, that I missed them completely. It's possible. Maybe I need to take a college course to understand 'Heart of Darkness'. I'd accept that. I'm glad Hemingway read it and was inspired to create books that I like. But I don't like it.

Heart of Darkness (Penguin Popular Classics)

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