Heart of Darkness
By Joseph Conrad
Frame Narrative
Impressionism Ambiguous narrative style: reader must
interpret meaning Characters are experiencing and have not yet
processed situation An “emotional landscape” is depicted through
setting and imagery Like impressionistic paintings, focusing too
closely on specifics makes it difficult to see events clearly
Often avoids chronological telling of events
Wikipedia Definition:
The term Impressionism has also been used to describe works of literature in which a few select details suffice to convey the sensory impressions of an incident or scene. Impressionist literature is closely related to Symbolism, with its major exemplars being Baudelaire, Mallarmé, Rimbaud, and Verlaine. Authors such as Virginia Woolf, D.H. Lawrence, and Joseph Conrad have written works that are Impressionistic in the way that they describe, rather than interpret, the impressions, sensations and emotions that constitute a character‘s
mental life.
Present Setting
Chronological Order
As a boy Marlow is charmed by the river and map of Africa.
Becomes a Sailor
Unemployed
Aunt Gets Him a Job
Begins Journey
The Blank Spaces Are Filled In
Gets His Orders in Belgium
Congo River
Meets Influential People
Returns Home
Prophet/Wise Advisor
Reading Lens
Doppelganger or Alter Ego
Meaning "double walker" a doppelganger is a shadow-self that accompanies every human
Symbols
Fog How does Fog
impact senses?
Symbols
Women List the women
Do they speak Names Representative of?
Symbols
The Congo River What is the
relationship with the white man?
Upstream vs. downstream
Kurtz and Marlow’s “handling” of the river influence
Symbols
Ivory How is ivory
representative of imperialism?
Symbols
The “Whited Sepulcher” Book of Matthew
allusion: “which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness.”
Brussels is the Whited Sepulcher
STYLE
Diction and Syntax
Words, Words, WordsHeart of Darkness
The idleness of a passenger, my isolation amongst all these men with whom I had no point of contact, the oily and languid sea, the uniform somberness of the coast, seemed to keep me away from the truth of things, within the toil of a mournful and senseless delusion. The voice of the surf heard now and then was a positive pleasure, like the speech of a brother. It was something natural, that had its reason, that had a meaning.
Loose and Periodic Sentences
Marlow sat cross-legged right aft, leaning against the mizzenmast.
Marlow sat cross-legged right aft, leaning against the mizzenmast.
He had sunken cheeks, a yellow complexion, a straight back, an ascetic aspect, and with his arms dropped, the palms of hands outwards, resembled an idol
He had sunken cheeks, a yellow complexion, a straight back, an ascetic aspect, and with his arms dropped, the palms of hands outwards, resembled an idol.
Marlow sat cross-legged right aft, leaning against the mizzenmast.
Adverbial Phrases
Marlow sat cross-legged right aft, leaning against the mizzenmast.
He had sunken cheeks, a yellow complexion, a straight back, an ascetic aspect, and with his arms dropped, the palms of hands outwards, resembled an idol
Epithets or Adjective Phrases
He had sunken cheeks, a yellow complexion, a straight back, an ascetic aspect, and with his arms dropped, the palms of hands outwards, resembled an idol
Marlow’s first words about the Manager
My first interview with the manager was curious.
PERIODIC SENTENCE SIMPLE SENTENCE
He was commonplace in complexion, in feature, in manners, and in voice.
LOOSE SENTENCE SIMPLE SENTENCE
He had no learning and no intelligence.
PERIODIC SENTENCE
Once when various tropical diseases had laid low almost every ‘agent’ in the station, he was heard to say, ‘Men who come out here should have no entrails.’
But he was great.
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