Comparing Heart Of Darkness And Things Fall Apart

Objectivism and Imagery in Heart of Darkness and Things Fall Apart

The author Anthony Burgess wrote, “Colonialism. The enforced spread of the rule of reason. But who is going to spread it among the colonizers?”. Colonialism is the acquisition often involving the exploitation of one territory by another political power. Historically speaking much of the success of early empires can be attributed to this system of expansion. In theory colonialism could result in the spread of civilization from the supposed superpower to the developing country. However when examined objectively, colonialism is far from beneficial. Often it is carried out in a manner of brute force; neglecting the social ideologies, cultures, and stability of the colony for the
What Heart of Darkness captures is the evil deliberately practiced by these colonists. The natives were exploited in every regard and forced to work in the interest of the Europeans. The natives were subject to ill treatment, over-work, and malnutrition. Marlow had embarked on his journey with the preconceived notion that it was a mission of goodwill and trade. However, he is quickly subjected to the horror that is the reality of the colonial system in Africa. Marlow quickly realizes that the interest of the colonists was far from the spread of civilization but instead to exploit the natives for greed. The colonist’s only interest was ivory: "The word ivory rang in the air, was whispered, was sighed. You would think they were praying to it". The ivory is a materialization of the greed of the colonists. The colonists were obsessed with the wealth ivory brought. So much so that they were determined to acquire it in the most efficient manner possible. Meaning, to them the Africans were nothing but a disposable resource to do such. Quite possibly the greatest example of the corruption of the colonists is Kurtz. Kurtz is the epitome of evil practiced by the colonists. Kurtz is the embodiment of the inherent contradiction of colonialism. In Europe Kurtz is depicted as a modern day
Conrad is subjective and overly negative in his attitude towards the African culture and society. While demonstrating the shortcomings of the colonists, he fails to do the Africans justice. However, Achebe is very objective in his examination of the matter, acknowledging both the shortcomings of the colonists and the Africans alike. As a result, this establishes a far more realistic depiction of Africa in the 1800s. Examining these two works reveal the details that can be hidden within the perspective bias of an author. This illustrates the importance of creating one’s own opinion while acknowledging both sides of the