Even though Marlow’s unrealistic depiction of Kurtz has been shattered by Kurtz’s cruelty, he believes that Kurtz achieved a “moral victory” in the battle with death. In a contest “without clamour, without glory, without the great desire, without the great fear of desire,” Kurtz achieved what Marlow fears he may not be able to do: “He had something to say. He said it.” In his final moments, Kurtz realized the cruelty of his own actions and, in this realization, weakly speaks the words “The horror!” When Marlow came within “ a hair’s breath” of death, he faced the humiliation that he might have nothing to say; therefore, Kurtz’s final “pronouncement” is of so much value to Marlow that it keeps him “loyal to Kurtz to the last.” Marlow believes that life is a riddle which baffles all men and that death is an adversary that every men must wrestle with. Conrad’s use of metaphor to depict Kurtz’s final struggle with life highlights the importance of Kurtz’s “moral victory” to Marlow. The notion of defeat or victory in the “unexciting contest” of life emphasizes that Marlow admires the strength Kurtz shows in his final
Even though Marlow’s unrealistic depiction of Kurtz has been shattered by Kurtz’s cruelty, he believes that Kurtz achieved a “moral victory” in the battle with death. In a contest “without clamour, without glory, without the great desire, without the great fear of desire,” Kurtz achieved what Marlow fears he may not be able to do: “He had something to say. He said it.” In his final moments, Kurtz realized the cruelty of his own actions and, in this realization, weakly speaks the words “The horror!” When Marlow came within “ a hair’s breath” of death, he faced the humiliation that he might have nothing to say; therefore, Kurtz’s final “pronouncement” is of so much value to Marlow that it keeps him “loyal to Kurtz to the last.” Marlow believes that life is a riddle which baffles all men and that death is an adversary that every men must wrestle with. Conrad’s use of metaphor to depict Kurtz’s final struggle with life highlights the importance of Kurtz’s “moral victory” to Marlow. The notion of defeat or victory in the “unexciting contest” of life emphasizes that Marlow admires the strength Kurtz shows in his final