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To me, the Heart of Darkness was all about Humanities self interest. There was a lot of greed and plotting going on which lead to paranoia and self-doubt. To me, paranoia, self-doubt, and mental instability are inevitable when greed takes over peoples lives. I think that is what happened in Kurtz's life. I believe that Marlow went into this adventure looking to make money to survive, but more so he was looking for adventure.
When he was little, he dreamed about exploring the world and I believe that was his true intention for going on this exploration. I think Marlow had a feeling that the Company was all about the money, however, Marlow was looking for something more than the money. He wanted adventure and to help civilize foreign lands. In speaking with his aunt, Marlow got the first hint as to what the Company was all about, however he joined the adventure anyway, She talked about weaning those ignorant millions from their horrid ways till, upon my word, she made me quite uncomfortable. I ventured to hint that the Company was run for profit. I feel that the Company was lucky to have Marlow in their expedition.
Among the greedy, plotting workers, Marlow was pretty much a kind man, taking everything in without any bad intentions. Marlow felt terrible about the way he saw the natives treated. While on board Nellie, he regretted that the boiler operator was stuck on board the ship rather than out dancing with his fellow natives. Throughout the story, Marlow mentioned how bad he felt for the slaves also. He even gave one slave something to eat. I think that Marlow always knew this, however after being swept up in Kurtz's heart of darkness, he realizes even more that there is something greater than ourselves out there.
All the petty things we tend to find important in our lives are not so important in the grand scheme of things. I think Marlow realizes this when he returns to the city to find himself laughing at the peoples self-importance. It is also ironic that after seeing the heart of darkness, he can realize that there is more out there than ourselves rather than being swept up in Kurtz's way of greedy thinking. I think that Kurtz was an evil man.
He was all about power and money. Everything belonged to him but that was trifle. The thing to know was what he belonged to, how many powers of darkness claimed him for their own. That was the reflection that made you creepy all over. It was impossible not good for one either trying to imagine. He had taken a high seat amongst the devils of the land I mean literally.
You cant understand how could you? Kurtz used the natives for his own profit to strip the land and the innocent animals of their ivory. Kurtz would not stop at anything to get what he wanted. He would even kill one of his own right-hand men as stated in this quote by the Russian young man, He (Kurtz) declared he would shoot me unless I gave him the ivory and then cleared out of the country, because he could do so, and had a fancy for it, and there was nothing on earth to prevent him killing whom he jolly well pleased. Although Kurtz was an evil person and his intentions were all about himself, I think he may have started to have a conscience at the very last moment of his life. He could not take his riches with him in death.
I only wonder if he realized all the damage that he had done during his life. But the wilderness found him out early, and had taken vengeance for the fantastic invasion. I think it had whispered to him things about himself which he did not know, things of which he had no conception till he took counsel with this great solitude and the whisper had proved irresistibly fascinating. It echoed loudly within him because he was hollow at the core. Throughout this story, I could not help but think of how this story reminded me of how humans are continually destroying the rainforests and environments today. Kurtz resembles the government, the natives resemble the resources and the wildlife, and the interior reminds me of the environment.
The worlds governments are continually destroying the environments of today, stripping them of their resources and native wildlife only for the governments own profit, leaving the environment either in shambles or totally destroyed. Bibliography: Wilke, Brian, and James Hurt, eds. , Literature of the Western World 5 th ed. , Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall, 2000; Conrad, Joseph, Heart of Darkness
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Research essay sample on Greed And Paranoia In The Heart Of Darkness
