Racism Within Joseph Conrad's 'Heart of Darkness'
Examines allegations of racism towards Native Africans in Joseph Conrad's 'Heart of Darkness'.
{Conrad?s representation of race in Heart of Darkness, may be read as racist. Write an assignment on Conrad?s representation of indigenous Africans from your reading of the novella.}
The issue of race within modern and classic literature has always been and will continue to be a contentious issue of discussion prevalent throughout society and especially educational facilities. Within Joseph Conrad's classic novella Heart of Darkness the representation of indigenous Africans their society and culture can be construed as deplorably racist, yet can also be seen as a portrayal of european values of the era and an attack on colonisation, for example the International Association for the Exploration and Civilising of Africa becoming the ?International Society for the Suppression of Savage Customs. In Chinua Achebe?s lecture ?An Image of Africa? at The University of Massachusetts he argues that Heart of Darkness is;
?a book which parades on the most vulgar fashion prejudices and insults from which a section of mankind has suffered untold agonies and atrocities in the past and continues to do so in many ways and many places today. I am talking about a story in which the very humanity of black people is called in question. It seems to me totally inconceivable that great art or even good art could possibly reside in such unwholesome surroundings.?
The way that the text is imparted to the reader shows a definite sense of european superiority in regard to Africans, their culture and its ethics and ideals - ?a place of unspeakable riches? that was waiting for ?an enterprising capitalist? to ?take the matter in hand?. But it is quite obvious that the displayed superiority of european society is beneficial to the book.
The choice of narrative point of view determines the viewpoint from which the action is to take place and also impresses the narrators ideals and morals, which the social conditioning of their society has determined, upon the proceedings recorded. In Heart of Darkness a frame narrator, and the character of Marlow are responsible for the attitudes with which the story is communicated. The frame narrator does not proffer his opinion in regard to Africa, but is invaluable in giving the reader a insight into the european state of mind. The frame narrator is either a Company Director, Accountant or a Lawyer all occupations which would have been and are today respected as ?civilised? and ?proper?. The usage of these occupations to identify the characters rather than their names is the first hint that within the european ethos a person is only as good as, or as useful as his job. This sets the scene for the placing of value on the African people such as the boiler stoker, an ?improved specimen?. The frame narrator is also responsible for first detailing the ideals that are held regarding exploration,
?bearing the sword, and often the torch, messengers of the might within the land, bearers of a spark from the sacred fire. What greatness had not floated on the ebb of that river into the mystery of an unknown earth!?
These ideals once introduced are persistent throughout the story, giving rise to the racism towards the African people who do not have a job nor culture that is viewed as respectable by europeans, so therefore they are worthless.
Marlow as the prime narrator is the ?torch? that brings further european influence to Africa, yet is Conrad's tool to condemn european colonialism and its ideals. He exposes to the boat occupants of his first inklings of doubt in regard to the morality of going to Africa which occurs when he goes to meet his aunt. As a character Marlow is probably the least racist towards Africans out of all the other colonisers. He often expresses contempt towards his european steam boat crew ?And then that imbecile crowd down of deck started their little fun? which makes him seem more sympathetic to the natives. His action of blowing the steam whistle to prevent in part a massacre also shows his compassionate side. Marlow cannot be held to be an unfeeling racist. His racism towards Africans is not simply because of prejudiced opinions that he himself has formulated, but because of the social conditioning that he is subject to. The mere fact that Marlow queries the veraciousness of the european stereotyping of africans as subhuman and categorising them into a different standing within the society gives much credence to the conjecture that Marlow is not a utter racist, rather he is a skilful mechanism that Conrad uses to cast doubt on the decorousness of colonisation.
The African and European people and their cultures are separated from each other in Heart of Darkness in a us and them type scenario. The representation of races like this is achieved through the narrative point of view and the portrayal of the disparate races and their mental and organisational capabilities. The europeans are for the most part respected in Marlow's eyes, after he has just being in the ?grove of death? the sharp contrast is made with the chief accountant, wearing his snowy trouser and starched collar, who had stepped out for a ludicrous ?breath of fresh air? who which Marlow has much respect for. This amazing juxtaposition from dying Africans and the waste caused by the company , to a man who is ridiculously done up in the fashions of Europe causes the reader to question within his or her mind applying his or her own morals and ethics, who is the superior race within Africa, and also is colonialism a justifiable excercise?
The naturalisation of Africans is food for thought when it comes to the representation of their race. The portrayal of Africans that have taken employment, improved specimens, is patronising and condescending, they are made out not to be able to grasp the notion of the european work ethic, so are told myths that the europeans believe will allow them to grasp their ideals for example the boiler tender. The boiler tender is even called a ?fool nigger? after protecting himself during the attack on the steam boat. The blatant disregard for Africans intelligence is racist, but is very useful in eliciting a certain sympathy for the Africans.
The depersonalisation of Africans is a pervading theme throughout the novella that is a shocking comparison to europeans, the model of humanity. Africans are always referred to by derogatory terms such as nigger, but even more important is the depersonification that is the result of names such as ?acute angles? and ?black shadows?. The Africans becoming mere immaterial entities causes the reader to see the general disregard for their humanity by the colonisers which is affirmed by statements about their customs
?It had horns - antelope horns, I think - on its head. Some sorcerer, some witch-man, no doubt: it looked fiendlike enough.?
Within the text African people are for the most part withheld the power of speech, apart from occasions when African attempts at english are used to display them in patronising light, such as the request for a fish made by a member of the steamboat crew. The denial by Conrad of the African peoples humanity further serves to alienate them from the european ideal of what is a human, again a clever device to show the results of colonialisation.
Female characters within Heart of Darkness are few and far between, Kurtz?s african mistress and his fianc?e are another avenue that Conrad has used to further compare the races, and therefore furthering the trend of dehumanising the people and being patronising towards its culture. Kurtz?s African mistress is described as;
"She walked with measured steps, draped in striped and fringed clothes, treading the earth proudly, with a slight jingle and flash of barbarous ornaments. She carried her head high; her hair was done in the shape of a helmet; she had brass leggings to the knee, brass wire gauntlets to the elbow, a crimson spot on her tawny cheek, innumerable necklaces of glass beads on her neck; bizarre things, charms, gifts of witch-men, that hung about her, glittered and trembled at every step ... She was savage and superb, wild-eyed and magnificent;?
In comparison with;
?This fair hair, this pale visage, this pure brow, seemed surrounded by an ashy halo from which the dark eyes looked out at me.?
The African is totally diametrically opposite to Kurtz?s Intended. His Intended is seraphic, the stereotypical image of a angel, where as the mistress is barbaric, the stereotypical image of a sacrilegious heathen. This sharp contrast between the two women is a stroke of genius on Conrad's behalf. It cements in the readers mind the superiority of Europeans and the inhuman, barbaric nature of the African people.
Within Joseph Conrad?s highly regarded novella Heart of Darkness racism is clearly employed. Prejudice towards the African people and their culture is a very sagacious technique that brings to the novella a sense of apartheid - them, the africans and then us the europeans. Although the techniques exploited are liable to cause offence to some people such as Chinua Achebe, harsh criticism of the usage of racism is altogether unwarranted. The criticism voiced by people of similar view as Achebe does not seem to grasp the usage of racism as a potent attack on colonialism, its ideal, the ethics behind it, the morals of european society and the social conditioning that causes them. The representation of the African people and their culture and society in the novella Heart of Darkness is unequivocally racist, but this portrayal only serves to build the strength of the argument against colonialism.
Bibliography
The Novella : Heart of Darkness with The Congo Diary , written by Joseph Conrad and published by Penguin Books.
Introduction to Heart of Darkness included within the aforementioned book, written by Robert Hampson and published by Penguin Books.
York Notes Advanced - Heart of Darkness. Written by Hena Maes-Jelinek and published by York Press.
Chinua Achebe - An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad?s ?Heart of Darkness?
C.F. Sarvan - Racism and the Heart of Darkness
