After he signs his contract, Marlow is taken to be inspected by a doctor who measures his skull. The doctor remarks that he unfortunately doesn't get to see the men who come back from Africa, but that it doesn't matter; "the changes take places inside," apparently meaning there are some major changes that take place in one's mind after the experience that Marlow is about to embark upon.
As he is about to depart, Marlow's aunt gives him her hopes that he will play a big role in civilizing the tribal people of the Congo. Marlow basically blows off her comment, knowing that his business is not about benefiting humanity, but instead about plundering humanity for riches. This bit of slight foreshadowing again emphasizes the book's central theme of the downsides of imperialism.
I am currently reading a "manifesto" (I quite disturbing one, if you ask me) called "You Don't Need a Weatherman to Know Which Way the Wind Blows," written by the likes of Bill Ayers and the other radicals of the 60s terrorist group, Weather Underground. I was informed of its existence by Glenn Beck, who encouraged his viewers to read it, just to know the mindsets of some of the more influencial people in power right now. There central theme (besides establishing world socialism) is that the U.S. is not only imperialistic towards other 3rd world countries, but that the U.S. is also imperialistic and oppressive towards the African Americans living within our borders. While I disagree and believe strongly that this was a propaganda tactic used to advocate a silly socialism, I find many similarities between that and Heart of Darkness.
Below are people from the African Congo
No comments:
Post a Comment