Theme Of Light In Heart Of Darkness

Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad gives us a story of how light is different from dark – like good and evil, and black and white – and the irony that lies behind the words. The story revolved around Marlow and his interest in an ivory-selling agent Kurtz. The central subjects of the novella include civilization and savage, colonialism, and racism. “Light” and “darkness” were the major symbolisms used by Conrad in this novella, and along the way the terms were also used ironically. Light came in the form of the river – always on the move yet unpredictable, just like how human spirit is. Conversely, darkness was showed in form of the maps – those lands that were already colonized were coloured, which suggests that colonization is something to be considered evil. On another note, there were times when the two terms meant the opposite which is already suggested by the title. The author suggests that there is no good in this

As Marlow's trip to Africa transforms into something more for him and more than just an adventure, Willard's order to kill Col. Kurtz developed into something more than an order. Both Marlow and Willard became more astute, however, also more taken aback as a result of their adventures. Both the characters also became more sensitive to the evil around them as the storyline proceeds. Although they are highly similar, an important difference between Marlow and Willard should also be noted. At the beginning of the film, Willard was portrayed as a man who is already accustomed to tragic events. In the film, he was seen screaming and smashing objects to demonstrate his need for a mission to give back a purpose to his life. Another dissimilarity between Willard and Marlow is that Marlow craved to discover the blank places on the map to quench his thirst for adventures. On the other hand, Willard needed a mission because he fears that he will be weaker without