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In the passage, the narrator says that

“Marlow is the only one of us who still ‘follows the sea.’”

The only man. This brings up the question, where are the women? What is the role of women in the story? As far as we’re concerned, they’re nowhere to be seen. And later on, for some odd reason, Marlow mentions the romans. He mentions,

“. . .Light came out of this river since--you say Knights? Yes;...”

Knights. Knights follow a code of chivalry, and thus follow the standard that men are the ones who are supposed to fight while women are supposed to stay home and take care around the house, and of the children. However, the knights may not believe that this is sexist in any way, for it was commonplace back then. It is inherently sexist, though, because they were denying women any real place in society. Women were denied any power, for fear that they would not be able to handle it. Marlow later speaks of the conquerors, who

“...want only brute force--nothing to boast of, when you have it, since your strength is just an accident arising from the weakness of others.”

It’s common knowledge that on average, the woman is weaker than the man in terms of brute force. This, however, doesn’t mean that women are incapable of becoming just as strong as men. It’s ignorant to think so, and it is completely wrong. Just as there is an average, there are the two extremes. Surely, the strongest of women are many times stronger than the average man. Not only does that quote address brute force, it also addresses the fact that strength arises from the weakness of others. Such is a rule of nature. Feminists wouldn't argue this point because there’s nothing to argue about it. The truth is that not everybody is born to lead nor become the strongest person on earth.

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1.  How is Marlow’s aunt portrayed? How is she described?

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1.  How is Marlow’s aunt portrayed? How is she described?

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Marlow's aunt is portrayed as "a dear enthusiastic soul" who has many connections. She is also very enthusiastic about helping find Marlow a job. Such actions could be interpreted in a motherly manner; Marlow's aunt wants the best for him, and thus tries her best to make sure that she does all that she can to help him achieve greatness. She's described as very motherly as well. She isn't described physically, but she sat and had tea with him, and Marlow found out that she talked very highly of him to her friends. It's typical of mothers to speak very fondly of their children. It's fairly clear that she's being very motherly towards Marlow.

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6.  What is the significance of Marlow’s lie to the Intended? What’s Marlow’s attitude toward lying? Is his lie justified or not?

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6.  What is the significance of Marlow’s lie to the Intended? What’s Marlow’s attitude toward lying? Is his lie justified or not?

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Marlow's lie to the intended is representative of the way men look down on women. Marlow hates lies. He detests them. He broke his own code, however, when he lied to the Intended. Such actions are selfish. He isn't justified in any manner, for he is pitying her too much to tell her the truth. By not doing so, he is contributing to her obsession and deranged thoughts and actions. He doesn't believe that she's strong enough to handle the truth, and that may stem from her being a woman. Perhaps he doesn't believe that she's strong enough to recover from this grieving, and he decides to spare her by lying to her. Ultimately, he's being selfish because he doesn't want to be the one to do it, and he doesn't want her to get over it.

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4.  What role does Kurtz’s African mistress play? What kind of language is used to describe her? Is it consistent? How is she representative or not representative of her culture and race?

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4.  What role does Kurtz’s African mistress play? What kind of language is used to describe her? Is it consistent? How is she representative or not representative of her culture and race?

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Kurtz's African mistress plays the role of an enchantress. She's described as beautiful and strong, yet still dumb and savage. That savageness isn't necessarily bad, however, because it gave this sense of fierceness around her. Conrad, or should I say, Marlow, describes her in a very positive tone. She's viewed as a savage, yet something beautiful. She is also described as practically the embodiment of life's "tenebrous and passionate soul." This awe is used consistently, as she is a singularity. The singular person who stood strong in the face of a barrage of bullets. She isn't representative of her race nor her culture, for she is representative of perfection. Someone who has won the genetic lottery, and has grown up to become strong. She must have caught the attention of Kurtz, who undoubtedly saw what Marlow saw in her.

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2.  What does Marlow mean early in Part 1 when he suggests that women are “out of touch with truth” and live in a beautiful world of their own? 

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2.  What does Marlow mean early in Part 1 when he suggests that women are “out of touch with truth” and live in a beautiful world of their own? 

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When Marlow says that women are "out of touch with truth," he's saying that women are only focused on flowery things. Marlow was only taking the job for the money, but his aunt is praising him for becoming a "Worker" that would be an emissary of light to the natives of Africa. She doesn't see the "truth" that Marlow is only taking the job to make money, and has no intention of actually becoming any emissary at all.

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Passage 5: Welcome to the Sepulchral City

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Passage 5: Welcome to the Sepulchral City

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“She came forward, all in black, with a pale head, floating towards me in the dusk. She was in mourning. It was more than a year since his death, more than a year since the news came; she seemed as though she would remember and mourn forever.”

Such an entrance is quite saddening. It makes women look bad, in the sense that she is weak. She can’t accept the fact that Kurtz is dead. She’s still obsessed over him, although it’s been an entire year since he’s passed. Such actions could apply only to her, but some may see it a representative of the entire population of women. They might use her as an example when oppressing women. And this isn’t to say that she should be stronger, but that we need to acknowledge that one person isn’t representative of half the population, give or take. Returning to the point that she’s obsessed over Kurtz, she remarked, regarding Kurtz’s death,

“ ‘What a loss to me--to us!’--she corrected herself with beautiful generosity; then added in a murmur, ‘To the world.’”

Such exaggeration could be representative of two things. The first of which is her love for him. Not only love, but also admiration and respect. She was fully in awe of him, and she thought very highly of him. The second of which the exaggeration could represent would be the way women always over exaggerate everything. Women, at least in today’s society, are notorious for always making a huge fuss over little things. It’s most definitely not true for all women, but the stereotype is there. One thing that Kurtz’s Intended did make a big deal of, however, were Kurtz’s last words. Once Marlow mentioned that he knew them, she implored him to repeat them. And so, Marlow said,

“ ‘The last word he pronounced was--your name.’ ”

And this was where Marlow crossed the line; both his own moral line, and also the moral line of feminists. He despises lies, yet he told his biggest one there and then. He did so because he pitied her, and also because he was scared. It was my initial response to hate him for this, because he is doing her so much harm by not telling her--and I still believe that. It’s just that, now that I’ve gone over it again, I can see clearly that he is scared. He’s scared of how she would react. Not only because she is a ‘weak’ woman, but because she’s emotionally unstable right now. It isn’t his duty to help her snap out of her obsession over Kurtz, but it can be said that it is his responsibility to tell the truth.

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3.  At the appointment with the Company in Brussels, how are the two women portrayed and what might be their symbolic meaning? 

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3.  At the appointment with the Company in Brussels, how are the two women portrayed and what might be their symbolic meaning? 

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The two women are portrayed very differently. One of the women is young and cheerful, introducing the two to people who came in. She might symbolize the unusual cheeriness of women in their youth. Much unlike men in their youth, women are fairly sociable. The older woman was described in much more detail. She had a cat on her lap, a wart on one cheek, and glasses on her nose. She had an unnerving look, and seemed to know everything about the men she looked at. She might portray the view of women as witches who will deceive you and ruin your life.

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In the passage, it says that,

“Black shapes crouched, lay, sat between the trees leaning against the trunks, clinging to the earth, half coming out, half effaced within the dim light, in all the attitudes of pain, abandonment, and despair.”

Such vague description makes it unclear whether or not there were any women among them. One can only assume that there weren’t any because the workers are doing harsh physical work in the mines; work much too harsh for women. Such is the stereotype that the white men probably followed. Further down the road, Marlow meets a white man.

“I shook hands with this miracle, and I learned he was the Company’s chief accountant, and that all the bookkeeping was done at this station.”

Of course, another man is in power. Did Conrad not think that a woman was fit to be in a position of power? Was it too much of a stretch to think that a woman could survive in the dark forests of Africa? Would she not have enough authority to lead? Or even worse, for this position specifically, would she not be able to do math? Nowhere in the camps is a woman to be seen in any sort of position. It’s not hard to see why this is, for it’s been ingrained into our history that women are not usually in power. It’s been ingrained that women are to do the housework--which is precisely what the chief accountant taught a black woman to do.

“‘I’ve been teaching one of the native women about the station. It was difficult. She had a distaste for the work.’ Thus this man had verily accomplished something.”

It’s degrading that he forced her to do it against her will. Then again, that’s slavery in a nutshell. This section is more of a problem for racism rather than feminism, but it can still be applied nonetheless. It’s insulting that successfully making someone obey your orders and clean your clothes is seen as an accomplishment. As something that deserves acknowledgment. It’s clear that most everyone at the station is racist, but to be misogynistic as well just adds to the problems that the psychoanalytic lens can psychoanalyze.

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5.  Discuss the portrayal of Kurtz’s Intended. How is she representative or not representative of her culture and race?

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5.  Discuss the portrayal of Kurtz’s Intended. How is she representative or not representative of her culture and race?

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Kurtz's intended was a mess. She's described as still mourning Kurtz's death; a death of someone an entire year ago. It's hard to forget lost loved ones, but she's simply gone over the edge. She's stuck in the past and obsessed over the memory of Kurtz. She isn't representative of her race because not all women are as emotionally weak, or borderline crazy. She is representative, however, of the view society has on women. Weak, and utterly useless without a man by her side. This behavior is precisely why women are looked down upon.

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The beginning of the passage would probably trigger some feminists. Marlow states,

“They--the women I mean--are out of it--should be out of it. We must help them to stay in that beautiful world of their own, lest ours gets worse.”

Such thinking has good intentions, but is very insulting. It’s insinuating that women can’t handle the harsh reality of the world. It’s saying that women have no place in the world. It’s one of the main problems with society, and our history. Women have never been seen as good enough. Take for example, women in the army. Throughout history, a woman’s place in the front lines have been controversial. On one hand, there were the ancient warrior women. These women are proud and strong individuals who got the respect they deserved. On the other hand, there were wars in which women weren’t allowed to serve by fighting on the front lines, but could only help with their medical expertise. Even today, it’s hard for some people to swallow that women are fighting on the front lines for our country.

Moving on, Kurtz mentioned his Intended.

“You should have heard the disinterred body of Mr. Kurtz saying, ‘My Intended.’ You would have perceived directly then how completely she was out of it.”

When on death’s door, it’s normal to think of your loved ones. From the way Marlow described it, it seemed like Kurtz was thinking of something in a world of it’s own. And that’s nice. It’s nice to think well of your intended, and to have fond memories of them. It isn’t necessarily good, however, because later Marlow mentions the other things that Kurtz mumbled in his half-conscious state.

“‘My Intended, my ivory, my station, my river, my--’ everything belonged to him.”

By putting all of these in the same category, it greatly reduces the weight of his Intended. She’s reduced to just another object that Kurtz seemed to have claimed control over. It’s sad to think that he thought so little of her, while he meant so much to her.

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Passage 3: Welcome to the Central Station

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Passage 3: Welcome to the Central Station

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In this passage, it talks of a new character, a mechanic.

“This was the foreman--a boiler-maker by trade--a good worker…. He was a widower with six young children (he had left them in charge of a sister of his to come out there)…”

Is this how women are to be treated? Is this how children are to be treated? This man had left his wife, and by doing so, ruined the lives of his children. Undoubtedly the children were mocked, for having such a bad father that not only left his wife, but also left his kids. And where did he leave the kids? With his sister. With a woman, because women are supposed to take care of kids. It could be said, though, that perhaps he didn’t have anyone else to rely on. And it doesn’t sound like he doesn’t love his children, for he did take custody of them.

“After work hours he used sometimes to come over from his hut for a talk about his children and his pigeons; …”

Although he does seem to be affectionate to his children, it still doesn’t excuse the fact that they have to grow up without their mother. A mother figure is very important in a child’s life, for she is the one who shows tender love towards the child. Mothers and fathers both are very important to the development of a child. Yet these children will live, at least for a little, with neither of them.

Later on in the passage, it shows that a group of new people come in on donkeys.

“This devoted band called itself the Eldorado Exploring Expedition, and I believe they were sworn to secrecy.”

Guess what? There, once again, are no women to be seen. But would feminists want women to be included into this band? Their morals and intentions are outright outrageous, as their intentions are...

“To tear treasure out of the bowels of the land was their desire, with no more moral purpose at the back of it than there is in burglars breaking into a safe.”

Such foul people are detested by much of society. Yet including women in there would be carrying out justice, for representation doesn’t mean only representing the good, but also representing the bad. By showing that there are only men in that expedition, it is giving only men a bad name. If Conrad included women in there, it would be giving that sector of society a bad name.

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7. What do you think are the strengths of this approach? The weaknesses?

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7. What do you think are the strengths of this approach? The weaknesses?

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This approach, I believe, doesn't necessarily have any strengths nor weaknesses. It's simply what it is. If you want to view Heart of Darkness in the way it portrays and treats women, then that's what you would be doing. If you want to psychoanalyze the characters or the author, or perhaps look at how the book relates to imperialism, then that's what you should be doing. I guess, in a sense, a strength of this approach is that you are able to look at women more closely than any other approach. Saying so, however, is simply redundant. It's too obvious. It's what one can infer from simply looking at the title.