Wesley Leal Mrs.

Steed AP Lit-1 30 March 2011 The Dark Side of Irony Situational irony is a popular and effective literary technique to gather the reader's interest. Joseph Conrad's novella Heart of Darkness is a work which includes an abundance of situational irony. Two of the main targets of this irony are the European activities in the Congo known as imperialism and characters in the work both minor and major. These are applicable examples because they convey the idea that events turn out the opposite of what the reader expected. In this case Marlow is surprised when he sees what imperialism is really about and to find out the reality of Kurtz. The cannibals also play an important part in the situational irony due to the stereotypes on their nature. All of these examples help enhance the novel because it adds a suspenseful twist to the novella that grasps the readers attention until the very end. This happens from the beginning of the novella as Marlow accepts a job to explore new worlds. This is especially interesting to him due to his curious nature for the unknown. He creates an image in his mind from what he has heard about imperialism being a humanitarian cause. As he travels through the Congo River he figures out that is is totally different from what he expected. His reaction is seen on page 72 as he says, By Jove! I've never seen anything so unreal in my life. And outside, the silent wilderness surrounding this cleared speck on the earth struck me as something great and invincible, like evil or truth, waiting patiently for the passing away of this fantastic invasion (Conrad 72). This is where the situational irony comes into play because form the beginning of the trip Marlow had gone in the expedition with the mentality that

imperialism was a humanitarian cause used for civilizing the natives while making profit, but in reality he experienced something he described in this passage as something unreal. His impression of imperialism had been totally different than what he was watching because he realized that it was not humanitarian at all, it was slavery. The personification used also makes it seem that the wilderness is witness of what is happening to the natives. The literary techniques used in this novella add to the efficiency of the work because it grasps the readers attention through the situational irony. Kurtz is also part of the irony that appears in the European activities. His character described to Marlow is shown as a genius and a overachiever in what he does. Marlow therefore creates an impression of him as sort of an idol because he believes they share the same passion. Once again the situational irony comes into play as he describes Kurtz as not what he expected but as something that had been turned into. Marlow states, The thing was to know what he belonged to, how many powers of darkness claimed him for their own...He had taken a high seat amongst the devils of the land (Conrad 109). Kurtz's stay in the Congo had transformed his into what Marlow and Europeans considered dark and devil like because he had established himself as the ruler of the natives. This shows situational irony because Marlow thought that Kurtz was going to be something completely different but it turns out that he was a victim of what imperialism was about. Another major indication of situational irony is found in the cannibals that Marlow used for the expedition. These natives where stereotyped as savages that were not civilized yet Marlow was in for a surprise as he experienced first hand what these savages where like. He had created a picture in his mind that the savages would stop at nothing if they had the chance to kill them and eat them like they are known for. Yet when they are surrounded by natives form the

wilderness he takes notice of how these savages have controlled themselves. They were acting in a way that was contrary to any belief the Europeans had created. The fact that the cannibals did not rebel against the crew of the ship when they had not eaten in who knows when shows how even they displayed more self restraint than the supposedly civilized Europeans. In conclusion, Heart of Darkness is filled with examples of situational irony through its main theme and its characters. This adds to the efficiency of the novella because it adds an alternate ending to what the reader may have created in his head. This in turn adds to its success because the reader is intrigued by the characters until the en. In the end, Marlow realized the truth behind imperialism and how hypocritical it was since the beginning. This adds to the main literary technique which is situational irony because it shows how the events turned out the opposite of what Marlow expected in three major instances. Heart of Darkness therefore makes itself a masterpiece when it comes to adding an ironic twist to catch the readers attention until it has been read from beginning to end.

Work Cited Conrad, Joseph. Heart of Darkness. New York: Barnes & Noble Books, 2003. Print