Introduction

Geographical discoveries and economic developments from the sixteenth to

nineteenth and to the early half of twentieth centuries deeply influenced to every field of

life from the politic to the literature, cultures and the lifestyles of people. The geographical

discoveries and the need of imperial powers for the markets changed the balance. As the

results of changes during the 16th century, some governments such as Portugal, Russia,

France and England became the great powers of the world in terms of colonialism and

imperialism. Besides discovering new lands and markets they also advanced

technologically that enabled them to dominate over their colonies.

The aim of this study is to explain colonialism, imperialism and capitalism and their

relationships. The colonization process will be discussed in terms of historical

development and how it was started. In addition, colonialism process will be explained

through its causes and effects. The study aims to focus on fifteenth and sixteenth century

colonial period accepted as the beginning of modern colonialism and to emphasize the

colonial and imperial ideologies of western nations not only among the Africans but also

through the other parts of the world. The relationship between colonizer and colonized

people will be discussed as a subject matter that shows different features in different

periods of time. Decolonization is defined as the separation of the colonies from their

colonizers. This works aims to represent changes and developments during the

decolonization which cannot be associated with a certain period of time. The basic

concepts related to the nineteenth century ideologies and attitudes of West toward

Africans will be examined and discussed in order to clarify basic ideas that the novel

reveals to the readers.

1
 Joseph Conrads experiences of his childhood related to imperialism and

colonialism, and the harsh circumstances that he witnessed will be discussed. The politic,

and economic problems that change the way of his life, will be examined and also these

problems he witnessed that is associated with his decisions and future are going to be

explained in terms of their relations with his psychological problems which cause him to

make same fatal mistakes. His life and his experiences, career and his devotion of the sea

will be discussed in the sense that how this all affects his vision through his famous

novella Heart of Darkness. Apparently, Joseph Conrad is very much influenced by his

experiences and repressed memories which shape his literary perspective.

Heart of darkness is discussed as one of the most famous literary texts written on the

western imperial activities in the first half of the twentieth century. Joseph Conrad (1857-

1924) is an eminent writer of postmodern literature who represents the colonial ideology

of colonizer during the late of the nineteenth century. The main intention of famous writer

is to draw attention to the exploitation of Africans and to illuminate what is going on

through the dark center of Africa. The story is mainly based upon the experiences of

Charlie Marlow, who associated with the writer. Joseph Conrad narrates Congo as a center

of colonialism and imperialism upon the activities of western civilization that he

witnessed. Colonizing activities of European countries in Heart of Darkness enable to

perceive the brutality of colonization and imperialism. As a work of modern period Heart

of Darkness not only represents the colonial and imperial facts about West in Africa and

also it shows how western nations have certain attitudes against both Orient and the others

who are rejected as primitive or undeveloped.

The author also represents the general atmosphere of the Victorian period. The

general views of Europeans towards Africans and their mistreatment will be examined

through critical discussions of Hart of Darkness upon the views of the scholars and the

2
critics in terms of colonization and imperialism. Besides, it represents the general

condition of Africa in the nineteenth century and aims of Western civilizations. The book

represents Africa as a common property of Europeans in the 19th century.

Joseph Conrad interested in different perspectives of Orientalism. He is one of the

intellectuals criticized both in a positive and in a negative way upon the representation the

relationship between the West and the East. Through the second chapter Orientalism will

be explained in order to get the main aspects of an oriental work or an orientalist writer.

The Heart of Darkness will be discussed upon the different views of intellectuals in the

sense that whether the novel is an Orientalist work or not. In addition to various ideas, the

position of the author himself is going to be discussed in this chapter. The study aims to

explain what the main intentions of Joseph Conrad are, and how he represents his ideas

and views related to the East and the West through the novel. The period in which he

completed his novella can be named as the golden age of imperialism when England was

the greatest power and has many colonies. The novel represents Africa as one of these

colonies that England has. The two main characters that make the novel meaningful will

be discussed upon their representation of the West and the colonial and the imperial aims.

Marlow is the central character of the novel and he represents Joseph Conrad.

The study aims to focus on the important aspects of Heart of Darkness in terms of

imperial activities which take place during the nineteenth century and how Joseph Conrad

represents Africa as an anti-colonialist writer. The study examines attitudes of Conrad and

his representation of African not only as a colony of England, but also it explores how he

defines through western eyes and how he is stranded between the West and the East. From

the narration point of view to the different ideas and implications that are discussed by

critics upon the Heart of darkness will be discussed. The aim of this study to clarify how

Africans are represented and what are the core aspects that define them by the Conrad as

3
an English writer through using character Marlow as a narrator in the Congo. Through the

second chapter reader will get basic ideas about the novel and the author himself whether

the book is an oriental work and if it is an Orientalist work in what ways it refers to this

quality and Joseph Conrads manner towards Africans and Europeans will be examined.

In the third chapter the psychoanalytic approach will be applied to the Heart of Darkness

from the Freudian perspective to dive into the unconscious of the main character Charlie

Marlow who represents the author himself. This study aims to represent the

psychoanalysis of Joseph Conrad not only via the experiences of Marlow or the

psychoanalysis of the character, but also to give important details of his background,

especially his childhood and adulthood experiences due to the fact that the Russian

imperialism and his radical activist fathers activities have a huge impact on his psyche. In

addition to details of memories while he is represented as a wanderer his lack of familial

relations will be discussed how these affect his life and future.

Charlie Marlowe is the main character who represents Joseph Conrad in the novel.

The third chapter composes of the detailed reading of Heart of Darkness and it explores

unconscious reasons of Marlow, who takes a position as a narrator and symbolizes Joseph

Conrad, and it explores also psychological reasons that are represented by Joseph Conrad

diving into the unconscious of his characters Marlow. This study will represent how

symbols represent the intentioned meanings and the psyche of the writer as an individual

and how he represents Victorian era. By the means of psychoanalytic criticism of the

novel, this work will show how Joseph Conrad manipulates his character to show his past

experiences are going to because his trauma after Marlow reach the Kurtz who is famous

among the indigenous and plays important roles upon the ivory trading. The

psychoanalysis of Marlow will show how at the end of the novel, Marlow or Joseph

Conrad will be a victim.

4
 The aim of this study is that some writers produced their literary works to criticize

colonialism and imperialism through their anti-colonial views and in a similar vein, Joseph

Conrad artistically shows Western colonialism in Africa and the way of his representation

is discussed whether the novel is a work of an Orientalist or not; Joseph Conrad projects

Africa and Africans as an Orientalist writer, and he dives into unconscious of his character

Marlow, who symbolizes author himself to reveal psychological aspects related to his own

life and his journey to Congo and colonial and imperial attitudes of the West. The study

will answer some simple questions such as; is the novel an Orientalist work or not? Is

Joseph Conrad an Orientalist? When does the modern colonialism begin? What are

colonialism, capitalism and imperialism? What is decolonization and what are the primary

movements in constructing of decolonization process? Does Joseph Conrad represent the

psychological problems through using Marlow as a character who represents the authors

experiences of Congo? What are the main reasons cause the traumatic event in his life?

Why are the reasons that make him a victim at the end of the novel?

5
 Chapter 1

1.1. Colonialism

Colonialism can be described as the relationship between the colonized and the

colonizer. Colonialism is used as a term to define the historical process to colonize a

country. There are various definitions of colonialism and speculations about how and

when it was started. As a term, it is defined to settle a specific territory and to exploit the

indigenous people culturally and economically. For McLeod Colonialism was a lucrative

commercial operation, bringing wealth and riches to Western nations through the

economic exploitation of others (McLeod, 7). Colonialism was emerged due to the

expansion of the imperialist nations who aimed to use natural sources of others. Oxford

English Dictionaries define colonialism as the policy or practice of acquiring full or

partial political control over another country, occupying it with settlers, and exploiting it

economically.

Colonialism has a long historical past and it is supposed that it dates back to the

ancient Greek and Rome period. In the modern sense, colonialism started through the

earliest of the nineteenth and in the first half of the sixteenth century, accepted as the date

of the discovery of America by Christopher Columbus, and it is associated with the

invasion or trade act of Portuguese and Spanish. It begins as a movement of discovery or

trade, and then continues as a form of domination. The first wave of domination was

followed by Portuguese and Spanish, then French, English and German from fifteenth to

nineteenth centuries.

Modern European colonization began in 1415, when Portugal conquered the

Muslim part of Ceuta in Northern Africa. In the decades that followed,

Portuguese explorers sailed south along the west coast of Africa and

6
 established trading posts, ports and forts. This wave of colonialism was led by

Portuguese and Spanish exploration of the coasts of Africa, the Americas, India

and East Asia (Kozlowski, 2).

Kozlowski represents how modern colonialism began in the fifteenth century.

According to him, the main reason is invasion during the discovery attempt of European

nations, Portuguese and Spanish. Colonialism has different forms. Lois Tyson informs

about two types of colonialism: one is to conquest a territory refers to the economic side of

it and the other is colonizing the mind: which is associated with the European claims on

civilizing the indigenous people and fighting for their rights.

To colonize the consciousness of subordinate peoples means to convince

them to see their situation the way the imperialist nation wants them to see it,

to convince them, for example, that they are mentally, spiritually and

culturally inferior to their conquerors and that their lot will be improved

under the guidance and protection of their new leaders (Tyson, 63).

Although colonialism was started as a form of domination mainly was based on

trade or exploration, it also brought exploitation to the indigenous people. As European

nations were more civilized than their colonies, they easily controlled or dominated upon

their colonies either using their technology or resorting to violence or force. During this

process raw materials and human were transported in both directions. In A History of

Africa it is claimed that the Portuguese first landed in 1446 and brought not only gold,

but they also introduced slavery due to the lack of manpower (13). It is clear that slavery

was caused by discovery and trade of Western European nations in this period.

Slaves were moved from Africa to Americas, and in the West Indian

plantation they produced sugar for consumption in Europe, and raw cotton

was moved from India to be manufactured into cloth in England and then

7
 sold back to India whose own cloth production suffered as a result. In

whichever direction human beings and material travelled, the profits always

flowed back into the so-called mother country (Loomba, 4).

Loomba tries to represent that European colonization exploited Africans and

Indians as slaves and how they manipulated Africans and Indians economy. In addition,

she introduces one of the forms of colonialism which has an inclination to make profits

upon the colonized people or place. That is, the flow of both materials and slaves caused

Capitalism. According to Loomba colonialism was the midwife that assisted at the birth

of European capitalism, or that without colonial expansion the transition to capitalism

could not have taken place in Europe (Loomba, 4). Capitalism and colonialism have a

close meaning. In addition, capitalism was emerged due to the development of

colonialism. It is very much associated with an economic system that is based on trade,

industry; production and redistribution of products make a profit. In addition, capitalism is

a key between colonialism and imperialism.

Capitalisms constant need for markets in which to sell goods and for new

sources of raw materials from which to make good is also responsible for the

spread of imperialism; the military, economic, and/or cultural domination of

one nation by another for the financial benefit of the dominating nation with

little or no concern for the welfare of the dominated (Tyson, 63).

Lois Tyson indicates that capitalist nations needed markets to make a profit and they

caused expansion of imperialism. Imperialism is a term which is associated with the act of

empire and generally is used instead of colonialism. Like colonialism and capitalism, it is

also a way of exploitation. Imperialism and colonialism have some different and common

aspects to be identified. Colonialism and imperialism are sometimes used to represent the

8
same meaning, because both of the terms are close to each other but the terms have

different meanings.

Said states that imperialism means the practice, the theory, and the attitudes of a

dominating metropolitan center ruling a distant territory: colonialism, which is almost

always a consequence of imperialism, is the implanting of settlements on distant territory

(Said, 8). The important point is that imperialism can be thought as the authority of a

dominant country over its colonies not directly, but imposing political ideologies via

economic power or military power. As a politic term, imperialism is associated with the

expansion of the European nation state during the 19th century. Unlike imperialism, there

is a group of people who settle in a territory and exploit resources or govern directly the

inhabitants of the territory by using violence or force.

Nationalism is a term originated in western civilizations to achieve a social and

political togetherness on a piece of territory. In addition to being a politic term, it was

organized to infuse the idea of being a nation to the indigenous in order to prevent the

counter attacks on them to claim any official right and save their position as colonies.

Although it was created by white European settlers, it spread among other indigenous and

they began to use this aspect as a source of inspiration. McLeod indicates that

Nationalism emerged with growth of Western capitalism and industrialization and was a

fundamental component of imperialist expansion (McLeod, 68). That is to say, imperial

ideology, imperialism, capitalism or industrialization can be accepted as the three different

ways of exploitation that have common points and cause the nationalism. Moreover, most

of the colonies realized the circumstances in which they were exploited and they began to

fight for their freedom that is called decolonization.

9
1.2.Decolonization process

Decolonization is a term used to describe a historical process in which colonized

people declare their existence or act to overcome colonial ideologies or exploitations of

their colonizer. Decolonization simply means struggles between the colonized people and

their colonizers for independence. Decolonization refers to the aims of colonized people

want to achieve a self-ruling. Oxford English Dictionary defines decolonization as the

withdrawal from its former colonies of a colonial power; the acquisition of political or

economic independence by such colonies. That is, in the process colonies aim to gain

their independence in terms of economic and politic. The decolonization process does not

refer to a specific time and area, because colonies won their rights to rule their lands in

different periods.

During the nineteenth century Britain emerged as the largest imperial power,

and by the turn of the twentieth century the British Empire ruled one quarter

of the earths surface, including, India, Australia, New Zeeland, Canada,

Ireland and significant holdings in Africa, the West Indies, South America,

the middle east, and South Asia, British colonial domination continued until

the end of World War II, when Indian gained independence in 1947, and

other colonies gradually followed suit. By 1980 Britain had lost all but a few

of ts colonial holdings (Tyson, 422).

Tyson presents the historical development of the decolonization process in which

Britain was the main dominant power of the nineteenth to the twentieth centuries. In

addition, this process is supported by the idea of establishing a new official system

resisting the oppressed power. Decolonization process or the term decolonization is a

tricky word to describe exactly which period it includes, and when and how it was started.

That is to say, there is not a specific time and each of the colonized gained its

10
independence in a different period of time. It is a process when imperial powers lost most

of their colonies through some formal and informal activities. It simply defines as the

process of recognition of their originality, history and language. During this period, anti-

colonials fight for freedom through activating the perception of culture, and the act of

writing as a defense vehicle of political liberation and anti-colonialism is a core aspect of

the decolonization movement (Boehmer, 63). As a result of political movements such as

anti-colonialism, anti-slavery and the emerging nationalist views of the colonized people

the decolonization period became more complicated and it was supported by the attempts

of anti-colonialists writers to advocate the independence of the colonized peoples. The

writers of this period focused on the attitudes of colonizers and broadened the idea of

independence and human right associated with decolonization.

Colonialism and imperialism in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries caused wars

between the colonizers and the colonized peoples. After the French revolution, the ideas of

equality, fraternity and brotherhood emerged as the main concept of democracy. However

the intent of such a movement is supposed to establish equal rights, it is discussed that

democratization idea brought terror and brutality in the sense that French policy aimed to

secure its colonies. The concept of democracy caused the spread of liberalism and

socialism and some other political movements. Through the end of the eighteenth century

and in the first quarter of the nineteenth century 13 colonies of British Empire declared

their independence and founded the United States. The attempt of the independence by

America brought some fundamental chance and become a source of inspiration for other

colonies. During this period, many writers wrote against imperialism. Anti-imperialist

movement rejects the colonial ideologies and attitudes of colonizers. According to Tyson,

in order to reject colonialist ideology and embrace their pre-colonial cultures, some

native authors, such as Kenyan writers Ngugi WA ThiongO write in their own local

11
 languages (Tyson, 422). It is clear that the decolonization period witnessed different

movements that supported independence of colonizers, and anti-colonialist and anti-

imperialist writers focused on the idea of equality in their literary works. There are

numerous writers who witnessed the problems of colonialism and imperialism and the

represented these problems such as Polish writer, Joseph Conrad.

1.3.Joseph Conrad and his colonial experiences

Joseph Conrad is considered as one of the most eminent modern novelist in

English literature. As a Polish citizen, Jozef Teodor Konrad Kozeniowski was born in

1857 to Apollo Kozeniowski who was a politic defender of Poland and his wife Ewelina

Bobrowska (Peters, 2). His father was known with his politic writings and protests against

Russian and Australian imperialistic ideologies and oppression. Kozeniowski family

struggled for independence of Poland for that reason they suffered from political

depression of the period. Peters implies that at the time of Conrads birth, Poland has

been partitioned among Prussia, Russia and Australia-Hungary for over six years (Peters,

1). It is clear that Conrad witnessed the political turmoil of the period and the effects of his

childhood experiences influenced his writing. His father is accepted as a national hero in

the sense that through his political and radical writings, he enabled Polish peoples to react

against political policy of French, Russian and Australian. Conrads parents were arrested

because of revolutionary activities as Conrad was three years old and he was allowed to go

with them (Stape, 5). Conrad saw the brutality while he was a child and his childhood

experiences affected his intellectual perception.

His family and other relatives were sentenced to harsh punishment by Russian

authorities for that reason many of them suffered in terms physical and psychological

problems. Conrads parents died from tuberculosis caused by poor conditions during the

12
exile (Peters, p: 1). The Russian oppression he witnessed caused him to feel a sense of loss

and the most of his close relatives suffered the same conditions. His both fraternal uncles,

Robert and Hilary were imprisoned and exiled, so suffering of family and political turmoil

disturbed Conrad in the sense that in his later years he was isolated and all these

experiences are represented in his literary works (Moron, 2)

Joseph Conrad was fascinated by the sea and he was allowed by his uncle to work

as a sailor. His journeys to the west, such as, France, England and Africa advanced his

talents on the ship and broadened his mind. First of all, he began to the maritime training

in France and sailed to sea, and then he became a British citizen and journeyed to Congo

that enabled him to write one of the most crucial works of literature named as Heart of

Darkness. Joseph Conrad is accepted as one of the influential novelist of the Victorian era

and he represented general atmosphere of his age through his experiences in his works.

That is, his personal records are true facts of his life and his characters associated him,

they represent his life, memories and problems he experienced.

The alienation, solitude, and epistemological uncertainty that so many of his

characters experience speaks of Conrads modernist world view as they

consistently try to find meaning and order in human existence while

recognizing that such is never transcendent, but merely contingent- merely a

means to stave of chaos, anarchy and nihilism (Peters, 33).

Peters argues that Joseph Conrad is a modernist writer whose characters are in

pursuit of researching meaning in a vast universe. In addition, they represent a sense of

alienation and uncertainty. His characters suffer from political and social problems linked

to consciousness of them. He represents his characters in a way that they try to get rid of

imprisonment of the meaningless world. Through representation of his characters who

research for freedom, Conrad investigates a sense of existential meaning which lies behind

13
absurd events occurred in our lives. It is possible to encounter with the real experiences of

Conrads childhood through representation of his characters and he gives psychological

conditions and problems via his characters who symbolize the author himself such as in

Heart of Darkness.

Sailing to the sea was one of his dreams and it came true in 1990, when he

travelled to Congo as a captain of steamboat a Belgium company (Gne, 190- 200). The

personal records of this Journey form a basis for his famous novella, Heart of Darkness.

Conrads journey is narrated by the protagonist, Charlie Marlow, who represents an

authors disturbance and disappointment about the nature of evil, exploitation and

colonialism implemented by western power in the 19th century, both in Africa and in

different places in the world (Gne, 200- 221). Through the representation of Marlow,

Conrad tries to show what is hidden behind his experiences and he gives unconscious of

his characters instead of revealing his childhood events directly to the reader. In addition

Marlow individually represents the authors unconscious in a way that Conrad reaches his

aim to show an individual problem through the use symbols.

Symbolism or symbols are used by writers became an important tool to show his

repressed feelings or characters unconscious that is very much associated with the

psychoanalytic theory of Sigmund Freud. This theory and criticism enable to go beyond

symbolism and to reveal repressed feeling and desires of the character associated with

author unconscious reveals fantasy, secrets and repressed internal feelings. For Bertens,

psychoanalytic criticism focuses on such cracks in the texts faade and seeks to bring to

light the unconscious desires of either the author, or characters that the text presents

(160). In conclusion, the events are narrated by protagonist Marlowe in a symbolic way is

associated with the authors life, and through this process writer goes into the unconscious

of his character.

14
 The unconscious is a part of the human psyche in which painful experiences and

emotions such as wounds, fears, guilty desires and unresolved conflicts are stored (Tyson,

12). However, an individual avoids in order to get rid of these painful experiences there is

a possibility of returning of these feelings which is called regression. That is to say, the

unconscious is an active part of psych and painful experiences are repressed in this part.

The psychoanalytic theory of Sigmund Freud focused on sexual development of children

upon on father and mother and it is also called Oedipal complex. Moreover, it can be

concluded that painful experiences of an individual comes from his childhood.

Freud defines human psych in three phases; id is the psychological reservoir of

human instincts, ego is the balance between the id and superego and superego is the direct

opposition to id or it is the layer decides which desires the id will contain (Tyson, 25). The

unconscious of characters can be represented by image over which repressed feelings are

given. For example a dream figure can include ones characteristics (Bertens, 159). The

repressed feelings are represented in a dreamlike. For Freud, dreams symbolically

represent unconscious wishes formed into symbols to avoid from representing directly

(Eagleton, 136). As the unconscious is active the repressed feelings can return. When

these feelings return second time or one person encounters the same experiences, it will

cause the psychological breakdown which can be defined as trauma. On a psychological

analysis of characters the psychoanalytic criticism of Sigmund Freud plays an important

role to reveal the reasons behind traumatic event. There are many reasons that cause the

traumatic event such as the feelings of security, problems of the world and human rights.

The effects of trauma begin in childhood and continue when a person matured. In addition

to these effects cause a sense of frightening because traumatic person thinks that the world

is a dangerous place and these effects from the ground for future trauma.

15
Chapter 2

2.1 Orientalism and Heart of Darkness

Orientalism is a term that means something related to the East. As a term, it explains

the relationship between the orient and the occident, and the East and the West.

Orientalism is used to refer any quality of people who live in the east part of the world.

More specifically, Orientalism drives its root from the orient that means a place or a

country from east. In addition, Orientalism or orient is created by western societies to refer

eastern cultures or societies who are accepted more primitive than them and it refers to the

attitudes of Western towards some eastern part of the world such as Asian and North

Africans. Moreover the term is used to represent the idea of superiority of western

societies. However, nineteenth century authors dealt with Orientalism to refer their studies

or represent experiences in the east part of the world such as in Asia and Africa or some

parts of the East in the world, not to praise but to express their experiences as a part of

their adventure as if they are in a mythical place that is full of strange things.

The Orient is not only adjacent to Europe; it is also the place of Europes

greatest and richest and oldest colonies, the source of its civilizations and

languages, its cultural contestant, and one of its deepest and the most

recurring images of the other. In addition, the Orient has helped to define

Europe (or the West) as its contrasting image, idea, personality, experience

(Said, 2).

Edward Said broadened the meaning of Orientalism that inform about political,

cultural, economic and social differences of western nations who dominated on

undeveloped societies. Edward Said applied the term Orientalism to show western

attitudes towards the colonized people without any geographical restriction in the sense

16
that the term refers undeveloped countries and also he states that Orientalism is used by

the West to define them. According to him, the misrepresentation of the Orient created by

Europeans not only to define themselves, but also addressing to differences between the

West and the East such as white and black that defines each other. In addition to variations

of its meaning this term used in the nineteenth century to represent how colonial and

imperial attitudes of imperialist nations shaped indigenous people. Furthermore,

orientalists such as poets and writers described the Orient as strangers and the East as a

place of mysteries (Said, 21). Joseph Conrad is criticized as one of these orientalist writers

due to the representation of Africa.

Heart of Darkness is discussed whether it is an Orientalist work or not, and Joseph

Conrad is criticized both an Orientalist writer who represents the imperial attitudes of

western nations in Africa, and a bloody racist who humiliates Africans in his famous

novella. There are different views about Joseph Conrads voyage to the heart of darkness

that refers to Africa. In his famous novella, Conrad portrays what is going on through the

deep inside of African using main character Marlow. The events in the novella are not

only associated with his background, but also they are products of his experiences during

his voyage on the Congo River. However, the main character begins his journeys to get an

opportunity of working for The Company, he encounters with the brutality of West in

Africa, and he narrates what he witnesses during his voyage.

There are certain points that represent European activities under the name of the

enlightening of natives in the novel by the main character, Marlow. One of the most

important points in the novel is that Conrad shows the brutality of western nations in

Africa, and how they are exploited politically culturally and economically during the

colonial period. In addition, Marlowe becomes the voice of Conrad, and he uses different

17
types of narration techniques representing the colonial expansion of the Victorian period

when England was one of the great powers over the colonies.

When the nature, the river and the environment are described by narrator Africa

becomes a place of mystery, myth and a place of exoticism in the sense that it represents

the western dreams of the East and their viewpoints, their image of Africa and their

misinterpretations. Conrads approach to the events in Heart of Darkness and his

depiction of the relationship between indigenous people and the colonizers is interpreted

differently by critics and scholars.

In An Image of Africa, Achebe criticized Joseph Conrad as a bloody racist in the

sense that Conrad attacks Africans, and represents Africa as the other world in Heart of

Darkness (Achebe, 251-261). Conrads famous novel is discussed as a work of literature

which represents colonial attitudes of West in Africa, but the depiction of events, native

people and Conrads attitudes towards Africans is discussed that Conrad tries to show

Eurocentirism and the superiority of Western civilization. In addition, it is assumed that

Conrad displays the technological advancement and cultural superiority of Western in

Heart of Darkness. The other important point is that Joseph Conrad represents Africans as

primitive through representation of their settlements, behaviors and clothing. Furthermore,

Joseph Conrad is also criticized by critics, because he projects Africans as barbarous and

he has an inclination to show them as they are degenerated. Marzec states that the novel

is arguably critical of British imperial projects: the narrator Marlow clearly finds the

treatment of indigenous Africans by the European to be barbarous (Marzec, 5). It is

obvious that Conrad projects Africans inferior to Europeans.

Conrad shows cultural superiority of Western in Heart of Darkness in a way that

he gives the connection between technological advancement and cultural superiority

(Betts, 8). It is clear that Joseph Conrad is criticized due to the fact that he portrayed

18
Africans as the primitive peoples who depend on Western nations. In addition, Conrad is

criticized, because he tries to represent Western civilizations superior than Africans

through technological advancement. The description of Africans, presentation of the life

and culture or some addressing phrases of Conrad that he used to define indigenous are

viewed as an attack on Africans, so is called as a racist writer who differentiate Africans in

Heart of Darkness.

There are different perspectives to the description of African and their relationships

with Europeans in Heart of Darkness. On the contrary, to the Achebes criticism of Joseph

Conrad as a racist, he tries to represent events objectively avoiding from comments on

events during the voyage and like a painter he shows the realities of imperialism and

colonialism. There certain points that Joseph Conrad expresses indirectly as an anti-

colonialist writer.

Heart of Darkness was written in the nineteenth century, when England was one of

the super powers among the colonizers. The novel represents economic exploitation of

Africa, through the multiple uses of narration techniques, Conrad shows the dramatization

of the events that caused by great powers, so as an English writer Joseph Conrad, who is

originally a Polish, criticizes colonial and imperial attitudes of Western colonizers.

According to Said, Conrad wants us to see how Kurtzs great looting adventure, the

Marlows journey up the river, and the narrative itself all share a common theme:

Europeans performing acts of imperial mastery and will in (or about) Africa (Said, 22).

That is to say, Kurtzs exploitation of Africans not only economically, but also his cruelty

towards Africans and the journey of Marlow or Marlow himself, who represents the author

in the novel and the use of different narrative techniques to inform about European

imperialism or those prove that colonial ideologies are in process. It is clear that all of

these views demonstrate that Heart of Darkness is very much related to anti-colonialism

19
or an imperial work of art in the sense that Joseph Conrad point out how western nations

attempted degenerate Africans and exploit them economically and culturally.

As a Polish citizen Joseph Conrad is exposed to the Russian imperialism, and he is

certainly aware of imperial attitudes of colonizers in Africa, which enables him to

compare events that he encounters, hence Conrad does not directly represent the main

problems, but he rejects colonial and imperial ideologies of colonizers as an anti-colonial

writer.

Joseph Conrad was literally, but not scholarly Orientalist and most of his novels

are set in the orient. Conrads orient is different from the orient of Edward Saids

Orientalism (Weyo, 1) in the sense that Conrad deals with the sea and his Orientalism

differs in term of geographic. Besides portraying Africa as a place where European

imperialism continues, Joseph Conrad makes it clear through his works that Europeans are

against undeveloped Europeans or non- Europeans. In Heart of Darkness much than

African primitiveness he deals with the circumstances that keep African primitive, in other

words, Conrad tries to represent how European expose them certain ideologies but Conrad

does not become a voice to defend the Africans directly.

Colonialism and imperialism, not only destroy a colony in terms of economic,

culture, psychology, and also colonized people are morally degenerated. It is discussed

that some Western intellectuals such as writers and poets represent the East as a place of

mystery and fantasy. Beside the representation of East as a place of strangers, people are

also reflected morally inferior. The real intention of Conrad is not to project Africans as

they are morally weak, but he has inclination to show the aim of colonizers in Heart of

Darkness. Conrads experiences, examine Europeans ideologies. He shows the moral

degeneration caused by isolation and the nature of the spread of western civilization

(Peters, 51). It is clear that Conrad represents that Europeans differentiate themselves from

20
the East part of the world and they morally degenerated Africans. That is, Conrad pictures

the activities of colonizers through the eyes of an anti-colonialist writer who is completely

aware of the circumstances and he takes a role as an anti-colonialist writer, but his way of

representation of Africa or Africans is discussed that he implicitly aims to humiliate, to

show them as they are degenerated or to segregate, but represents the realities of the

imperialism applied by Western Nations.

When Africa was colonized by West the influences of imperialism and colonialism

affected every field of life. The colonizers not only indirectly caused the devastation of

indigenous via the virus or smallpox, they brought, and they also caused their suffering

through their treatments. The Heart of Darkness reveals European brutality in Africa. The

indigenous people are differentiated due to their skin color. ThiongO discusses that

Conrads text is one of the gripping evocations of the horror of imperialism particularly

in its colonial guise. He debunks all the do-goodness associated with the nineteenth

century European colonial enterprise (ThiongO, 34). Apparently, he is aware of the

attitudes of the West associated with racism. Even though, Conrad is aware of the

exploitation, corruption and the racism in Heart of Darkness he cannot struggle for

Africans. That is to say, as an orientalist writer, Conrad stranded between duality, and

between The East and The West.

Heart of Darkness is criticized as a work of orientalist writer that projects Africans

as savages and cannibals. The representation of African as savages and the projection of

Africa as a place of mystery are very much related to the aspects of Orientalist writers who

represents the Orients or non-Europeans, who are less advanced than the Europeans, in

such circumstances. Joseph Conrad is criticized by Ngugi WA ThiongO for the

representation of Africans as savages:

21
 For Joseph Conrad, African characters in Heart of darkness are part of that

primitive savagery that lay below the skin of every civilized being. He was

telling his fellow Europeans; You go to Africa to civilize, to enlighten a

heathen people; scratch that thin veneer of civilization and you will find the

savagery of Africa in you too (ThiongO, 19).

Joseph Conrad is criticized by ThiongO because of his projection of Africans as

savages, and he also warns the Europeans in the novel indirectly due to the fact that they

will turn into savages while they are trying to civilize Africans. Not only the Heart of

Darkness, but also the ideologies of Europeans is criticized in the sense that some Western

intellectuals believe that they have a responsibility to enlighten the East or the undeveloped

countries or nations; giving technology and rising human right standards, but it doesnt

mean that it gives them the right of colonizing indigenous. It is quite obvious that Europeans

claim that they aim to bring enlightenment to Africans, and enlightening process becomes a

reason of colonization in the sense that the indigenous are projected inadequate to civilize

themselves. Joseph Conrad refers Africans as savages, and this is interpreted as an attack on

indigenous. In addition, Conrad shows Africans as inferior to the Europeans. Moreover, the

symbols play important role to refer the differences between Africa and the west.

Symbolism or symbols are associated with the intention of the writers that they want

to give messages indirectly. Joseph Conrad is criticized due to his phrases that refer to the

primitiveness of Africans and the superiority of the West. In addition, the light becomes a

symbol of the West that means purity, simplicity and other positive meanings. The West

becomes a source of inspiration that will enlighten the primitive corner of the world.

Through the symbols Conrad compares and contrasts the East and the West, so Africa

became a place of darkness and the dark color that Joseph Conrad use as a symbol refers the

evil, primitive and inferiority of Africans and Africa.

22
 When Europeans writers referred to Africa as the Dark Continent, or Wrote

novels on the themes of darkness, they were ironically referring to what they

had created with their kind of light. It was quite insightful of Conrad to see

the gates to Heart of Darkness of his novel as lying in European warehouses.

Thames and Brussels were the gates into the Heart of Darkness where people

were hunted down on account of their color and the shape of their nose

(ThiongO, 71).

ThiongO criticizes not only the author of the Heart of Darkness, but also the other

novel writers who project Africa as a place of darkness and as primitive. And in the same

time he indicates that not both Conrad and the other European writers show Africa as a

place of darkness which is created by the West. It is obvious that the West is criticized

because of colonial and imperial attitudes under the name of enlightenment. In addition

England is criticized because of imperial aims and the racism they did in the heart of

darkness as they referred Africa.

One of the core aspects of the Orientalist writers is that through their literary texts

they deliver some messages, sometimes they represent them directly, and sometimes readers

are expected to figure out the intended meanings behind the words and sentences. Joseph

Conrad is criticized because of his attitudes towards Africans through his narrative and

contrasted ideas which place him into two different positions such as an anti-colonial writer,

and a writer who represents Africans as primitive peoples, and the representation of

Eurocentirism.

Joseph Conrad was aware of the destructive effects of imperialism on the

indigenous, but he could not free himself from the Eurocentric basis of his vision in Heart of

Darkness (ThiongO, 22). It is discussed that Conrad may associate the imperialism and

colonialism with the history of Poland that he witnessed, and he also witnesses the brutality

23
of colonizers in Africa, therefore he cannot get rid of the idea of Eurocentirism, when he

describes Africa as the rest or inferior to Europe. It is very much related to aspects of

Orientalist writers who misrepresent the East without thinking they have their language,

culture, traditions, customs, religion and lifestyles. However, Joseph Conrad seemed as an

anti-colonialist and anti-imperialist writer, his wording displays his attitudes against

Africans. In addition to his orientalist representation of Africans, the events he recounts are

associated with his experiences which caused damages on his psychology. That is to say, the

novel represents psychological state of Joseph Conrad, and his character Marlow, who takes

as the position of the writer himself.

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 Chapter 3

A Psychoanalytic criticism of Heart of Darkness from the Freudian perspective

Joseph Conrad uses the characters Marlow and Kurtz in order to represent not only

his experiences in the Congo but also he gives his childhood experiences that caused

psychological problems in his life. At the beginning of the novel the story moves from the

Thames River in the Congo in the Dark Continent. Joseph Conrad represents Marlow as the

narrator of the novel in order to dive into depth of consciousness of his character to express

his repressed experiences that had a huge impact on his psyche. The narration of the story

linked European imperialism with Russian imperialism in the sense that Poland was one of

the main colonies of Russia.

Conrads traumatic life and psychological problems date back to his childhood

experiences which are closely connected with the voyage from Congo that enables the

recurrence of the same events. His father was an activist who protested Russian imperialism

and fight for the independence of Poland. Most of the family members are either killed or

died because of diseases. Furthermore, the political activities of the family resulted in the

growing of Conrad without parental love. He repressed his childhood feelings and

experiences which will shape his future life. When Conrad was serving in French ship he

attempted to commit suicide in 1878. It is known that he shot himself (Stape, 230-231). It is

clear that childhood experiences of Conrad shaped his future and his attempt to commit

suicide is revealed the years after his death. Moreover, Conrad repressed all the feelings and

experiences which would experience in Africa during his voyage.

A crucial turning point in his later sea- career was a traumatic visit to the

Belgian Congo in 1980 where undergoing a physical and mental breakdown

that would leave him with an enduring legacy of ill health, he seems to have

been awakened to the possibility of a new life ashore (Stape, 8).

25
 Stape claims that Joseph Conrads voyage to the Congo River is associated with his

experiences in Africa, and they are also related to his previous experiences and painful

memories that cause his physical and mental problems. Probably the recurrence of the same

events caused traumatic event after Conrad returned from the Congo River. Consequently,

Conrad tells a real story of an expedition to the unconsciousness of Marlow, and he aims to

find the meaning of the life, to resolve conflicts in his mind which do not enable him to find

the true self.

Heart of Darkness is set in the dark corner of Africa. From the beginning of the

novel to the end, Marlow narrates the story as a dream which is associated with the

consciousness of the character. It is clear that the novels narration technique and symbols

represent the repressed feelings of the character Marlowe. Conrad says that Marlow

suddenly, has been one of the dark places of the earth (Conrad, 6). The representation of

Marlow in the dark part of the world means that Africa or natives are associated with the

symbols of dark and darkness. Furthermore, these symbols represent the consciousness of

Marlow. The white and the dark symbols are the opposite, and can be interpreted as the

conflicts in Marlows mind. Marlow attempts to reach the mysterious Kurtz will enable him

to face the meaning of the life. In addition to the representation of the Congo in darkness,

and the description of the colors, the river and the environment, he also compares Marlow

and Kurtz in a symbolic way in which Marlow symbolizes the light and Kurtz symbolizes

the dark. These symbolic projections of the characters refer to the consciousness of the main

character Marlow. Apart from the symbols used by Conrad, the journey of Marlow in

Congo also becomes a symbol in Heart of Darkness. The Marlows narration of the story to

a silent audience might be accepted as a reflection of the repressed consciousness. The

voyage of the main character as a metaphor might be discussed as a kind of exploration of

the human mind in the modern world.

26
 Marlowe departure from England to the depth of darkness that refers to the Africa

might be interpreted as the journey of Conrad into the unconscious of his character in

relation with the conflicts in the human mind, these are conscious and unconscious. Conrad

says that there is a taint of death, a flavor of morality in lines which is exactly what I hate

and detest in the world- what I want to forget (Conrad, 53). It is clear that the voyage

represents the conflicts in human mind. Marlow as the main character and the narrator aims

to find Kurtz, symbolically it means that Marlow tries to discover the self and self-

conscious. In addition to his attempt to find Kurtz, Marlowe aims to find the self.

I had simply a notion it somehow would be of help to that Kurtz whom at

the time I did not see, you understand. He was just a word for me. I did not

see the man in the name any more than you do. Do you see him? Do you see

the story? Do you see anything? It seems to me I am trying to tell you a

dream, making a vain attempt, because no relation of a dream can convey the

dream-sensation, that commingling of absurdity, surprise, and bewilderment

in a tremor of struggling revolt, that notion of being captured by the

incredible which is of the very essence of dreams (Conrad, 53).

In the novel, Kurtz is another important character to whom Marlowe tries to reach.

Kurtz becomes a symbol in the dark jungle, which is very much associated with the id and

Marlow represents the ego. That is, both of the characters give an idea that symbolically

they represent two distinctive parts of the human psyche. Furthermore, the Conrad

representation of the story closely resembles a dreamlike in which many symbols refer to

the human mind, and Kurtz becomes a symbol of the darkest part of Marlowe psyche.

The novel is set in the Congo River, but Conrad begins the story referring to the

Thames River in London, implying that one way or another every nation faced the reality

associated with imperialism and colonialism. In addition to the beginning of the novel,

27
Marlow narrates us the story like a dream which is associated with the neuroses of the

writer. Marlows narration of the story on the deck of the steamboat, Conrad gives clues

about dream and symbols that are part of ones psyche.

The voyage of the Marlowe to the Congo River through the interior of the dark and

primitive Africa represents the depth of his consciousness and aims to find the true self.

From the beginning to the end the novel focuses on the journey of Marlow to reach the

mysterious Kurtz. Marlowe indicates that growing up the river was like traveling back to

the earliest beginning of the world, when vegetation rioted on the earth and the big trees

were kings (Conrad, 67). It can be discussed that Marlow tries to enlighten the primitive

mind that is also related to psychological representation human and his journey to find the

meaning of existence in a vast world. Beside, exploration of human mind and psychological

problems, Marlow tries to associate events and researches for the main reasons of actions

which cause him to reveal his repressed feelings to meet true self. Furthermore, character

Kurtz enables him to succeed.

The symbolic representation of Kurtz might be discussed in several ways in the

psychological theory of Sigmund Freud. When Marlow moves to the interior of Africa his

blur ideas and thoughts become clear, and the circumstances he faces enables him to

enlighten the dark feelings, and to find the true self. Kurtz was a universal genius, but even

a genius would find it easier to work with adequate tools- intelligent men (Conrad, 55).

Conrad represents Kurtz as a genius, a civilized modern man who lost his values, and turned

into a savage. Moreover, the representation of Kurtz stresses the symbolic interpretation on

one level, and he imposes the idea that how feelings are repressed. Consequently Kurtz

displays Marlows repressed feelings, which will occur at the end of the novel.

When Marlow informs Katzs wife one year after his departure to England, she asks

Kurtzs the last words, and Marlow indicates that he was there. When the widow asks Kurtz,

28
Marlow says the last word he pronounced was your name (Conrad, 161). It is quite clear

that Marlow represents painful memories after his departure from Africa. The painful

memories and experiences in Congo also reveal the psychological problems of the character

which existed before. When Marlow moves through the interior of the Africa, he begins to

realize the reality surrounded him and his mind. The aims of Marlow to reach Kurtz enable

him to discover the reality not only in Africa, in the world and himself. Marlow understands

the dilemma in his life and morality, so he figures out the fact of his life to find the self.

The other shoe went flying unto the devil-god of that river. I thought, By

Jove! Its all over. We are too late; he has vanished the gift has vanished,

by means of some spear, arrow, or club. I will never hear that chap speak

after all and my sorrow had a starling extravagance of emotion, even such

as I had noticed in the howling sorrow of these savages in the bush. I couldnt

have felt more of lonely desolation somehow, had I been robbed of a belief or

had missed my destiny in life (Conrad, 97).

Joseph Conrad dives into the consciousness of his character to find the reality and

the meaning. By the time Marlow arrives to the interior of destination in Africa, he thinks

the voyage as an ordinary job, and as long as he moves through the interior, everything

starts to take shape in his mind. As he comes to close to Kurtz, he sees the brutality and

cruelty in Africa, so his symbolic journey enlightens the dark part of Marlow. Consequently,

Marlow finds the moral dilemma both in himself and the human soul. Besides, the symbolic

representation of a journey, he also describes his psychological state. He finds the self as a

result of his journey. Kurtz also has some repressed feelings as a character.

Did he live his life again in every detail of desire, temptation, and surrender

during that supreme moment of complete knowledge? He cried in a whisper

29
 at some image, at some vision he cried out twice, a cry that was no more

than a breath: The Horror! The horror! (Conrad, 145).

Conrad represents both psychological states of his characters and the reality which is

distinguished through the end of the novel; when Marlow finds Kurtz, he understands that

Kurtzs main intention is ivory trade. Marlow understands the brutality and cruelty of Kurtz

for ivory. It is very much related to Freuds pleasure tenet and explains Kurtzs primitive

instincts. Kurtz is nor psychologically aware of the reality.

Another main problem related to Freuds psychoanalytic theory is that character

Kurtz wants to be a happy person forever. Kurtzs the last words The horror! The horror!

Has implications; one of the implications is that he represses all of his painful memories,

and he lacks of pleasure which show the negative effects. The other is that Kurtz

experiences the powerful feelings and emotions of pleasure in the dark part of Africa.

Kurtz dies at the end of the novel saying his last words, the horror! The horror! Kurtz

goes Africa as a nobleman, as a white European citizen, but he turns into a savage. He is

neither aware of his brutality not his cruelty upon the indigenous. The last words of the

character show his mental breakdown at the end of the novel. In addition, Kurtz last words

confess everything, and he also represses his painful feelings. The death of character Kurtz

is also associated with psychoanalytic theory of Freud, because he becomes one of the main

reasons of Marlows mental breakdown, and causes him to find the conflicts, to reveal

painful memories.

But I am of course aware that next day the pilgrims buried something in a

muddy hole. And then they very nearly buried me. However, as you see, I did

not go to join Kurtz there and then. I did not. I remained to dream the

nightmare out to the end, and to show my loyalty to Kurtz once more.

Destiny. My destiny! Droll thing life is that mysterious arrangement of

30
 merciless logic for a futile purpose. The most you can hope from it is some

knowledge of yourselfthat comes too latea crop of inextinguishable

regrets (Conrad, 146).

At the end of the novel, Marlow describes the funeral of Kurtz, and how he is buried

by pilgrims. In psychoanalytic perspective, Marlow is traumatized because of the

destructive and traumatic experiences in the Congo. Kurtz becomes the mirror of his life to

show the meaning of life, and to understand himself. Marlows description of the situation

he is in it simply explains the resolution of conflicts in his mind. Moreover, Kurtz enables

him to come to a conclusion, so it is quite obvious that Marlow sentimentally breaks down

because of traumatic events.

When Marlow meets with Kurtz before his death, he describes his effects on his

mind in a way that Kurtz shows him the realities, and Kurtz enlightens his mind, and the

experiences associated with painful or repressed memories. Marlow says that I tell you, he

had cried, this man has enlarged my mind (Conrad, 112). Through the end of the novel

Marlows expressions find the meaning. He expresses how he becomes a victim of

traumatic events, and how he overcomes these problematic situations not forever, but for a

while.

31
 Conclusion

Colonialism and imperialism are two important ways of exploiting culture, customs,

economy, and religion. From the fifteenth century to the first half twentieth century, many

counties are colonized. Africa is one of these colonies colonized by Europeans, and most

of the natives are transformed as slaves to the west for human power. First chapter

represents the important effects of colonialism and imperialism, not only in Africa, but

also in some other countries in the East. The nineteenth centurys Africa was one of the

most important colonies of England. Africa is not only colonized by English, but also by

Portuguese, Spanish, France and some other western countries.

Most of the colonies declared their independence in different periods of time. The

independence of the colonies refers to the decolonization. However, they gained their

freedom they remained as the same colonies that shows the dependence of the colonies

upon their colonizers. Changes in politic, economic and education influence colonizer to

fight for their independence.

Africa was one of the colonies of England, and they exploited Africans under the

name of the enlightening of Africa, but it has been just a policy of England. The colonial

period of Africa in the nineteenth century is closely related to Heart of Darkness in which

Joseph Conrad projects all the aims of Europeans in Africa. The novel is written by Joseph

Conrad when Africa was a colony. It documents the realities of imperialism, and how

indigenous are exploited by the colonizers for natural resources. As a nobleman and

European Kurtz is an important example of exploitation in the Congo. He is an ivory

trader who represents the brutality of the colonizers in Africa. The novel bases on personal

experiences of Conrad in Congo, and it closely represents his colonial and imperial

experiences of childhood.

32
 Joseph Conrad is the son of a political activist who struggles for the independence of

Poland from Russian imperialism. His experiences give him a clear vision to portray the

events take place in Africa. Conrad criticizes political ideologies of Europeans towards

Africa.

Joseph Conrad criticizes European imperialism in Heart of Darkness. During his

voyage to the Congo River, he witnesses the exploitation and corruption of the natives by

the colonizers. Conrads Marlow narrates all the problems he faces. The novel is an anti-

imperialist work of literature that projects African as a colony under the control of

England during the Victorian period. Joseph Conrad successfully represents the realities of

the period, but the way he addresses to the indigenous or African show the aspects of an

Orientalist writer. The second chapter discusses whether he is orientalist or not, and Heart

of Darkness is an oriental work of literature or not. The projection of Africa as a dark

place, backward and mythical proves that Joseph Conrad approaches as an orientalist

writer.

Heart of Darkness is an oriental work in which Conrad images African as savages,

primitive and others. Symbols and the narrative techniques of the novel prove that in the

novel the indigenous are represented as the other. Through symbols Conrad uses the light

and the dark which refers to Europeans and Africans. Africans are represented as if they

are primitive, and they have no culture, traditions, and religion. Kurtz is another known

character, who symbolizes Europeans in the novel, is projected as a nobleman turned into

savage in Africa. The symbolic representation of Kurtz gives different meanings; he is

turned into savage staying in primitive Africans, and Kurtz also symbolizes the superiority

of European. Joseph Conrad portrays Europe as the center of the world, and Africa

becomes as a part of the rest.

33
 Joseph Conrad represents Africans as inferior in terms of their life, culture,

traditions, religion and primitiveness. He focuses on the idea of superiority imposed by the

colonizers and shows African as primitive and who need to be enlightened. The description

of the events, Congo River, and symbolic representation of Characters such as Kurtz show

that Conrad focuses on the idea of superiority. Heart of Darkness is a sample of Orientalist

work which describes Africans as primitive, barbarous and savage as opposite to the

Europeans, civilized and superior. Although, Conrad represents European imperialism and

colonialism ideologies, and their brutal attitudes towards Africans, he cannot be voice of

African. As an anti-imperialist author, Joseph Conrad cannot keep himself away from

representing the superiority of the West over the rest. The novel not only represents a

journey to the Congo River that he defines as the heart of darkness, but also it symbolically

represents a journey of the characters mind.

The third chapter deals with the psychoanalytic reading of heart of darkness.

Joseph Conrad is the son of a political activist, Apollo Korzeniowski who dies due to the

Russian oppression. He loses most of his family members as a result of the Russian

imperialism, because they are exiled, and suffer from diseases. The Childhood experiences

of Joseph Conrad not only cause psychological problems which will affect his future, but

also shape his vision as a writer. The image of the father and the loss of his family members

cause him to suffer from painful memories, and the lack of parental interest. More

specifically, his previous experiences cause him to seek the meaning of life in a meaningless

universe. Joseph Conrads voyage to the Congo River represents not only an expedition to

Africa, but also it enables the reader to figure out how his experiences shaped his vision,

and affected his psychology. The voyage becomes a symbol to dive unconsciousness of his

characters.

34
 Marlow begins a journey from England to the interior of the Congo River.

Conrad represents journey as a way of diving into the consciousness of his character to

reveal the realities of life. The voyage begins as a dream when Marlow starts to narrate the

story on the deck of a steamboat. The dream image is a way to reveal painful memories in

psychoanalysis theory of Sigmund Freud. Joseph Conrad uses many symbols in Heart of

Darkness. Those symbols are associated with his conscious, according to Freuds theory,

and represent the hidden meaning beyond the intentioned one.

The journey itself is also a symbol. It refers to the voyage of Conrad to the

consciousness of his character in which Marlow refers to the ego, and Kurtz refers to the id

in Freuds theory. During this journey Marlow aims to rich Kurtz, who is an ivory trader,

but the journey is also the way to find the meaning of life, to enlighten the primitive mind,

and to find the true self in a dark part of the world. Marlows journey to the heart of

darkness refers to how he represses the painful feelings and experiences. When he reaches

Kurtz, he understands the events happen around him, and he solves the conflicts in his mind.

Marlow finds Kurtz through the end of the story; the events he faces cause his emotional

breakdown. Kurtz enables Marlow to find the self, and the experiences in the Congo River

cause psychological problems he never overcomes.

Heart of Darkness as a literary text represents the psychological state of the

characters. Symbols, narration technique and Characters can be analyzed according to

psychoanalytic theory of Sigmund Freud.

35