Novella by Joseph Conrad 1899 story-within-the-story
In 1890, Joseph Conrad worked as a pilot on a steamship in the Belgian Congo, and Heart of Darkness is at least in part based on his experiences there.
Synopsis
Characters
Marlow - Protagonist seaman has seen the world many times over. philosophical, passionate, and insightful. but also also extremely skeptical of both mankind and civilization His dying words are: “The horror! The horror!”
Kurtz - Antagonist The fiancé of his Intended, man of great intellect, talent, and ambition Kurtz is the embodiment of all that’s noble about European civilization, from his talent in the arts to his ambitious goals of “civilizing” and helping the natives of Africa a symbol of that civilization. is a monster who makes himself a god among the natives, even going so far as to perform “terrible rites.”
Unnamed black woman The Intended (woman who was intended to wed Kurtz)