Something that stands out to me is in the very
beginning of the novel when Marlow is describing how he first became fascinated
with exploring. On page 10 he says, "...I had a passion for maps...But
there was one yet-the biggest, the most blank...that I had a hankering
for." I believe that this shows Marlow as still being a little naïve as to
the tasks he is taking on by being an explorer and an imperialist. And as
stated in several other posts here, the river is what essentially “charmed” him
and caused him to move forward and go to Africa. He then becomes so overwhelmed
with wanting to explore the river he knows the way to do it is to become in
charge of a steamboat that would trade on the river.
I recap all of this because I believe
it is important to understand where Marlow gained his ideas and desires from. I
believe that this plays into and has an effect on how he views the country and its
people. On page 11 he says “…it’s cheap and not so nasty as it looks, they say.”
I relate this back to the post cards we looked at in class. This imperialistic viewpoint
really tarnishes the people and the country that they are colonizing. Really,
the people should be the ones making these comments to the explorers coming in
and disturbing them. On page 21, Marlow gives a description of the people he
sees; “You could see from afar the white of their eyeballs glistening…they had
faces like grotesque masks…but they had bone, muscle, a wild vitality, an
intense energy of movement, that was as natural and true as the surf along
their coast. They wanted no excuse for being there. They were a great comfort
to look at.” Despite the imperialistic undertones here, I believe this is a
genuine recognition of the beauty and humanity in where he is and the people he
is taking over. Seeing them as a comfort almost makes it seem like he is
questioning his own purpose for being there.
No comments:
Post a Comment