Read the extract below and post a comment beneath it. Bring all your thinking to bear on it, whether from criticism, discussion, or whatever. Acknowledge your borrowed ideas informally (as in "Achebe even implies that Conrad sustains the imperialist presence in the Congo.") This elements are required: 1. involve a peer's comment, 2. involve a critic's comment, 3. consider symbolism, and 4. extend with something original of your own. Your response should be at least a hundred words.
She must have had the value of several elephant tusks upon her. She was savage and superb, wild-eyed and magnificent; there was something ominous and stately in her deliberate progress. And in the hush that had fallen suddenly upon the whole sorrowful land, the immense wilderness, the colossal body of the fecund and mysterious life seemed to look at her, pensive, as though it had been looking at the image of its own tenebrous and passionate soul.
"She came abreast of the steamer, stood still, and faced us. Her long shadow fell to the water's edge. Her face had a tragic and fierce aspect of wild sorrow and of dumb pain mingled with the fear of some struggling, half- shaped resolve. She stood looking at us without a stir, and like the wilderness itself, with an air of brooding over an inscrutable purpose. A whole minute passed, and then she made a step forward. There was a low jingle, a glint of yellow metal, a sway of fringed draperies, and she stopped as if her heart had failed her...
"She turned away slowly, walked on, following the bank, and passed into the bushes to the left. Once only her eyes gleamed back at us in the dusk of the thickets before she disappeared.
59 comments:
This passage is describing the essence of women seen in Africa. Women seem “savage and superb,” this is how women are seen. The men of higher power and better standards cannot figure out these women because they are encompassed by them yet knowing they shouldn’t have anything to do with them. Because the women are not supposed to be in the thoughts of these men, the men try to make them less interesting and savage so they will not be on their mind. This representation is criticized by critics for the ridiculous way women are represented. Marianna Torgovnick relates this novel to the barbaric Tarzan novels. Because the women are downsized and seen as savages, this sets a direct relation between the two novels, sees Torgovnick. “Why is the woman’s sorrow “wild,” her pain “dumb,” her resolve “half-shaped,” her purpose “inscrutable”? Why is she (like the landscape) “fecund and mysterious,” “tenebrous and passionate”? Do we not slip here into a prejudice vocabulary-as Marlow does often when he uses phrases like “fool nigger,” “insolent black head,” “The man seemed young-almost a boy-but you know with them it’s hard to tell” (17). More-why is the woman the embodiment of Africa? What gives Marlow the right (and why does Conrad not challenge his right?) to make this woman so portentous a symbol?” (Torgovnick). This critique is revealing the symbolism that the novel uses to relate to and figure out women. This excerpt from the novel is that of importance because it sums up the way women are portrayed though out the whole novel in one. -LKM
To respond to Lexi's imposing question of why women are chosen to represent the heart of Africa, I begin with an explanation of the role of women in the assumed religious sense of the tribal Africans. In paganism (yes, this is from the Da Vinci Code) the *unity* of man and woman was a "direct route to heaven" (-Robert Langdon) because the unity of male and female creates a child. We are able to see the unity of male and female at the accost of Kurtz's mistress. When we meet her, she is portrayed as beautiful, a quality that most of the other African people we encounter lack. Ironically, we see Kurtz in a less-than-civilized light. According to what Conrad tells us, should Kurtz not be well-kept, and the African woman savage and grotesque? Earlier today in a lecture, Kyle made an excellent point about the essay we were discussing, "The Failure of Metaphysics." He said that everything in the book, based on the author of the essay whose name I have forgotten, was based upon separation. With this I must agree, and yet simultaneously disagree. When Kurtz enters the jungle, he is as European as they come, but after he enters, he becomes savage. I believe the opposite could be said of his mistress, who becomes more beautiful on even a European standard. By the end, when both are dead (even though it's unclear whether the African woman is dead or not) it appears as if she and Kurtz have switched roles. As Mr. Koon said today, she is the one "pulling the strings" whereas Europeans would expect Kurtz to command her. Their *unity* (yes, sex...) accomplishes two things: It causes them to switch places (so-to-speak) but more importantly, it leaves Marlow the "child" of their creation. Marlow encounters both of their deaths, and takes from it the qualities of both the beautiful African woman, and Kurtz with him back to Europe. The author of "The Failure of Metaphysics" hypothesizes that Marlow fails in his spiritualistic journey; I disagree. Marlow enters a European, and returns the love-child of a prodigy and a tribal native. His heart becomes the "Heart of Darkness" through his experiences, the unity of man, and woman. Lexi is myopic to state that women are belittled by men, when all along the book demonstrates the eternal equality within the union of the sexes.
Josh, you brought up some really good points, but I have a tinyyyyy little thing to disagree with you about. Towards the end of your post, you said that Marlow turns into a savage after his journey. This holds with Achebe, who says that Africa was written as an "antithesis" to Europe and its culture. What it sounds like to me from your post is that he came in as one thing and left as another. (The opposite, if you will.)
But, I don't know if he changed so much as his baser instincts came out. It wasn't as if he switched one hat for another, but is was gradual, a slow chipping away of what he though he was. Maybe I'm off, but that's how I see it. (But, this doesn't have much to do with women, so I'll switch gears and get back on topic. Thank you for taking this detour into Kaylaland with me.)
I agree with a lot of what Lexi said, because I think that as far as women go, Marlow/Conrad doesn't really know what to make of them. They are portrayed as "dumb," (see the quote in Lexi's post)as blind, (Kurtz's painting) and sort of weak, really. But, the native woman...in keeping with the style of the book, she is hardly a woman at all. She isn't blind or weak. There is a near full page of how she is "wild-eyed" and "superb." If we continue with this idea of women symbolizing the countries, it's as if the truth of things doesn't lie in the refined and cultured places, as Europeans viewed it. It lies in the untaught and natural places, where human interference stays at minimum. (Obviously though, this is only in theory...human interference can't be kept away.)
Has anyone seen or read A Clockwork Orange? I have been relating it a lot to HoD. A film critic once said that "It is most chilling in that...it is so real. It shows that we are, at best, beasts. And all we can really do is...keep the beast at bay." If no one else has seen or read it, then this will go sadly off into Ignored Literary Connections Land. (Though I recommend it highly, it is my favorite of all time. :])
I hope everyone is having a lovely, lovely evening, and I apologize for this long and oft rambling post.
I thought that was a fantastic response to the claim that Marlow left Africa as a savage Kayla! But, what I initially meant was, Marlow leaves with the sight of both sides, he more or less leaves as the same person per se, but he is no longer able to see the shrouded pedistal on which Kurtz lives. The mystery for him is over, he discovers the truth, and leaves with knowledge. He acheives his goal, despite what "The Failure of Metaphysics" says. Just a tidbit of opinion, I completley hated that analysis, despite the fact that it got me on this great thinking train. :D
I like your reference to Clockwork Orange!!! :) Have a fantastic evening!
Yep...this is what I'm talking about. Great start. One bloggy point: Always speak of your peers' ideas -- never of their person. (Lexi is not myopic: it might be arguable that it is myopic to regard Conrad's novella as belittling women. There's a difference...)
I like Clockwork's assertion that the root of our greatness is the root of our degradation. Beethoven and mayhem grow out of the same violent passions...To "cure" us is to dehumanize us.
Keep up the great talk!
I would like to mention my theory of women’s role in HoD. I propose that Marlow’s “lie”, where he tells the Intended that Kurtz’s last word was her name, was perhaps not a lie at all but a revealing of the women’s strategic placement. “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.” Is a quote directly from Marlow, on women. This gives insight, I believe, as to why women are chosen. Women were, during the time period at least, expected to hold up certain values. Every woman in Europe had her place, and thus they became nearly synonymous with Europe. They represent the very heart of a nation, what it values most. After all, if tall, dark and handsome men are what is valued, then the women will naturally tend towards those types, and the basic principles of natural selection will ensure that more of these types are created. By doing this, women can be said to represent the values of an entire country, as they choose who they mate with, which gives their offspring the same attributes and so on and so forth. So it makes natural sense to represent a country. By equating Kurtz’s last words (“The horror, the horror”) with the Intended’s name, Marlow either knowingly or even unknowingly equates Europe with horror. And, through the entire novel, we are shown the horror of Europeans again and again. The mistreatment of the Africans, the shameless profiteering, the casual disregard for others (such as when the Company’s chief accountant expresses his distain for the dying men outside because they are too loud), we are shown the darkness, indeed, the HORROR, that lies within Europeans. So it is not strange that women be used to illustrate the darkness of Africa either, not when Marlow seems to view Africa as the source of evil. Like Hawthorn says, the physical appearance of the two women is very different. This difference is applicable to Europe and Africa as well, both are very different places with very different cultures and people.
A couple of the preceding comments talk about how Conrad portrays women as “dumb” and “weak”, but I see it very differently. While Conrad does seem to fall into the traditional mindset that women should stay at home and support their men, he also seems to hold women (and to an extent, their duty) in great respect. Here, the African woman is described as having an air “brooding over an inscrutable purpose”; she is “magnificent” and “stately.” It also says she had the value of several elephant tusks on her. Kurtz and many of the other Europeans were searching for ivory to make them wealthy, and for this nameless woman to have this much ivory is intriguing because it shows how valuable she must have been at least to Kurtz. She is obviously held in high regard. As mentioned before, women are used as symbols of their countries, further reinforcing the implication that Conrad sees the duty of women as staying at home and supporting the men. The African woman is described in a very different light than the European women (the Intended, Marlow’s aunt, and Kurtz’s sketch of the blindfolded lady). Hawthorn compares the way the different women are described and implies that the European women symbolize the idealism of the civilization and the African woman symbolizes the wilderness and the wealth it promised to provide the European men. This is very appropriate since those are the separate worlds they come from. Conrad uses concrete women to imply abstract concepts. And the stark contrasts between the African woman and the European women imply how different Africa is from Europe.
Does Elizabeth's assessment of Conrad's aim in her final two sentences reveal a fair representation of either Africans or women in the novel?
Elizabeth's point of Conrad's aim speaks straight toward the fact that women were the ultimate unknown to Marlow. Even more than Kurtz.
His representation of African's and women were both portrayed often in the same way. The African's were said to be cannibals. But often when they spoke of their cannibalistic tendencies it seemed as though they were poking fun at the dense Europeans. Maybe they would have eaten a human to survive, which makes them more real than Europeans who are always abstract, but they were indeed not cannibals. This showed them stereotypically observed as savage and as once again something Marlow does not understand.
Women are then portrayed as something stereotypical again to show evidence that Marlow does not understand them. European women as abstract, wispy, sad things. They could barely be thought of as substantial humans. Then the African women as Lexi stated are shown to be savage and truly real. Much more so than European women. They are shown as concrete forms of strength and the power of the 'wild'.
The critic 'Iconography and the Feminine Power' speaks to the fact that the first concrete image to Marlow of Kurtz was the painting of woman. This symbolizes the strength and power the unknown of women, especially African women, portray to Marlow.
I agree with Elizabeth when she said “Conrad uses concrete women to imply abstract concepts.” His women are seemingly only in the novel as a symbol of something. They don’t play any particular role to the flow of Marlow’s life/journey except for playing a symbolic role; something to make him think about, but nothing else.
This excerpt shows one example to correlate with that point. The woman is depicted “as though it had been looking at the image of its own tenebrous and passionate soul.” In a way I believe she is the symbol of Marlow’s journey. He set out originally thinking that he was doing a good thing. He had an appearance of strength and value. (her strong stature) Then, he got to Africa and realized it wasn’t as he expected. That’s when he became involved in the hunt for ivory, expecting to make fair money out of it (her wealthy appearance) But in the hunt, he lost who he used to be, and became what he had to be. He became unfulfilled until he finally met Kurtz. But even still, I don’t think he was truly happy, and she had the expression of “a tragic and fierce aspect of wild sorrow and of dumb pain mingled with the fear of some struggling, half- shaped resolve”
Kind of like Watt with his impressionist speak. He mentions an art of impressionism is being able to see beyond the fog. At the African woman’s appearance, she is a strong stately yet still seemingly savage woman. But, once you see beyond the fog, her facial expression seems depressive and that’s kind of like Marlow’s journey. It originally looked like a good way to make money, but it wasn’t how he thought it would be.
In respect to the woman mentioned in this excerpt, I think she was just used by Kurtz. In Hawthorn's criticism he writes, "...one is reminded that an aspect of imperialism has always been that of the sexual exploitation of 'native' women by male representatives of the exploiting power, an exploitation which does not typically involve any permanent commitment to the women involved." I think Kurtz just used this woman for imperialistic purposes. The way this lady dressed, how valuable her outfit was, Kurtz exploited her to get in with the tribe because she was probably a very important and respected person by the rest of the Africans. I also think that she symbolizes Kurtz. She had the value of several elephant tusks, and Kurtz was extremely valuable to the civilization of the Africans. As she approached Marlow and the others, she stopped as if her heart failed. Kurtz went to Africa with the mission of civilizing them, but then started to understand the Africans, and they began to adore him, and his heart failed him in completing the task of civilizing them. He just couldn't do it, like the woman couldn't approach Marlow and the others.
I relate Chelsea's last sentence to Kurtz. Civilizing the Africans and living in Africa looked like a good way to make money and good way to use his skills, but the Africans turned out to be more than just savages like he expected.
I understand wat Lexi is saying and I agree but i believe that the author does just the opposite and makes women look riduclous towards the end of the novel.I say this because once Marlow goes to see the Intended, the Intended is described as "fair hair, thiis pale visage, this pure brow, seemed surrounded by an ashy halo"(74). To me he makes her look like a ridiculous human who is mourning over a male. This to me symbolizes how women can't have a great life without the men. It was almost a year(i think) since the death of Krutz and the intended is still mourning. She, to me looks like a ridiculous representation of women symbolizing that women(maybe just for Europe) are useless without the men. I also beleive Marlow telling the lie to the intended was to just make her feel special and somewhat make her feel good about herself. Now, on the other hand, the novel makes women from Africa look "superb" just as Lexi says. The african mistress is described as a beautiful woman with a purpose. But like Kayla says the author does not know what to do or say about them, this could be some part of the reason as to why women but barley show up within this novel.
Now Jeremy Hawthorn who critiqued about the women in the this book says that the contrast between the Intended and the african mistress was very sharp. He says that with the intended, "nothing will come to them but death"(409). but with the African mistress, powerful life "is reflected in her passionate and facund"(409). This was a little hard for me to understand so i may be wrong. But i believe he thinks that European women just think that death is death, they are simple and sterile like the colors black and white. The africans on the other hand are more passionate, deep and beautiful like all the other colors. It sort of reminds me a of a printer. The Eurpoens are black and white...they only cost 5 cents a copy. But the africans are the colored. They cost 25 cents. They are worth more. maybe im way off...but hey...LWatson
To comment on what Latoya said…I have derived a slightly different interpretation of the quote which you have selected. The idea which you have presented is that Conrad portrays the women of this novel as something ridiculous, something to laugh about, or even something to be ashamed of. I have interpreted Conrad’s portrayal more along the lines that he sees them as “empty.” On page 74 Conrad, in regards to the intended, “This fair hair, this pale visage, this pure brow, seemed surrounded by an ashy halo from which the dark eyes looked out at me” (74). This portion of text is full of adjectives that have a very “dull” feel to them. It’s almost as if he is describing an object. Furthermore, it seems as if the women have no true role in society. On page 48 Marlow says, “We must help them to stay in that beautiful world of their own, lest ours gets worse.” It can be derived that, from this, Marlow means to say that the minds and ideas of women are worthless; that they are to have no significant role in society. Also, even though this may be seen as a rather twisted interpretation, when Marlow says, “stay in that beautiful world of their own, lest ours gets worse,” it seems to me that Marlow may be referring to the women as a means to get sexual satisfaction. It seems to imply that the women are only to be paid attention to when they are in need of something.
After reviewing the passage we have been told to look at, it still seems prevalent to me that Conrad’s aim, in regards to women, is to portray them as empty; somewhat like objects. This passage refers to this woman in a manner that gives a very clear image of the woman’s physique and beauty. Nevertheless, it completely ignores the fact that this woman has feelings and emotions. The closest it comes to acknowledging this is by saying she looked sorrowful. The main focus of the text is on the physical aspects of the woman. It’s almost as if they were describing an item up for auction, not describing a woman.
Ultimately, I agree with Elizabeth. Although Marlow does place women in the stereotypical world they are confined to, he does, to a certain extent, realize their importance. For example, Marlow disagrees with the mundane view of his aunt before he leaves for Africa and asserts that she is unaware of truth and out of touch with the world; but she gets him his job by speaking of him so highly, displaying that women are not as useless/clueless as they are discreetly made out to be in the novel. With that said, it is ironic that Marlow refers to this "uncivilized" African as "superb" and "magnificent." It should be the European models of civilization that should be statuesque and profound; yet the image of the Intended displays European women as dependent and deadly. Also, her colorful, rich, and attractive appearance symbolizes her value and the life she instills in Kurtz; while the Intended's black and naive appearance separates her from the Kurtz she once knew. I agree with Hawthorne when he correlates the African's passionate persona to the non-energetic, lifeless European.
Elizabeth hits on a very good point, it is very true that the societies of Africa and Europe are different. Would it not make sense then for the women to be represented differently? Conrad makes a point of continuously saying the women are "out of it". But this reference is mostly to the European women: the Intended, the aunt, and the painting of Kurtz. These women are blissfully unaware of the "truth" that the men know about - in Africa. They just happily support whatever it is that is going on.
On the other hand, the African woman described in the passage is almost the complete opposite. She seems to be aware of what is going on, and is involved in the action. It seems that Marlow, as Lexi said earlier, isn't quite sure what to make of women, so he just rattles off his judgment of them. All of the mentioned adjectives: "dumb" "wild"
"inscrutable" give women a vague look (abstract as Chelsea and Elizabeth said), but it is also a scene that would make one double-take if done in real life. Women are ornaments to society and to the men.. They are the reason the men go out and try to get money in Africa, or whatever the expedition may be. Once the women look nice, then the men feel proud, and all of society can be happy. This was mentioned earlier. But this African woman seems to stand her own ground. She does not hide behind anyone, she has "an air of brooding".
Hawthorn also points out the difference between the societies, moreover the women, and it supports my point. When the women from Europe are described, they are usually seen wearing black, and their skin is almost a sickly pale color. On the other hand, the African woman is described as walking tall and proudly, wearing all of her ivory and jewelry, as she struts. For what purpose does Conrad do this? I think it is to show through symbolism of the women that the manner of the Europeans "civilizing" the Africans made the Europeans seem sickly in Africa (women showed how the men were "out of it"). On the other hand, the African woman shows that the Africans were in their home, and were allowed to be angry and confounded by what was going on when looking at the steamboat (in reference to the woman looking confused by the interference. But the final glance implies that she is not finished when she escapes into the bushes.)
This is Nina's comment, but she has to post it on my account because hers is broken. :)
I agree with Seth that the women of the novel represent their country. The Intended is very gullible and is awed by Kurtz and his mission in Africa. Likewise, Europe is in full support of civilizing the Africans. However, what the Europeans don't know is that the effort in Africa is not going in the right direction. Instead the European workers are only there for personal gain and profit. In the same way Kurtz is decieving his Intended. While she waits at home, he is having an affair with an African women. Both Europe and the Intended are naive.
The African women, on the other hand, is very strong and holds much power. She is representative of Africa as a whole. This seems to be the reverse of what it should be. It would make sense that Europe would be the mighty power that comes in and conquers weak Africa. Hawthorn, however, supports the idea that Africa is inpenatrable. He states, "Marlow sees in that African actuality which is untouched by imperialism an energy, a concentrated life that contrast with the sterility seen in a European idealism cut off from reality. The life of the African woman is all in one piece: there is no division of ideals and aspirations from actuality, no separation between her and her life activity." This is Europe's downfall. Kurtz, as an example, conforms to African ways due to the influence of his African mistress.
Maggie says:
In the critism by Hunt Hawkins, he stated that Chinua Achebe labeled Conrad a racist upon writing the Heart of Darkness. In his accusations, Achebe argued that Africans are barely present in the Heart of Darkness and if they are present, then none have names or they barely speak. I do agree with Achebe about Africans not being well represented in this novel, but I would not go as far to say he was racist. Even though Kurtz's mistress does not say anything in this passage, her body language and motions speak volumes. Maybe, the mistress was afraid to speak because she would bring more sorrow to Kurtz and herself. However, she walked towards the ship as "she carried her head high". Conrad used opposite characteristics to distinguish the mistress. She was "savage" yet "superb"; "wild-eyed" yet "magnificent". It was like Conrad did not know himself how to see the mistress. The mistress was confident enough to walk to the side of the ship, but without speaking words, her sorrow was seen in her tragic and painful face. She wanted to be with Kurtz but knew it would only cause tribulation.
I agree with Elizabeth as she stated this mistress must have been at least valuable to Kurtz and probably in high regard in her community as well. The way the mistress was dressed in brass leggings and glass bead necklaces and the way that she confidently swayed toward the ship, supports this thought of superiority and magnificence.
Awesome and getting awesomer as you go...
Maggie says,
"It was like Conrad did not know himself how to see the mistress. The mistress was confident enough to walk to the side of the ship, but without speaking words, her sorrow was seen in her tragic and painful face."
The criticism "An Unreadable Report" by Brooks says "The horror" approaches senseless utterance -- as Marlow says, "a cry." To peer into the h of d, then, is to find a failure of language. Thus, the African woman, the symbol of the heart of darkness that controls Kurtz' moral universe in his separation from Europe, is mute.
I must say I love the way LaToya compared the Europeans and Africans to White and Colored Paper. That was a unique way to take that idea. I never looked at it that perspective.
I agree with Kyle Benson that Kurtz used the African woman, which will be known as his mistress. The sentence, "She must have had the value of several elephant tusks upon her" shows that she has some sort of power or important status within her community. The reason I say this is that most hunters kill elephants because of the "ivory" that comes from their tusks. Now Kurtz being in control of the ivory, sees her as a way to increase his wealth. Moreover, after everything is said and done and he has no further use for her, he leaves her out to dry, "Her face had a tragic and fierce aspect of wild sorrow and of dumb pain mingled with the fear of some struggling, half- shaped resolve." This is the only time Marlow “bestows” human expression (Chinua Achebe) upon a native with great detail mentioned in this novel. This can be directly related to the colonizing of Africa, where Kurtz is the white man and the mistress representing Africa as a whole. Through colonization, the white's come and disrupt the “immense wilderness” Africans. The mistress the reality of the presences of whites on African culture.
from Dashia:
This extract is the average detailed description of an African woman and her values. The African woman is strong in many ways, but weak in others. She is marvelous in many ways through work. To me, this shows that the African women is the type of woman that a man needs at this time. She has her own responsibilities, "She must have had the value of several elephant tusks upon her. She was savage and superb, wild-eyed and magnificent; there was something ominous and stately in her deliberate progress." Yet she knows the sorrow of the land. She does not seem dependent upon a man like the European woman, showing that the European woman has less personal strength and relies more upon the male to complete her world. For example, the intended says “I have been very happy---very fortunate---very proud,’ she went on. “Too fortunate. Too happy for a little while. And now I am unhappy for---for life.” (pg. 75)It shows the dependence that she has for Kurtz. Whereas the African woman has emotion, but has developed internally to understand and be independent no matter how much she loves a male. Now, no the novel doesn't show the African love in detail, but from this extract, it shows her internal development. I fully support Elizabeth's comment and how she points out the difference between the European women and African women. She makes a point that I must agree with, "The African woman is described in a very different light than the European women (the Intended, Marlow’s aunt, and Kurtz’s sketch of the blindfolded lady)."
To answer your question Mr. Koon, I must say that she is showing a fair representation of women in general. Because she does state that women come from different worlds. Which brings me to a point. In HoD, Marlow says that he recalls Kurtz and the Intended not being able to get married because the families didn't approve Kurtz. Yet, she wrapped her world around him. This has a lot to do with separate worlds and the worlds that each woman was raised in. This could explain why Marlow had to lie to her. In my opinion, telling someone "No!" instead of letting them live and see for themselves only drives them forward towards what you are trying to discourage them from. Making it harder to get past to them. (But we are looking at a different time frame! Just a thought!)
Conrad shows different aspects of women and their strengths and weaknesses. However, it is a bit limited. The European woman is only seen from one aspect, the negative. As Jeremy Hawthorn says, European women are seen as weak, unhealthy, and corrupted. But this is all based upon their emotions towards men. Very closed idea if you ask me!
Bobby:
I want to go back the Lexi's post and say that i agree that there is a woman portraying Africa. However i disagree that all the women in the novel portray Africa. It is my belief that the two main women in the story, the Intendent and the African woman portray Europe and Africa. The African woman is the one that best exemplifies Africa. She is both beautiful and mysterious, savage yet magnificent just like the unexplored Africa of that time. Even in the passage we were suppose to read, this is evident. It says, "...the whole sorrowful land, the immense wilderness, the colossal body of the fecund and mysterious life seemed to look at her, pensive, as though it had been looking at the image of its own tenebrous and passionate soul." and "She stood looking at us without a stir, and like the wilderness itself, with an air of brooding over an inscrutable purpose." In the first quote, it says that is was like wilderness was looking at her and seeing itself. In the second, it seems that every action she makes, the African Wilderness mirrors. The Intendent back in Brussels best exemplifies Europe. She is described as plain like William and Latoya mentioned. She has been mourning the same man for over a year. She is like Europe in that she has already settled down and is in the same daily routine of mourning her dead lover like Europe is in the same routine already having their country established and going through the same motions to maintain the country. This is total opposite of the African woman and the AAfrican lifestyle because it isnt settled and daily life changes day after day.
I didnt happen to read a critism of the book that dealt with the symbolism of woman in the book. However, with the discussion in class, i got the general idea that the critic Lexi's group discussed was appauled by the way the women in this book were portrayed. It seems to me that, while the women were not portrayed in the best light, they just exemplified the ugly truth about Europe and Africa during that time.
I'd like to say that the women don't necessarily portray Africa, Kurtz's mistress does, but his intended represents a innocent and naive, and even somewhat daft Europe. Conrad used this part to objectify the woman, as Will said, and mainly describes her physically and what she is wearing.
In the essay of The Inner Journey, the author shows how Africa's savageness brings out the true person, this woman represents the natural human as well, and also the wild as a whole from all that she is dressed in. It shows that she may be a key to Marlow's inner journey.
I agree also with what bobby said about how the woman represented a magnificent Africa, which I think is what Conrad really wants the reader to see, and not just a savage land.
Leanne:
I agree that Conrad uses the African woman and the Intended to symbolize Europe and Africa. I also found while reading Hawthorns critique that the Intended was naive and did not know what was happening in Africa; she was weak. But the African woman on the other hand was far from weak. She was used to show the wild and barbaric lifestyle of the Africans. I agree with kyle that she was very important because of the description of her clothing. So we initially see that the two women are opposites and it is easy to contrast them, but Hawthorn also makes the point that they are similar in some ways. He says that both of the women are "devoted and chaste spirit" and they are seen as "sensual and sexual flesh." So they are in a way alike and maybe Conrad used this to not put one higher than the other. Anyways the women of the novel play a purpose and their differences and similaritys can help define it.
KyleL:
In response to what Kyle benson said about Kurtz using the African woman to achieve power within the tribe, I would like to raise the question that although that may have been Kurtz's intention does it not seem that the woman is the one with the power in the relationship? I mean, Her power over Kurtz leads him to almost kill his only real friend, the Russian. I think this shows she has the power because I doubt that Kurtz values the favor of the tribe so much that he would kill his only friend just to keep his tie to the tribe, the woman, happy.
The main Theme I saw running through the "Failure of Metaphysics" was of separation. This African woman helps to further that theme in the novel because Kurtz's friend the Russian separates Kurtz's actions (wanting to kill him) from Kurtz himself, by blaming the situation on the woman. Without her he would be unable to do this, and would therefore probably no longer be able to idolize Kurtz as he does.
Sabrina:
Responding to josh, i agree with him when he says that in the novel "women are chosen to represent the heart of Africa". however i think that the intended is the only women in particular. in Jeremy Hawthorns critic he talks about the black-white imagery that consists within the novel and how it is presented 'straightforwardly and neatly compartmentalized". for example, on the map africa's center was whitesymbolizing the goodness of the country that was later surrounded by darkness. this dark and light sence relates to the intended becuase she is presented as being a "pale" and "fair" lady with dark eyes; this symbolizes and shows how her innocence was unwillingly evil.
this takes me to the topic discussed earlier about how women in the novel are pertrayed as being useless in a mans world. this leds me to wonder about the portrait kurtz painted that showed a WOMAN blindfolded with a torch in her hand. if women were so useless and "excisted in their own worlds" why did kurtz take out time to paint a picture of a woman? why not a man? i think the thought of women in kurtz head clearly shows how women had an affect on him and his work.
Good connection of the map of Africa (the map is in Europe, drawn by Europeans) to the imagery surrounding the Intended. Is light, then, a sign of "goodness," or is it a sign of an ignorance that allows evil?
Also, about the painted woman: see the sketch we started with on Day 1. Europe's grand purposes are allegorized in female form.
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It works!
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Just checking to see if it works! Thanks!
Responding to josh, i agree with him when he says that in the novel "women are chosen to represent the heart of Africa". however i think that the intended is the only women in particular. in Jeremy Hawthorns critic he talks about the black-white imagery that consists within the novel and how it is presented 'straightforwardly and neatly compartmentalized". for example, on the map africa's center was whitesymbolizing the goodness of the country that was later surrounded by darkness. this dark and light sence relates to the intended becuase she is presented as being a "pale" and "fair" lady with dark eyes; this symbolizes and shows how her innocence was unwillingly evil.
this takes me to the topic discussed earlier about how women in the novel are pertrayed as being useless in a mans world. this leds me to wonder about the portrait kurtz painted that showed a WOMAN blindfolded with a torch in her hand. if women were so useless and "excisted in their own worlds" why did kurtz take out time to paint a picture of a woman? why not a man? i think the thought of women in kurtz head clearly shows how women had an affect on him and his work.
I agree very much with those commenters who said that African women were described in Heart of Darkness as more important or valuable than European women. Conrad really paints an image of this African woman important or even powerful, while European women, or rather European's in general had silly worries and thought about nothing of true importance; that they even lead pointless existances as he describes them very… aggressively (would that be the right word) from pages 70 to 71.
It does not seem to me that Conrad expresses Europeans as having nearly as full lives as the Africans, as everything they who live in a “civilized” European society do appears to be pointless and silly and sometimes even stupid. An example of when the Africans were revealed to be not so empty was on pages 40 to 42 or 43 when Marlow and his European crew along with many more Canables were in the thick mist and they heard a cry from somewhere in the mist and one of the canables let Marlow know, for what I think he said was the first time, that the canables were hungry. The narrator, Marlow, discusses for a page or two reasons why the canables had not already attacked, killed, and eaten the crew, which they could have easily done as they were so much more powerfully built and outnumbered the crew by quite a lot. The only explanation he could come up with was that they had restraint. Instead of just being so empty of mind to attack and kill whoever or whatever they could when they were hungry, they restrained themselves from attacking Marlow and therefore proved themselves, possibly even not meaning to, to be more thoughtful and human than had previously been expected and fully believed.
I also thought it was rather interesting that Kurtz seemed to represent a combination of European civility and African savagery. In fact he represented the worst possible combination of the two: greed, which is very clearly part of European society, without restraint, which is still also a part of European society but is also probably a major part of some African societies. An extremely obvious illustration of this is when he forces the Russian at gunpoint to give him the Russian’s small lot of ivory. He showed absolutely no restraint against his lust for ivory.
Remember that you can ask classmates to clarify things you do not understand in their entries. (Can't do that with Conrad!) Continue to check and read the comments.
I don't agree with Luc's comment about African women being more important or more valuable than European women. I believe, like many others, that the African woman represents the country of Africa. She was portrayed as more important to Kurtz because Africa had more to offer him than Europe, not necessarily because she was more important than his Intended. Kurtz was eager for power, adventure, and a sense of wilderness and primitivity--this is what Africa and the natives offered him that Europe did not.
Because the African mistress represents Africa as a whole, she emits its emotions (if a country can have emotions...) regarding its colonization by England and the Company. The passage reads, "Her face had a tragic and fierce aspect of wild sorrow and of dumb pain mingled with the fear of some struggling, half-shaped resolve." In the essay Primitivism and the African Woman in Heart of Darkness, Torgovnick describes her as "presented as all body and inchoate emotion." This emotion, shown by her towards Marlow, represents Africa's (or rather the Africans's)feeling towards Enland, comprised of anger, sadness, and betrayal.
In the end, it can be assumed that she dies at the hands of Marlow's crew: "Only the barbarous and superb woman did not so much as flinch and stretched tragically her bare arms after us over the sombre and glittering river. And then that imbecile crowd down on the deck started their little fun and I could see nothing more for smoke" (67). Torgovnick says, "Her death fulfills her role as emblem of the African landscape and (once recognized) makes explicit the hidden reference of "the feminine" and "the primitive" to death. For the African landscape IS death in the novella." I think this point is significant because her death is not definitely mentioned in the novel. This relates to Marlow's quote about keeping women "in that beautiful world of their own". If the death of the mistress represents the death of Africa, then keeping the death of her from the reader is comparable to the government keeping the secrets of African civilization from the people.
I agree with Meg and Elizabeth that women to Marlow seem to be unknown, just as slavery and African Americans are. At the beginning of The Heart of Darkness when Marlow is on his way to the company station he see the African prisoners working in chain, yet he so amazed because he had never seen or heard anything like that before. Then as he is on the steamboat he refers to the Africans as cannibals as if he looked down upon them. Just as Hunt Hawkins quotes “At various points he refers to them (Africans) as “savages”, “niggers”, and “rudimentary souls.” Which makes me believe, that once Marlow was on the boat that he gain sort of a European mindset just not as cruel. Also when he seen the “ superb” and “magnificent” woman that he reached a sort of confusion, because he had seen people of her own kind being treated like animals, while she looked like a queen. That is where I agree with Toya on her paper analogy that the Colored paper (representing the Africans) is worth more and should be looked better upon, yet during the civilization of Europe it was only the beginning its not until now that we see that what the Africans went through was unsatisfactory. ~D. Taylor~
This is Brad
I agree with Elizabeth’s point on how Conrad shows the contrast between European women and African women in order to show the difference between Europe and Africa. In Hawthorn’s criticism he talks about how Conrad shows the difference between Kurtz’s Intended and Kurtz’s mistress. Hawthorn writes that the Intended is “a thing of black and white, of sickliness and death. She has no energy, no living presence.” On page 73-74 Marlow describes the Intended with words like “pale,” “black,” “ashy halo,” and “dark eyes.” I think that the Intended is supposed to represent the European men in Africa. The way the Intended is “lifeless” is in relation to how the European men are working (except for Kurtz). This can be seen in the text when Marlow describes a “lifeless French man-or-war shelling ‘enemies’ inland.” In contrast to the lifeless Intended, the extravagant African Mistress is “active” and “forceful.” She has “the value of several elephant tusks upon her.” The African woman is representing Africa and the African people when they are a part of the “immense wilderness.”
This is MANDY'S
I agree with what Sarah was saying about the European women not being any less than the African women; the Africans are just more relevant to Kurtz. However, I think that both countries and women had plenty to offer Kurtz the difference is just that the wilderness took Kurtz over and there was no way for a wild man like Kurtz to love a European lady. The African woman symbolizes everything that Kurtz loves about Africa and the jungle. Previously commentors have talked about how the European woman is weak and naïve, but these women are typecast by men and misused. In the Hawthorn’s critic he talks about women’s functions saying “It is one of the functions of women and that idealism which they represent to ‘soothe’ those off to do imperialism’s dirty work.” It’s ridiculous to call these women weak and naive when there sole purpose is to stay at home and be in their own beautiful worlds. It seems these women realize their roles because none of them push the men they support to talk about their experience, they just do their part. Stay home and miss the men like they were made to do. These women know their roles and play them perfectly and that seems to be the difficult to do; to stay at home and not experience, just to miss the men.
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I completely agree with Elizabeth's post of how the women are held in great respect. Through this passege Conrad isn't necessarily presenting the African woman as "dumb" or "weak" but more as a highly regarded woman, hense the wealthy amounts of ivory around her neck. In Lisa Schneider's criticism she discusses her view of the painting that contained the blind folded lady of liberty. As she says "Yet with the paired attributes of torch and blindfolded this woman appears both potent and disturbingly powerless." (475) Here her statement seems to match that of what some people have previously stated. To that i disagree because through his writing Conrad presents the African women as strong and real apart from the European women he is use to that are fake and seem to create an alternate personality in order to please society. I see the painting as, yes she stands for liberty and justice but due to her blindfold she has to rely more upon listening rather than sight, so she is more open to hearing rather than making judgements based on appearance. So with this sence of women Conrad presents Marlow as viewing them with a definite symbolic meaning but nothing else. He is able to see how different Africa is from Europe because with the African women symbolizing strength and reality he is able to get a better understanding of how varied the world is and what can or can not be true.
This book confuses the crap out of me. In most cases, so do women. Boom. Connection. I, for some reason, want to disagree with Elizabeth Burdette. Flying Pig is now officially in season. I do not see women in the Heart of Darkness so contrasting. They are a product of their surroundings. The Intended in her “polished sarcophagus” and the woman in Africa, wild in the wilderness, are what surround them. They are both examples of frames. The frames are completely different, the rooms and surroundings are on opposite ends of the spectrum but it is the outside that is influencing the inside not the other way around. At the heart of both women is darkness. As for a professional critic, Mr. Hawthorn says “The linking together of the two women at this juncture in the narrative makes an important point. Both women at are tragic, both have been betrayed by Kurtz…” It continues but the point was made and I have other things to do. The women at the core are the same; it is their surroundings that shape who they appear to be.
I agree with Meg. Even though we are shown this painting by Kurtz with what could be interpreted as high regards to women, such as ideas like "Liberty and Justice," with the blindfold and darkness, we are later shown this ends up being false for Marlow. I'll use quotes from Iconography and the Feminine Ideal. When he sees the photo of the Intended, Marlow thought of her as "an ideal, iconic image of feminity... 'She struck me as beautiful...She seemed ready to listen without mental reservaation, without suspicion, without a thought for herself.'" However, when we first meet her, the very first thing she says (which the act of saying something disturbs him enough) is "I feel I can speak to you -- and oh! I must speak"
Even though Marlow will have images of women, both in the literal sense and the symbolism, he later finds them to be vain imaginings, seeing something that isn't there.
Kurtz's mistress performs the raising of her arms twice, but there's a slight difference. The first time she does this, her arms are rigid, and it seems to convey a sort of strength. The men on board are even fearful of her, one saying he would have shot her. The next time, when the men on board start showing their power by shooting at the africans, she raises her arms, but it's a tragic, and seemingly weak move. It's as if she's also what the White's view of the africans, with an different view throughout.
I do not necessarily disagree with Adam but I do not think Conrads main point is to show the African woman as "dumb" or to show them in great respect either. Alyson and I talked about in class how we thought Conrad presents the woman as beautiful beings in their own world. He shows them not being able to handle the truth of life like men supposively can. Jeremy Hawthorn says "just as Kurtz's ideas and values become weakened and impoverished by this isolation, so too do the women who are out of it, imprisoned in their 'beautiful world of their own'." This passage corresponds directly with Hawthorn's comment because the woman they are seeing is in a world of her own. She is not bothered by the men nor seems to be very affected by their presence. When the passage says, "she stopped as if her heart had failed her" it makes it seem like the woman symbolizes darkness once again. It makes the woman seem inhuman, just a being moving along the bank with no purpose or meaning.
I agree with Sarah’s ideas that to Kurtz, the African mistress represented his desire for Africa. He only loved her because he loved Africa; he gave her the gift of what he most adored, making her possess the main thing in his heart: ivory. Therefore, she possessed his heart; whereas the Intended in Europe had not what he wanted, and likewise did not entirely have his heart. In this way, the African mistress symbolized Kurtz’s love and where his heart really lied: in the collecting of the ivory. Africa wasn’t more valuable than Europe and African women were not any more or less valuable than European women; the African woman simply had what Kurtz desired, making her more appealing to him than his European Intended.
In the essay, “Should We Read ‘Heart of Darkness,’” J. Hillis Miller says, “this passage, like the one describing the way the wilderness has seduced Kurtz, seems to indicate that this “it” is after all gendered, that it is female, a colossal body of fecund and mysterious life.” The “this passage” he is referring to is specifically the one on pages 60 and 60 that this passage on the blog is referring to. He also previously states that “the personification of the wilderness is matched by a corresponding transformation of the African people who intervene between Marlow and the “it.” Miller is bluntly stating that Kurtz’s mistress symbolized his love of Africa, and how the continent changed him.
Had Kurtz’s Intended known of what Kurtz was really doing in Africa with the ivory obsession, she would not have believed that was her intended; she had a different view and respect for him. Kurtz had changed because the continent and hunger of the ivory had made him a monster of greed. This monster of greed in turn turned to the African woman for “love.”
(Sorry, I wrote this earlier and didn't get a chance to post it then. =/)
does it work...
I don’t agree with those who said that there is a difference between the African women and the Intended. I believe that they are the same in their way of thinking. The African woman only knows the Kurtz that came out while he is at the inner station and the Intended only knows the Kurtz that left her in Europe. He is only one person but because of their isolation he has become two contrasting people. I agree when Rob said, “I do not see women in the Heart of Darkness so contrasting.” They are both products of their own isolation, the Intendeds isolations in her home waiting for Kurtz and the African women with Kurtz at the station. Hawthorn says, “Kurtz’s ideas and values become weakened and impoverished by this isolation, so too do the women who are out of it, imprisoned in their ‘beautiful world of their own…’” This supports that all three characters suffer from isolation. In Kurtz’s case isolation changes him, while the women appear to stay the same. The two women symbolize the two different Kurtz’s and are a great illustration of the changes that have taken place within him.
I agree with Sarah’s comment that the women each represent their respective countries. In fact, I believe their role as a symbol of all that their countries stand for is such a major part of their purpose that it overrides their importance as women (e.i., their position as symbols come before their position as women.) This fits the description Watt gives of how Symbolists view the concrete objects they use to embody the ideas they try to illustrate, when he says, “the world of visible objects was valued only insofar as it offered concrete manifestations which corresponded to spiritual and imaginative meanings.” What Conrad does is not unlike what many countries have done, using women as embodiments of their ideals (e.g. America’s Lady Liberty, the Belgian woman in “The Civilizing Mission”). Of course each woman is the description of the land she stands for, but they also show how Kurtz feels about each of these countries. The Intended, who has been in mourning for more than a year, is defined, and rather tied down, by this strict etiquette, much as England, though affluent and civilized, is policed and restrained by social propriety. Africa allowed Kurtz to indulge his most primitive urges, to lie, cheat, steal, and use violence to gain raw wealth. The country is uncivilized but alive and throbbing, just as the African woman is “savage and superb.” Even the fact that she was his mistress, an outlet of sexual desire (a most primal human need) contrasts with Kurtz’s relationship with his Intended, which was basically just for the conventional purpose of filling a cultural expectation, while the relationship itself was edged in propriety and abstinence, and literally distant.
I agree with Rob, when he says that women are complex, because we are, we are truly incomprehensible (not mentioning that males are also this way, but it doesn’t talk about that in this book, so moving along…). Even when the narrator states that the native woman he saw there appeared as savage, but also had an ominous presence. This feels to me as a contradiction, because how can someone who may look savage, also look ominous also? Hence, the complex beings that women are.
I also agree with Elizabeth when she disagrees of how some think Marlow characterizes women. When some say Marlow seems to exemplify women as “dumb” and “out of the real world” I disagree and say that in what ways would prove them in that way? What would really hinder the absolute truth from women? Why, if men are able to accept the truth, then women cannot? No real proof is shown to solidify Marlow’s argument of women who are “out of touch with reality.” Women are superior than the average man because they are able to accept reality and not allow it to degrade their life. Proof of this is shown through Marlow’s aunt and her suggestion for him to move to Africa to aid the imperialistic ideals of Europe and follow through with his goals to explore. The aunt should have known what was going on in Africa, before she permitted Marlow to go there to begin with. So, in my terms the women (the mistress, the Intended, and the aunt) are symbols of the core of Africa because, even if the assumption in HOD is that they are oblivious to all of reality, they already possess true tenebrous knowledge, and they carry this knowledge with them, deep down in their heart. When Rob said, “Women are the product of their surroundings.” I thought well its not like women are moronic, they must feel something when stumbling over anything controversial, which leads me to think that they do accept reality in terms of their own and they are what they perceive and sense. I am going to have to disagree with Hawthorn when he says “Putting women on a pedestal, cutting them off from reality, and restricting them to a world of sterile ideas and lifeless illusions is as destructive as treating a woman purely as the recipient of passion.” Restricting a woman from her ideas and cutting her off from reality is much worse than just loving her. However, I do not see how women can be cut of from reality, because that is asking them to not have the ability to think or to feel, and I did not read of any one female character within this novella that could not make her own decisions and think for herself. That is why they are symbolized as the heart of darkness, because they retain the emotions and the savagery that was swallowing the Africa societies.
I think Jennifer made a great point about Kurtz's gift to the African mistress. Kurtz is willing to do anything for the ivory, and it's easy to assume that this places the transitive property onto his mistress. Mariana Torgovnik herself allows that the mistress and the Intended are polar opposites of one another (if not portrayed a little too aggressively, near the end), which says to me that Kurtz's old self could have loved the Intended like his new, native self could love the mistress.
But, there are few coincidences in well-written literature, so I'm guessing that Conrad made the distinction with the word "mistress." It seems to me that, although Kurtz gave the mistress his ivory, his heart didn't go with it. In Conrad's portrayed Africa, the mushy-gushy stuff doesn't really exist, you know? :D Kurtz is willing to kill to survive and post human heads on sticks! I'd like to see how many people in our town do that (I'm hoping none). With that said, I think love is a bit of an overstatement. It seems more like a devotion of a different sort--like a wedding ring, but without the love.
Still going great, but getting late! Hustle, slackers!
A note: Conrad liked to distinguish British colonialism from the colonialism of the rest of Europe. The Intended is in the Sepulchral City, probably Brussels, Belgium.
Also, I'd say Hawthorn's reference to Marlow's/Conrad's women, specifically the African woman, as a "recipient of passion" may have very little to do with what an idealist might like to think of as love. I think he means the "darker" passion of lust.
This is Matt
Toya brought out a great point an eternity ago about how it seems that women cannot make it without men. In Conrad’s novel, both Kurtz’ intended and his mistress both seem to have trouble letting go of Kurtz. As Kurtz is leaving aboard the steamship, his mistress stands on the bank even after the other natives fell as the pilgrims load their guns and take aim. She holds up her hands and calls out to the ship. This shows to me that she seemed unable to do anything else without Kurtz. Her attachment is physical because she and Kurtz only shared a sexual relationship. Kurtz Intended however, has more of an emotional attachment to Kurtz because she was with him before he left and she continues to hold on to the man he was rather than allow Marlow to tell her the man he became.
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To comment on what Mandy said about the role of woman as staying home and waiting for their men, I agree with this statement but believe it only implies to the European women. While in Africa, Marlow encounters Kurtz's mistress, who was "savage and superb" and whom did not wait patiently at home for Kurtz's return, but instead boldly approached the alien-like steamer, standing without a stir "like the wilderness itself." She rebels against the weakness of the European women by venturing into the world of men. She is met with the onslaught of bullets as the pilgrims open fire on the natives as they watch their precious Kurtz sail away, the natives flee but "only the barbarous and superb woman did not so much as flinch and stretched tragically her bare arms after us over the sombre and glittering river." Hawthorn compares this image to that of the Intended and links them together saying "both women are tragic, both have been betrayed by Kurtz." By this statement it seems to me that Kurtz does not feel entitled towards the commitment of one woman and freely uses them as he wills then tosses them aside like a child would a toy, disregarding their emotions or feelings. He feels women should stay in their "own beautiful world," and their only purpose to satisfy the men's sexual desire. The pilgrims did not hesitate in the slaughtering of the natives along with the African woman; her arms held wide open in defiance to the European men, cutting down the resisting force of the colonizing of Africa. I also agree that the women symbolize their countries. The European woman is portrayed as withdrawn and naïve to the horrors that are taking place in Africa like the other citizens who believe they are doing good to Africa by civilizing them. Whereas the African woman displays the strength and resistance of the colonizing process, as she stands defending her country with her arms wide open, staring death in the face.
Testing again
I agree with Neely and Seth that the women in the novel represent their countries. The woman from Africa is very strong and powerful and makes it appear to everyone that she can't be taken advantage of. The European woman is taken advantage of as Kurtz has an affair and doesn't even let her know when he was on his death bed. The African female doesn't exactly portray her country correctly because Africa is taken advantage of by different countries in Europe. The European relationship is parallel to the relationship between Europe and men like Kurtz because Kurtz ended up using his power for evil and was a mass murderer. All the while Europe believes harmless imperialism is going on.
On another note, in the critical essay I read, "Masculinity, Modernity, and Homosexual Desire," the idea was brought up that although the women represent these things, the real reason they aren't developed on any further is because Conrad was using homophobic discourse in his writing. He vaguely referred to things such as, "misty halos" and, "immense darkness," instead of bluntly saying them. By using writing techniques like this and keeping the women mostly out of the novel, Conrad wasn't necessarily trying to make Kurtz and Marlow appear to be in love, but more to show that Marlow is fascinated by the idea of Kurtz, and the Russian is in love with the idea of him.
In the novel, women have their own natural beauty presented to them. However, it is hidden behind what men perceive and use them as. The narrator in the story is Marlow in some parts, therefore the reader is shown what women are through the eyes of a man. In HoD, women are used almost like a blank slate in which men show their status and their achievements. In this passage, Marlow is describing what is said to be Kurtz' mistress. Marlow describes her as having "the value of several elephant tusks upon her." He also describes her as "wild-eyed" and "magnificent." But didn't Marlow and other people refer to Kurtz as "magificent" and "mysterious" also? The mistress represents what Kurtz has and is. He has received immense success and accumulated many riches. The mistress is seen with beautiful ornamental dressing and was absolutely magnificent. The mistress was a symbol of what Kurtz has become and what he was awarded with. After Kurtz' death, Marlow and others refer to Kurtz as a "magnificent" and "amazing" man, Just as his mistress is seen to be.
Another thing i forgot to mention. I forget who said that women represent Africa, but i agree with whomever it was. Along with what i said about women symbolizing men and their status, women also represent Africa as well. In the passage it says, "the whole sorrowful land, the immense wilderness, the colossal body of the fecund and mysterious life seemed to look at her, pensive, as though it had been looking at the image of its own tenebrous and passionate soul." Marlow describes her as though she is a "reflection" of the land around them. She has beauty and she is magnificent, but is also "savage." Africa is seen as the same. Africa is beautiful and amazing, but also shares a hellish side to it too, one that is seen through imperialism.
sorry its late Mr.Koon i was still having problems getting t to let me post but i think i have it fixed now... Anyways I agreed with Maddison's statement saying that Conrad presents women in this novel as being in their own "world". In the Heart of Darkness the Marlow's Aunt, Kurtz's mistress, and his intended all live in their own world or in an illusion of the real world. He presents the women as not being able to accept reality but in their own minds creating the world that they believe in. In my paper i talked about how Marlow's aunt is in the illusion that the Europeans are actually helping the Africans. This is because she is a strong nationalist and doesnt want to believe that they are actually doing more damage than good. And Kurtz's intended is under the illusion that Kurtz was deeply in love with her and has no clue that he had a mistress in Africa. Her illusion is also fueled by Marlow's lie that he tells her. This goes a long with the "Unreadable Report". In this critisism it develops the idea that the stories go on and on foreer because the truth is never fully told. the story continues because as it is passed on the teller adds their own twist on to it. because Marlow lies the truth will never beknown and the intended will continue to live in her illusion of the world.
BMiller
Of all of the comments I would have to agree with Elizabeth’s. It was very interesting to see how she portrayed the women to their own country and compared them with one another. In Conrad’s novel, it shows a different outlook on the African woman, and the Europeans. Most people would think that just by the way a person looks on the inside is the way they are in the inside, a stereotype. I do believe that in the novel, the women are often stereotyped. In the passage we were assigned, the African woman is looked at from a different perspective than the European. “She was savage and superb, wild eyed and magnificent”, from reading that my interpretation from those words as being oxy morons. The words; savage and superb, wild-eyed and magnificent, have the opposite meaning. I think that is symbolic because Conrad is describing the African woman as being two different personalities. The first personality with savage and wild eyed is how she is perceived in Africa by other people. The words superb and magnificent are words used to describe how the woman is thought of to Kurtz. He finds inter beauty within the African woman.” I have been risking my life for the last fortnight to keep her out of the house”, if Kurtz would risk his life for this woman, then there must be something within the inside of her that is captivating (61).
As in Hawthorn’s critic, he says “ I have suggested that African woman and Kurtz’s intended are classic examples of female stereotypes” (414). He later talks about imperialism as being a way to reveal that stereotypical female role. This is important because without these stereotypes then is would seem as if Kurtz perceived all women the same way.
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