Heart of Darkness: A Journey into the Impressionistic Depths of the Congo

2. Heart of Darkness By Joseph Conrad

4. Frame Narrative Present time Narrator Marlow Flashback Account Lawyer Director Marlow 5 men on board the Nellie

5. Impressionism • Ambiguous narrative style: reader must interpret meaning • Characters are experiencing and have not yet processed situation • An “emotional landscape” is depicted through setting and imagery • Like impressionistic paintings, focusing too closely on specifics makes it difficult to see events clearly • Often avoids chronological telling of events

6. Wikipedia Definition: The term Impressionism has also been used to describe works of literature in which a few select details suffice to convey the sensory impressions of an incident or scene. Impressionist literature is closely related to Symbolism, with its major exemplars being Baudelaire, Mallarmé, Rimbaud, and Verlaine. Authors such as Virginia Woolf, D.H. Lawrence, and Joseph Conrad have written works that are Impressionistic in the way that they describe, rather than interpret, the impressions, sensations and emotions that constitute a character‘s mental life.

7. Present Setting Thames River Gravesend Sunset

8. Chronological Order As a boy Marlow is charmed by the river and map of Africa.

9. Blank Spaces

10. Becomes a Sailor Seaman

11. Unemployed Aunt Gets Him a Job Fresh Water

12. Begins Journey Receives Physical in Belgium by a French Doctor.

13. The Blank Spaces Are Filled In

14. Gets His Orders in Belgium French Steamer

15. Congo River Outer Station Inner Station 600 miles Central Station 200 Miles

16. Meets Influential People The Chief Accountant The Uncle The Manager/Nephew Mr. Kurtz

17. Returns Home Visited by Friends and Family of Kurtz. Pays a visit to Kurtz's Intended

18. Prophet/Wise Advisor Sets sail on the Nellie and tells his story to the four men on board.

19. Reading Lens Psychological/ Individual Marxist/Imperialism

20. Doppelganger or Alter Ego   Meaning "double walker" a doppelganger is a shadow-self that accompanies every human

21. Symbols • Fog • How does Fog impact senses?

22. Symbols • Women • List the women • Do they speak • Names • Representative of?

23. Symbols • The Congo River • What is the relationship with the white man? • Upstream vs. downstream • Kurtz and Marlow’s “handling” of the river influence

24. Symbols • Ivory • How is ivory representative of imperialism?

25. Symbols • The “Whited Sepulcher” • Book of Matthew allusion: “which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness.” • Brussels is the Whited Sepulcher

26. STYLE Syntax/Diction Point of View Stream of Conscious

27. Diction and Syntax Words, Words, Words Heart of Darkness

28. The idleness of a passenger, my isolation amongst all these men with whom I had no point of contact, the oily and languid sea, the uniform somberness of the coast, seemed to keep me away from the truth of things, within the toil of a mournful and senseless delusion. The voice of the surf heard now and then was a positive pleasure, like the speech of a brother. It was something natural, that had its reason, that had a meaning.

29. Loose and Periodic Sentences Marlow sat cross-legged right aft, leaning against the mizzenmast.

30. Marlow sat cross-legged right aft, leaning against the mizzenmast.

31. He had sunken cheeks, a yellow complexion, a straight back, an ascetic aspect, and with his arms dropped, the palms of hands outwards, resembled an idol

32. He had sunken cheeks, a yellow complexion, a straight back, an ascetic aspect, and with his arms dropped, the palms of hands outwards, resembled an idol.

33. Marlow sat cross-legged right aft, leaning against the mizzenmast.

34. Adverbial Phrases Marlow sat cross-legged right aft,leaning against the mizzenmast.

35. He had sunken cheeks, a yellow complexion, a straight back, an ascetic aspect, and with his arms dropped, the palms of hands outwards, resembled an idol

36. Epithets or Adjective Phrases He had sunken cheeks, a yellow complexion, a straight back, an ascetic aspect, and with his arms dropped, the palms of hands outwards, resembled an idol

37. Marlow’s first words about the Manager • My first interview with the manager was curious. • PERIODIC SENTENCE • SIMPLE SENTENCE

38. He was commonplacein complexion, in feature, in manners, and in voice. • LOOSE SENTENCE • SIMPLE SENTENCE

39. He hadnolearning and nointelligence. • PERIODIC SENTENCE

40. Once when various tropical diseases had laid low almost every ‘agent’ in the station, he was heard to say, ‘Men who come out here should have no entrails.’

41. But he was great.