This shows the reader that death was near and that the flies are the symbol that death is coming. While living at the station there was ill people scattered all throughout the huts, because of this the flies were constantly buzzing around. Conrad also uses flies to symbolize death. This shows the reader how terrible the conditions are that Marlow is living in. For example when Marlow is living in the station for ten days he talks about how hot it was and how the flies were big and that they did not sting they stabbed (Conrad 15). Conrad uses the flies to symbolize death and the grim conditions that people are living in while on the Congo. Conrad’s use of reversal from white always meaning the goodness inside of people and life helps the readers think more in depth and develop a deeper understanding of the book.Īnother major symbol is buzzing flies.
So much so that they kill or get people to kill for them without hesitation if it means that they will be able to get ahead. They are overrun by greed and the need to be the best and most successful. Another example is that the white-skinned people are the ones who are truly evil on the inside. The reader can interpret that the white string symbolizes his death and the way he died from this description. Marlow describes the scene by saying, “It looked startling round his black neck, this bit of white thread from beyond the seas” (Conrad 14). One example is the dying boy with the white string around his neck. Although there are many examples of white symbolizing good there are just as many of white symbolizing the evilness of the world. This helps bring a light into the lives of people who otherwise live in complete darkness. For example Conrad uses the color white to symbolize good when the Company is sending white people to civilize the areas around the Congo. The color white traditionally symbolizes life and the goodness within but Conrad also uses it to symbolize evil. Give us your paper requirements, choose a writer and we’ll deliver the highest-quality essay! Order nowĪnother major symbol in Heart of Darkness is the color white. But Conrad reverses the mainstream way people think in order to draw his readers in and keep them thinking. Traditionally the black-skinned people would have been the ones that are violent and angry and portrayed as evil because the color black is associated with evilness. Although they do violent things such as kill people they only do them because the white people are forcing them to and they have to do what they can to stay alive. For example in the book the black-skinned people are portrayed as the ones who are good at heart. Although Conrad does, at times, follow the traditional use of black meaning evil he also strays away from that and in some cases portrays black as the color of good. This shows the reader that the land was seen to be a very dark place and its evilness captivated people and drew them in into the very heart of its darkness. Joseph Conrad describes the land by saying, “The offing was barred by a black bank of clouds, and the tranquil waterway leading to the uttermost ends of the earth flowed somber under an overcast sky-seemed to lead into the heart of an immense darkness” (72). This shows the reader that death was expected once a person decided to go work on the Congo River because many people did not assume that they would make it out alive. The women were taking measurements of every member of the company and knitting the caps so that they would be ready to place on the head of a person who died while in the jungle.
For example when Marlow goes to sign his contract he sees two women knitting black caps, also known as funeral caps. It symbolizes death, darkness, and evil but there is also times when it symbolizes good. In the book Heart of Darkness the color black is used to symbolize many different things. Three of the major symbols the author uses in this book are the color black, the color white, and buzzing flies. In Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad many symbols are shown to the readers throughout the literary work. Other authors use symbols to help tie together different parts of the story. Some authors use symbols to make the readers think and find the deeper meanings. Symbols are a common literary device used by authors.
0 kommentar(er)
