Joseph Conrad/The Heart of Darkness

Joseph Conrad's novel, The Heart of Darkness, is a multifaceted novel. It seems to portray several different ideals, each very plausible and intriguing. There is, of course, the main idea, which is the examination of imperialism. But scholars have also examined the relation between the settings of the African Congo, where Conrad himself once visited, and the civilized world of Brussels and England. Also, the issues of race and gender play a vital role in …

…end. But, he does not totally sell out because his conscience is constantly at war with these good and bad notions. This shows the complexity of human psychology between what is right and what is actually possible, given the circumstances in everyday society. Imperialism is also complex because the people who have the power to change things have a different mind-set toward the notion and to deny it would mean a denial of their identity.