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Unit 31: Joseph Conrad — Heart of Darkness

3. What does Marlow discover atop the fence posts at the Inner Station? Notes

(a) Human heads (b) Monkey skulls
(c) Dead infants (d) The Company flag
4. The Company trades primarily in ......... .
(a) Gold (b) Slaves

(c) Bananas (d) Ivory
5. Which of the following receives Kurtz’s “Report” after his death?
(a) Marlow’s aunt (b) Kurtz’s “Intended”
(c) A representative of the Company (d) A journalist
6. Most of Marlow’s adventures take place in ......... .
(a) Kenya (b) Rhodesia

(c) The Congo (d) England
While Marlow dozes, drumbeats and incantations fill the air. He looks into the cabin that
holds Kurtz and discovers that he is missing. Marlow sees his trail and goes after him. The
two men face one another. Kurtz pleads that he has plans. Marlow replies that his fame in
Europe is assured; he realizes that this man’s soul has gone mad. He is able to bring Kurtz
back to the cabin. The ship departs the next day amongst a crowd of natives. Kurtz is brought
into the pilot-house of the ship. The “tide of brown” runs swiftly out of the “heart of darkness.”
That is, the life of Kurtz is ebbing. Marlow is in disfavor, lumped into the same category as
Kurtz. The Manager is now content. Marlow listens endlessly to Kurtz’s bedside talk. He
accepts a packet of papers and a photograph that his friend gives him, in order to keep them
out of the Manager’s hands. A few evenings later, Kurtz dies, with one phrase on his lips:
“The horror! The horror!”
Marlow returns to Europe but is plagued by the memory of his friend. He is disrespectful to
everyone he encounters. The Manager demands the papers that Kurtz entrusted to Marlow.
Marlow relinquishes the technical papers but not the private letters or the photograph. All
that remains of Kurtz is his memory and the photo of his “Intended.” Kurtz is very much a
living figure to Marlow. He visits the woman in the picture, who embraces and welcomes him.
She has silently mourned for the past year, and she needs to profess her love and how she
knew Kurtz better than anyone. Marlow perceives that the room darkens when she says this.
She speaks of Kurtz’s amazing ability to draw people in through his incredibly eloquent
speech. The woman says she will be unhappy for life. Marlow states that they can always
remember him. She expresses a desperate need to keep his memory alive, as well as guilt that
she was not with him when he died. When the woman asks Marlow what Kurtz’s final words
were, he lies and says that Kurtz spoke her name. The woman weeps in triumph.

Did u know? Marlow states that to tell the truth would have been too dark. Back on the
Thames River ship, a tranquil waterway leads into the heart of darkness.

Analysis

The Russian says it best: “I went a little farther ... till I had gone so far that I don’t know how
I’ll ever get back.” The Russian and Marlow are similar, both looking for epiphany and enlightenment.

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