"While both novels in their different ways and at a different moment in history certainly function as damning critiques of colonialism, in each case their central concerns go further than this"

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Aman Thakar

"While both novels in their different ways and at a different moment in history certainly function as damning critiques of colonialism, in each case their central concerns go further than this"

Compare and contrast Conrad's Heart of Darkness and Coetzee's Waiting for the Barbarians in light of this statement. As well as addressing the central ideas and themes which the two novels explore, you must take into account narrative form and structure, relevant contextual factors and critical responses to each.

These two novels are unequivocally linked by the theme of colonialism with it being pivotal to the heart of each novel, though Heart of Darkness and Waiting for the Barbarians are beset by several other issues, some perhaps more predominant than that of colonialism. The fact that it was written in the early 20th century means Conrad's novella has a real prescient quality to it. One of Conrad's aims when writing was undoubtedly to raise awareness of what was happening in Africa, particularly in regard to Leopold the II of Belgium and his rule in the Congo. This is an issue Coetzee would also have had to deal with due to the Apartheid regime which lasted until 1994 in the aftermath of the Boer wars which left deep scars within South Africa. There would still be a great deal of political animosity over this issue but Coetzee approaches the issue rather indirectly in the form of a fable of oppression suggesting his primary concern was in his art. What is also interesting is that the lessons both novels contain have an aspect of universality to them. Both explore issues that can be applied to the current war in Iraq and the relationship established by Coppola between Heart of Darkness and the conflict in Vietnam is there for all to see.

Heart of Darkness clearly does function as a damning critique of colonialism. It explores the issue, illustrating the way indigenous people are exploited and expresses how wrong this issue is via the guilt Marlow feels. Due to Marlow's complicity in serving under his manager he feels a great amount of remorse for his role, however subsidiary it may be, within such a regime. Marlow tries to deal with his guilt by using irony as a shield from the horror he has to witness. When he first arrives in Africa he says, "We called at some more places with farcical names, where the merry dance of death and trade goes on", and refers to the “ decent young citizen in a toga”. He also attempts to deal with his guilt through the futile gestures he offers, such as offering the biscuit to the small boy in the grove of death. He is genuinely shocked by the child whose "eyelids rose and the sunken eyes looked up at me, enormous and vacant, a kind of blind, white flicker in the depths of the orbs, which died out slowly", unable to endure this he quickly moves away. Given Conrad’s own ill fated trip to Africa Marlow is also to some extent a megaphone for Conrad to express his views, and since Conrad described Leopold’s work in the Congo as “ the vilest scramble for loot that ever disfigured the human conscience”, it is clear what his opinions are.

With colonialism Marlow believes, " What redeems it is the idea only". Marlow understands that when colonialism was first pursued it was to enlighten others, exposing them to that "flash of lightning in the clouds" and open their eyes to the lifestyle of the west, as seen in the painting of the girl with the torch. But due to corruption and even the darkness within man it has turned into a horrific affair which has boiled down simply to "taking it away from those who have a slightly different complexion or slightly flatter noses than ourselves". Marlow respects the natives and their ways of life, he is taken aback by the "wild vitality", the natives exhibit when rowing. This helps inspire some of the compassion he displays towards the natives. This respect for their way of life also helps fuel the anger that he feels towards the men who have pillaged their land. Marlow's anger causes him to believe the barbarians are superior and the bureaucrats such as the company Manager are the true savages. He believes the manager to have no substance, saying  “Perhaps there was nothing within him ”. The very embodiment of civilization, which is seen in the accountant, reflects this. Described as a miracle with his pristine appearance it is revealed “ I’ve been teaching one of the native women about the station. It was difficult. She had a distaste for the work”. Within this there is clearly something sinister.

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What this leads to the question who are the true savages? The aboriginal people or the men who push all boundaries taking to things to the extreme such as Kurtz? They’re horrific treatment of enslaved natives makes them the true savages. Kurtz is a further illustration of this. Kimbrough describes Kurtz as a “ European Knight”, and this embodiment of the west, since entering the dark lands has been utterly seduced by the power at his disposal, embracing the darkness within him and falling to a base level. He is described as having “no restraint ”, being a “tree ...

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