Colonialism and Literature - Haggard′s "King Solomon′s
Mines and Conrad′s Heart of Darkness

von: Ulrike Häßler

1. Introduction

2. H.Rider Haggard’s King Solomon’s Mines

2.1 Narrative
2.2 Audience
2.3 Gender and Sexuality
2.4 Colonial Discourse

3. Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness

3.1. Conrad and Modernism
3.2. The Idea of Empire
3.3. Narrative

3.3.1. Impressionism and Symbolism
3.3.2. Landscape
3.3.3. Language

3.4. Criticism

3.4.1. Achebe
3.4.2. Gender, Sexuality and Feminist Criticism

3.5. Influence

3.5.1. T.S.Eliot
3.5.2. Coppula’s Apocalypse Now

4. Conclusion

1. Introduction

The British Empire and its imperial ideology had a deep impact on English literature at the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century when the nation experienced the heyday of colonialism but, nevertheless, had to deal with the threatening idea of its future decline. Lots of authors reflected in their literary works the nation’s concepts and development in various ways having in mind different aims the final piece of art was meant to achieve. Joseph Conrad’s novella Heart of Darkness, published in 1902, expresses a changed attitude toward the British empire and its ideological ambitions after a general enthusiasm which finds its expression in imperial novels such as H.Rider Haggard’s Solomon’s Mines, published in 1885. Criticism started to gain ground and although a radical and direct opposition could not yet be found, a questioning and distancing from society’s conventions was obvious.

The late Victorian period is seen as the golden age, but also taking into account the following Edwardian period, its description as an age of crisis cannot be considered to be false. The empire had achieved the biggest expansion and colonies were economically exploited to maintain Britain’s status as leading power. However, the nation was more and more confronted with rival European colonial powers an had to deal with an intensified competition for markets and raw materials. Apart from this threat from outside, England was concerned with problems within the nation caused by the rapid growth of industry and fractured class relations which seemed to be unbridgeable. Poverty was a present fact especially in London and were discussions about its conditions and the deprivation among the working class. Lots of people lived in slums and their living conditions were even compared to those of slaves. Both authors had had experiences as a part of British Empire in African colonies, a fact which influenced the realisation of their works. Haggard spent part of his life in South Africa and his novel King Solomon’s Mines can be clearly described as an adventure story and, more important, as an imperial romance. It contains distinctive features underlining the empire’s ideological framework. Conrad’s novella which followed almost two decades later, differs to that in a lot of aspects, which is first and foremost due to a new development in the English society and the formation of the modernist movement. His work had a great influence on artists even several decades after its publication and describes a decisive subject of literary criticism.

2. H.Rider Haggard’s Solomon’s Mines

2.1. Narrative

Haggard’s novel can clearly be described a an imperial romance indicating particular features which occur in the literary work and, therefore, is considered to have a conventional narrative. The story is initiated by the search of one of the protagonists’ brother, a motivation which then is connected with the materialistic aspect - finding a lost diamond mine. Eventually, the European travellers reach the famed mines after much hardship and help their Zulu companion Umbopa/Ignosi to regain his rightful place as tribal chief. Before the Europeans are able to take as many diamonds as possible they had to pass the obstacle of an old shaman woman who wanted to foil it. At the end of the novel the Englishmen can escape and return to civilisation as rich men after they had also found the lost brother.

Richard F. Patterson determined several particular features of an imperial romance and Haggard’s work represents a good example for that. Missionary and merchant aims are connected and successfully achieved at the end. The native civilisation should become enlightened by the civilised Englishmen and the Europeans need to get fortune out of their particular quest. The distinction between Europeans and black natives is equally reflected in the construction of the novel’s characters who can be categorised with the help of the concept of E.M.Forster’s Aspects of the Novel. All Western characters of King Solomon’s Mines are considered to be flat characters, who “in their purest form...are constructed round a single idea or quality” 1. Like Quatermain, who is always recognisable by his particular traits of character- being a brave adventurer and Gentleman. Therefore, the European travellers’ devotion to the novel is done by action not by a development of character. As Forster states”...flat characters are very useful to him[the author], since they never need reintroducing, never run away, have not to be watched for development, and provide their own atmosphere...”2 Therefore, these characters can always be easily distinguished by the reader, a fact which underlines the aspect of audience. The novel is first and foremost dedicated to young boys and the narration has to be adequate to them. This narrative device serves the author’s intention as the characters “are easily remembered afterwards. They remain in his mind as unalterable for the reason that they were not changed by circumstances, which gives them in retrospect a comforting quality...”3

2.2. Audience

Writing his novel Haggard had a particular readership in his mind and stresses that in the novel’s dedication: “...to all the big and little boys who read it.4” It obviously excludes female readers and young male readers have got priority although adults seemed to be accepted, too. This dedication makes the aim of the novel clear which Haggard had in his mind and which is typical for his time and the English society.

Facing the inner threat and the one from outside, the English middle-class felt the need of regenerating the ‘real’ Englishman. As he is defined by his superior economical and political power, maintained by his empire and moral superiority which enables him to enlighten primitive races, his particular values have to be kept and strengthened again. There was a big fear of losing all the attributes of the Englishman which had lead him to all his success and that urban conditions causes the softening and the loss of the strong masculinity which serves as the English nation’s self-definition. Meath expressed the need of strong virtues a British manliness would lack and would lead to the fall of the nation and race. He asserts that ”the continuance of the British race as one of the dominant peoples in the world is dependent on the sustained possession of a virile spirit which makes light of pain and physical discomfort, and rejoices in the consciousness of victory over adverse circumstances, in which regards the performance of duty, however difficult and distasteful, as one of the supreme virtues...)5

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1 Forster, E.M.(1974) Aspects of the Novel, London, Penguin Group p.73

2 Forster, E.M.(1974) Aspects of the Novel, London, Penguin Group p.74

3 Forster, E.M.(1974) Aspects of the Novel, London, Penguin Group p.74

4 Haggard, H.Rider (1998) King Solomon’s Mines, Oxford, Oxford University Press,

5 Meath, Lord(1908) in: Low, Gail Ching-Liang (1996) White Skin, Black Masks. Representation and Colonialis, .London, Routledge p.20