When Joseph Conrad published Heart of Darkness in 1899, he was probably not expecting that this story keeps so many critics busy for so many years, even after his death in 1924. A huge wave of critics and also defending scholarly journals and books occurred after 1975. In this year the Nigerian novelist Chinua Achebe accused Conrad of being a racist who portrays such a poor image of Africa as it can be seen as “the antithesis of Europe and therefore of civilization, a place where man’s vaunted intelligence and refinement are finally mocked by triumphant bestiality” (Achebe). This triggered a wave of indignation and authors like Hunt Hawkins, Cedric Watts and Patrick Brantlinger who defended Conrad’s work as a critic on imperialism in which Conrad presents the dreadful reality of colonialism in the Congo at a time in which xenophobia was the most popular understanding of racial differences. But as many authors have already recognized, the derogatory language, the focus on the outward appearance of blacks, and the use of confusing and definitely pejorative adjectives leaves an image of Africa that “can hardly be called flattering” (Hawkins).
Unlike Chinua Achebe, who concentrated his critic on one specific work, Toni Morrison’s critic in Playing in the Dark: Whiteness and the Literary Imagination (1992) was addressed to many authors who included a real or fabricated Africanist presence in their work as a catalyst in the formation of American identity (cf. Morrison). Since it seems that nobody has aligned the representation of the black race in Heart of Darkness with Toni Morrison’s work, I am trying to demonstrate that the Africanist presence was necessary for Joseph Conrad in order to hide his critical imperial stance in a way that it remains readable for the Victorian British audience. Since so many authors have already agreed to read Heart of Darkness as a critic on imperialism, I will not focus on demonstrating this critical stance. This is why I will analyze one paragraph in order to show how the racial superiority is conveyed in the story by constructing racial hierarchies before the general depictions of race in the Victorian British society is presented. In the end, I am trying to find signs of an Africanist presence, how Morrison defines it, in the story of Joseph Conrad and their impact on the protagonist and Kurtz.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. The Construction of Racial Hierarchies in Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness
3. The Imperialistic Victorian Britain & Gothic Images of Race
4. The Africanist Presence in Heart of Darkness
5. Conclusion
6. Works Cited List
Research Objectives and Core Themes
The primary objective of this work is to demonstrate how Joseph Conrad utilized an "Africanist presence"—a concept defined by Toni Morrison—as a literary device to hide his critical stance on imperialism while ensuring his work remained palatable to the Victorian British audience. The paper examines how the construction of racial hierarchies and the use of stereotypical depictions of Africans served the formation of a distinct British national identity during the late nineteenth century.
- The role of the Africanist presence in literature and its impact on identity formation.
- Methods of racial dehumanization and hierarchy construction in Heart of Darkness.
- The influence of Victorian imperialist discourse and Gothic literature on racial perceptions.
- Linguistic strategies, such as metonymic displacement and metaphysical condensation, used by Conrad.
- The impact of these racial narratives on the character development of Marlow and Kurtz.
Excerpt from the Book
The Construction of Racial Hierarchies in Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness
In order to understand how the racial discourse is conveyed in this story and to comprehend how Achebe came to his conclusion that Conrad was a “thoroughgoing racist” (Achebe 313) it is important to see how Conrad constructed clear hierarchies among the white colonizers and the Africans. To accomplish this, I will analyze the scene in which Marlow encounters a group of Africans who seem to suffer so hard under the forced labour as “they were dying slowly” (Conrad 25) which also marks the start of my analyzed paragraph. He goes on in describing the Africans until he wonders how and why one of the African is wearing a “bit of white thread from beyond the seas” (Conrad 26) and where my analyzes ends. I have chosen this passage as it perfectly shows how Marlow, as the narrator, depicts the natives as a homogenous group with an emphasis on their physical appearance while the Europeans are portrayed as individuals with an emphasis on details, which do not exclusively bring into focus their external appearance.
Charlie Marlow is the homodiegetic, intradiegetic narrator who tells the hypodiegetic narrative level of story. This is due to the fact that we have the unknown narrator on the Nellie on the Thames speaking to his companions before Marlow starts telling his story of his journey into the Congo. And his personal involvement in this story makes him a homodiegetic narrator. In regard of the focalization, it becomes clear that the experiencing Marlow, who experiences the journey, tells the story. Therefore, internal focalization is the dominant technique in this part (as it is in the most parts of Heart of Darkness) which is indicated by the use of past tense. But there is one moment in this paragraph as Conrad shifts to another technique, namely external focalization. As Marlow describes the man who is quite near to him, he is not sure if the native man is already an adult or still a “boy” and comments it with “but you know with them it’s hard to tell” (Conrad 25). This shift is indicated through the use of present tense and the use of “you” as Marlow addresses this comment directly to his audience on the Nellie.
Summary of Chapters
Introduction: This chapter introduces the ongoing critical debate surrounding Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness, specifically regarding accusations of racism versus critiques of imperialism, and posits that Toni Morrison’s concept of the "Africanist presence" is key to understanding Conrad’s narrative strategy.
The Construction of Racial Hierarchies in Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness: This section provides a narratological analysis of a specific scene in the novel, demonstrating how Marlow uses focalization and dehumanizing descriptions to establish a racial hierarchy that alienates the African characters.
The Imperialistic Victorian Britain & Gothic Images of Race: This chapter contextualizes the novel within the scientific and social climate of late 19th-century Britain, where theories of white supremacy and Gothic literature fueled xenophobic tendencies and helped define a specific British national identity.
The Africanist Presence in Heart of Darkness: This chapter applies Toni Morrison’s linguistic strategies—such as the economy of stereotype, metonymic displacement, and metaphysical condensation—to Conrad’s text to show how the "Africanist presence" functions as a stabilizing element for the European reader.
Conclusion: The final chapter summarizes how the Africanist presence served as a literary tool for Conrad to maintain a facade of respectability for his Victorian audience while simultaneously critiquing the inherent brutality of the imperialist project.
Works Cited List: This section lists the scholarly sources and literary references utilized throughout the research.
Keywords
Joseph Conrad, Heart of Darkness, Africanist presence, Toni Morrison, imperialism, Victorian Britain, racial hierarchy, colonial discourse, Gothic literature, narrative focalization, dehumanization, stereotype, national identity, narratology, Congo.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core focus of this research paper?
The paper investigates how Joseph Conrad uses the "Africanist presence"—a concept developed by Toni Morrison—as a narrative device in Heart of Darkness to reconcile his critical view of imperialism with the prevailing racist ideologies of Victorian British society.
What are the central themes discussed in the work?
The central themes include the construction of racial hierarchies, the role of Gothic imagery in imperialist literature, the formation of British national identity, and the use of linguistic strategies to dehumanize the "other" in literary texts.
What is the primary goal of the author?
The primary goal is to demonstrate that the presence of Africans in the novel is not merely background but a functional necessity for Conrad to hide his anti-imperialist stance while maintaining the attention and approval of his contemporary British readers.
Which scientific or theoretical methods are applied?
The author primarily employs literary analysis based on narratology, using methods described by Shlomith Rimmon-Kenan (focalization) and the cultural criticism framework proposed by Toni Morrison regarding the "Africanist presence."
What does the main body of the work cover?
The main body provides a close reading of specific passages in Heart of Darkness, examines historical attitudes toward race in 19th-century Britain via scientific and philosophical discourse, and analyzes the impact of the Africanist presence on the development of major characters like Marlow and Kurtz.
Which keywords best characterize this research?
Key terms include Joseph Conrad, Heart of Darkness, Africanist presence, imperialism, racial hierarchy, Gothic literature, colonial discourse, and narratology.
How does the author define the "Africanist presence" in the context of this novel?
The author defines it as a fabricated or real persona serving a range of functions, primarily representing dreadful or dangerous aspects that white characters cannot bear, thereby acting as a mirror for the "civilized" identity of the colonizers.
Why does the author suggest that Conrad used derogatory language such as "nigger"?
The author argues that such usage was a strategic choice to appease the expectations of the Victorian audience, establishing a quick, recognizable difference between the whites and the colonized people, aligning with the "economy of stereotype" mentioned by Morrison.
- Quote paper
- Anonym (Author), 2022, "They wanted no excuse for being there": The Africanist Presence in Joseph Conrad's "Heart of Darkness", Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/1187833
