Heart of Darkness Discussion Questions- AP English IV

1. Some critics believe that in Heart of Darkness Conrad illustrates how the darkness of the landscape can lead to the
darkness of social corruption. What does this statement mean? How can ones environment affect ones actions, feelings,
and morals? Is this statement believable or not? Have you ever experienced a change in yourself that resulted from a
change in your environment? What kind of change was it?
2. Heart of Darkness seems to blur the line between the so-called advanced society of Europe and the primitive
society of Africa. What makes one culture civilized and another savage in the eyes of the world? Are these
distinctions valid? Do you think that the culture you live in is advanced or civilized? Why?
3. Marlow says, "The conquest of the earth, which mostly means the taking it away from those who have a different
complexion or slightly flatter noses than ourselves, is not a pretty thing when you look into it too much. What redeems it
is the idea only. . . . something you can set up, and bow down before, and offer a sacrifice to. What does he mean? Is this
a justification of imperialism and colonialism?
4. What is the meaning of the oil painting with the woman, draped and blindfolded, carrying a lighted torch that
Marlow spots in the brick-makers quarters (32)?
5. In Heart of Darkness, Kurtz is depicted as an upstanding European who has been transformed by his time in the jungle
away from his home, away from familiar people and food, and away from any community moral support that might
have helped prevent him from becoming such a tyrant. There was nothing and no one, in essence, to keep him on the
straight and narrow. Have you ever found yourself in a similar situation? Was there ever a time in which you felt alone, in
a strange environment, or different from everyone else around you? How did that experience affect you or change you?
Did you find yourself pulled toward base, cruel instincts as Kurtz was? What did you do to cope with those feelings?
6. Kurtzs dying words are a cryptic whisper: The horror, the horror. What horror could Kurtz have been talking
about? Is there more than one possibility? Why do you think Conrad made this scene so ambiguous?
7. Many readers, even professorial types, have commented on the "murkiness" of Conrad's novel: the descriptions are
often very hard to follow in time and space, and many of the descriptions are difficult to make out and contain an
abundance of adjectives such as "inexpressible," "invisible," "unspeakable," etc. Is Conrad simply flawed in his prose at
times, or might there be a method to this style?
8. Some readers claim that Heart of Darkness is strictly a political novella. Others, however, say its really a story about
the human condition. Can a work of fiction be interpreted in different ways? Should readers consider the authors intent
when analyzing a story?
9. Heart of Darkness can sometimes seem to readers like an incredibly dark, depressing story that paints civilizations in a
very negative light. Did it seem this way to you, or did the story contain any positive moments? If so, what were they?
Why did they seem positive?
10. How does Conrad utilize opposites throughout the text, especially those relating to white/black, light/dark,
inside/outside, and surface/depth?
11. Why does Marlow not tell Kurtzs Intended the truth about Kurtzs final words?
12. On 1977, Marlow says that he detests lies. Does this implied (and elsewhere stated) preference for truth hold constant
in the novella? Does Marlow seem to understand his own character, or is he at times confused about his interests and
beliefs? Explain.
13. What do women represent in Heart of Darkness? There are three significant women in this story: Kurtz's Intended,
Marlow's aunt, and the African woman at Kurtz's station. How are they described? What does Marlow mean early in Part
1 when he suggests that women are "out of touch with truth" and live in a beautiful world of their own?