Conrad’s Heart of Darkness/The Death of Kurtz

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A 3 page essay that discusses Joseph Conrad’s short novel Heart of Darkness, which is one of the most “provocative and controversial literary works” of the dawning twentieth century due to the fact that it was the first novel to question “dubious social Darwinist attitudes,” which were used to rationalize the “brutal facts of Empire-building” (Mitchell 20). At the close of the novel, the reaction of Marlow to the death of Kurtz is framed within the context of the African culture and the Congolese and the reaction of Kurtz’s fiancé. Examination of this aspect of the novel demonstrates not only Marlow’s reaction to Africa and Kurtz, but also his perspective on European culture and the role of women. Bibliography lists 2 sources.