“…To tear treasure out of the bowels of the land… burglars breaking into a safe…” (Conrad 40)
Conrad is saying that each day people are being less careful and less grateful for the earths natural treasures; we cultivate the ground, tear down trees, explode cliff sides, with no real regard or remorse for doing so. He is comparing our guiltless destroying to the guiltless mind set of a robber; a robber steals from other beings, we steal from our earth, what’s the real difference?
Monday, August 31, 2009
Heart of Darkness 25.
"...I felt as though, instead of going to the center of a continent, I were about to set off for the center of the earth..."(Conrad 17)
The center of the earth (the core) is said to be as hot as the sun but the temperature fluctuates regularly; it is composed primarily of nickel-iron alloy. To travel to the center of the earth is absolutely impossible, you would die instantly, not to mention that difficulty of cutting through the other layers of our earth. Conrad is stating that when Marlow said this he meant that this was going to be a frightful, dangerous and quite possibly, impossible journey.
Heart of Darkness 24.
1.) “…I should be loyal to the nightmare of my choice…” (Conrad 85)
When Marlow decided to find Kurtz he knew what could become of it, he knew the dangers that were possible and he had signed himself off to do this. When he says he should be loyal to the nightmare of his choice he means that though things are not going completely as smoothly as planned he allowed this to happen to himself, he placed himself in his own horrible nightmare and must continue to do so until it is finished. Conrad is stating that most people don't own up to their mistakes or follow through with what they signed up to do, but Marlow has to, he doesn't have a choice.
When Marlow decided to find Kurtz he knew what could become of it, he knew the dangers that were possible and he had signed himself off to do this. When he says he should be loyal to the nightmare of his choice he means that though things are not going completely as smoothly as planned he allowed this to happen to himself, he placed himself in his own horrible nightmare and must continue to do so until it is finished. Conrad is stating that most people don't own up to their mistakes or follow through with what they signed up to do, but Marlow has to, he doesn't have a choice.
Heart of Darkness 23.
1.) “…I was completely unnerved by a sheer black fright… distinct shapes of danger…” (Conrad 83)
Have you ever been so scared you were paralyzed, unable to move, to think, to breathe? Sometimes people get scared to the point where they aren’t even aware that they are scared, the world just stops, your vision become skewed and you don’t know what scared you in the first place. When Marlow discovered that Kurtz had vanished he was struck with this type of fear, nothing else in the world could have scared him more because Kurtz was so essential, he didn’t believe it because he didn’t want to believe it and couldn’t feel fear because he was scared to the point where being frightened was no longer an option. Conrad is making a point to describing the type of fear Marlow is feeling, Conrad is trying to explain in such a way that each of us can relate to.
Have you ever been so scared you were paralyzed, unable to move, to think, to breathe? Sometimes people get scared to the point where they aren’t even aware that they are scared, the world just stops, your vision become skewed and you don’t know what scared you in the first place. When Marlow discovered that Kurtz had vanished he was struck with this type of fear, nothing else in the world could have scared him more because Kurtz was so essential, he didn’t believe it because he didn’t want to believe it and couldn’t feel fear because he was scared to the point where being frightened was no longer an option. Conrad is making a point to describing the type of fear Marlow is feeling, Conrad is trying to explain in such a way that each of us can relate to.
Heart of Darkness 22.
1.) “…She must have had the value of several elephant tusks upon her…” (Conrad 79)
Elephant tusks are made of ivory which makes them very, very valuable which causes poachers to kill thousands of elephants to obtain their ivory. When Conrad said that she looked as though she had several elephant tusks upon her it was not meant in the literal sense but in the sense that she was wearing very fine jewelry that must have been very expensive.
Heart of Darkness 21.
1.) “…Perhaps you will think it passing strange this regret for a savage…no more account than a grain of sand in a black Sahara…” (Conrad 65)
The Sahara desert is the world’s largest non-polar desert; it stretches 3000 miles over Northern Africa, and is covered in sand. To compare someone to a single grain of sand is pretty much stating that they are unaccountable for. Conrad is stating that the ‘savage’ is not accountable for, and not even worth thinking of, he’s just another grain of sand to walk all over.
The Sahara desert is the world’s largest non-polar desert; it stretches 3000 miles over Northern Africa, and is covered in sand. To compare someone to a single grain of sand is pretty much stating that they are unaccountable for. Conrad is stating that the ‘savage’ is not accountable for, and not even worth thinking of, he’s just another grain of sand to walk all over.
Heart of Darkness 20.
1.) “…A loaded Martini-Henry leaning in one corner…” (Conrad 57)
The Martini-Henry was a lever-activated rifle that was adopted by the British in 1871. Much like the Winchester the Martini-Henry was also stored on most ships to protect the passengers from attack. They were also always loaded for easy access and kept in the corner closest to the door.
The Martini-Henry was a lever-activated rifle that was adopted by the British in 1871. Much like the Winchester the Martini-Henry was also stored on most ships to protect the passengers from attack. They were also always loaded for easy access and kept in the corner closest to the door.
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