Heart of Darkness: The Dark Side of European Colonization

Eight and a half years before writing the book, Conrad had gone to serve as the captain of a Congo steamer. On arriving in the Congo, he found his steamer damaged and under repair. He became sick and returned to Europe before serving as captain. Some of Conrad's experiences in the Congo and the stor [...]
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Eight and a half years before writing the book, Conrad had gone to serve as the captain of a Congo steamer. On arriving in the Congo, he found his steamer damaged and under repair. He became sick and returned to Europe before serving as captain. Some of Conrad's experiences in the Congo and the story's historic background, including possible models for Kurtz, are recounted in Adam Hochschild's King Leopold's Ghost. The story opens with an unnamed narrator on board the Nellie, a cruising yawl anchored in the Thames Estuary downstream from London and near Gravesend. He is with four friends, and dusk is falling as they wait for the turning of the tide. The narrator briefly describes the others, all of whom seem to be middle-aged men. One is called Charlie Marlow - the only one who "e;still followed the sea."e; Marlow makes a comment about London having been "e;one of the dark places on earth"e;, and then begins a story of how he once took a job as captain of a river steamboat in Africa...