Darkness Can Be Pure, And Light - 856 Words

Darkness can be pure, and light can be tainted. This is the view with which Conrad expresses his work in Heart of Darkness. Conrad through his writing demonstrates how light and Darkness does not always hold rigid values. In Conrad’s narrative, the traditional values of light and darkness is not upheld, it can be seen how light can be used to emphasize evil while Darkness or black can be a sign of purity. The motif of light and darkness are present throughout. In his narrative of the ship Marlow refers to Europe as â€Å"one of the dark places of the earth. In this quote Darkness is not representative of evil, but instead of the uncivilized state in which Europe used to be before being brought to the light which can be inferred to represent civilization. For example, when Marlow refers to the explorers who â€Å"were men enough to face the darkness it is in reference to courageous explorers of the past who dare to explore the unknown. Civilized men of the past went on these expeditions to find wealth and a name for themselves in history. Conrad uses Darkness to represent the unknown in this context. Marlow refers to light being â€Å"like a running blaze on a plain, like a flash of lightning in the clouds.† This quote use light as a simile of life, and of how short it can be. This brings out a characteristic of light; light does not last. Light although revealing when present does not last darkness is the natural default in life. The violence in the two simile usedShow MoreRelatedAnalysis Of Bruce Wayne s Batman Essay1056 Words   |  5 Pagesthe comic through its use of details. Due to the illusion of light and the use of colors, Batman: Ego represents Bruce Wayne’s character as a being of purity and innocence and represents Batman as a being of evil and darkness. Batman: Ego uses the illusion of light to portray Bruce Wayne’s character in a positive way and the character of Batman in a negative way. Every time Bruce Wayne is shown in one of the comic panels, a beam of light is shown over his face or behind him. No matter the backgroundRead MoreAnalysis Of Leo Tolstoy s The Devil s The White City 1727 Words   |  7 PagesAll the vanity, all the charm, all of the beauty of life is made up of light and shadow, an idea put forth by Leo Tolstoy in 1873 within his novel Anna Karenina. Eric Larson expands upon this idea with in his historically intriguing novel The Devil In The White City, a story of murder, magic, and madness at the fair that changed America. The novel focuses mainly on the coincidental correlation of events between H.H.Holmes, America s first serial killer, and Daniel Burnham, the main architectRead MoreSymbolism In Joseph Conrads Heart Of Darkness805 Words   |  4 PagesJoseph Conrad’s novella, Heart of Darknes s, contains many symbols that connect to themes within it. Heart of Darkness incorporates the symbols of light and dark to develop the idea that society and characters, like Kurtz, contribute to the darkness of their society. Conrad’s different observations of the effect that nature can have on the characters and society within the novel, primarily focus on how something light and desirable can prove to bring out the ugliest aspects of humanity or cause significantRead MoreSymbolism Of Darkness In The Scarlet Letter By Nathaniel Hawthorne982 Words   |  4 Pagesshow in the eyes of the public. Hawthorne uses the symbol of darkness to show throughout his literary works that everyone is sinful. Archetypally, darkness represents chaos, mystery, death, evil, fear. Darkness in the novel, The Scarlet Letter, shows the authors point of view on the Puritan society. Hawthorne’s use of archetypal symbolism of darkness to describe Puritans suggests Hawthorne’s view on Pur itan society was anything but pure and that all societies should be less critical of their membersRead MoreContrasts and Paradoxes: Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad1140 Words   |  5 PagesJoseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness utilizes many contrasts and paradoxes in an attempt to teach readers about the complexities of both human nature and the world. Some are more easily distinguishable, such as the comparison between civilized and uncivilized people, and some are more difficult to identify, like the usage of vagueness and clarity to contrast each other. One of the most prominent inversions contradicts the typical views of light and dark. While typically light is imagined to expose theRead More The Role of Kurtz’s Intended in Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness1580 Words   |  7 PagesThe Role of Kurtz’s Intended in Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness Very often in literature minor characters appear for only a short time in the story but carry a very heavy significance in the overall meaning of the book. Kurtz’s Intended, in Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness, is this kind of character. The unnamed woman only appears for a brief period at the end of the novel, but Conrad includes her for three very crucial reasons. He has Kurtz’s fiancà ©e appear to provide a justification forRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s Othello - Light And Darkness1040 Words   |  5 PagesLight and darkness have both been constant re-appearing themes within stories since the early stages of history. In the story of Othello, Shakespeare consistently uses these themes in order to help portray his characters. Particularly, using them to highlight race issues during the 1600s, as well acknowledging the racial association with good and bad. He uses these aspects of light and dark carefully to symbolize transitions of characters an their action s. Shakespeare also uses light and dark toRead MoreThe Body by Stephen King1147 Words   |  5 PagesComing in to the Light In the novella The Body, author Stephen King makes an attempt to explain a story about losing innocence, only to be replaced by maturity and the corruption that comes with it. To do so, King revolves a story around a group of four boys who go on a life changing journey to find a dead body they heard about through the grape vine. Little did they know that pursuing this journey would eventually change them for the worse. In its entirety, the crux of the novella was to showRead MoreAnalysis Of The Movie The Godfather 1463 Words   |  6 Pagesinto the darkness surrounding him. He’s reborn into that darkness. Either with a renewal of light or death. Each movie works within its genre and also twists it to tell his own, more dramatic tale. One interpretation of auteur theory applies to his continuous changing of stereotypical genres. â€Å"Auteur theory is when a director creates a film that breaks the codes and conventions seen regularly in movies of the same genre.† One of Coppola’s traits is the expressive use of light. Which can help understandRead MoreEssay on Irony in Joseph Conrads Heart of Darkness1033 Words   |  5 PagesIrony in Heart of Darkness      Ã‚   The use of irony within the ‘The Heart of Darkness’ by Conrad is an important notion.   Irony in this novella helps to bring about encapsulating self-discovery and enlightenment of the self.   Furthermore the use of characters and what they represent also brings about communicating what it means to be civilised.   Thus these two facets shall be the focus within my essay. Firstly each of the main characters in Heart of Darkness plays a significant role in the