Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe and Heart of Darkness by Josef Conrad illustrate the multiple perceptions of the African continent in literary form. Joseph Conrad’s work depicts Africans ‘natives’ through the lens of the established colonizer, merely equating them to savages and primitive. In his critical response essay “An Image of Africa”, Chinua Achebe blatantly claims Conrad to be a racist, who paints Africa as the Dark Continent.
This essay will argue Conrad lacked the sufficient knowledge of the content as having only stayed 6 months, resulting in the inaccuracies of the African cultural practices, customs and language in the novella Heart of Darkness. Hence Chinua Achebe’s essay “An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad’s Heart of Darkness” is accurate in claiming the literary work as “thoroughly racist” (Achebe, Image 1789), further indicating it as propagating negative stereotypical perspectives as embedded by the imperialistic power. Luckily, Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe greatly contests this argument by characterizing the Africans as revolutionaries, and members of a civil society. The traditions aid in forming a stable community, where every individuals finds a self of belonging and meaning. The various practices established by the elders have sustained Umuofia to be an orderly society, possessing diverse practices and languages. Discussion of Conrad’s work The novella Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad, is a story within a story, and a narrator within a narrator, that is following the journey of a British trading company and their expedition through the Congo. The story is an account of Marlow’s life as a captain of a steamboat, who is on a mission to take the boat down Congo River in search of an ivory-trader names Kurtz, as told through four different people. Early critics commented on the significance of the novella, claiming it a destructive literary masterpiece (Armstrong 308). Discussion of Achebe’s work in relation to: Joseph Conrad wrote Heart of Darkness during the period of British imperialism. Era when European perception of Africans was exceedingly prejudiced. The main character, Marlow, describes the various encounters with the local African communities, characterizing them as savages and primitive creatures. The European readers would not find this racist, as it was a normal way of thinking. Conrad projects the book to be ‘the other world,’ a sort of ‘antithesis’ of Europe as lacking civilization. For instance, in the discovery of a death pit, a sort of a cemetery, Marlow and his crew describe it as, “black shapes crouched, lay, sat between the trees, leaning against the trunks, clinging to the earth, in all attitudes of pain, abandonment, and despair, they were nothing earthly now, nothing but black shadows of disease and starvation, One of these creatures rose to his hands and knees and went off on all fours towards the river to drink” (Conrad 17). This categorizes the natives in the animalistic form, “shadows” and “unearthly” not as intelligent beings. Rather …show more content…
Marlow briefly mentions how this “trained dog”, has also the tendencies of a ‘knowledgeable animal,’ similar to the other natives; one that is too crude to be as sophisticated as the European. Enriching the predominant stereotype that natives are nature’s very own barbarian.
Things Fall Apart takes place in the African community Umofia, at the time of colonialism. The novel follows the life and experiences of Okonkwo as he struggles to survive against instructions of the imperialistic power. The novel unfolds in three parts. The first is about Okonkwo’s life and path to success, before his ultimate downfall. This part attempts to describe the cultural practices of the Igbo tribe, according to Achebe. Achebe dives into the many practices that make up the Igbo tribe, from their clothing to food, he always explains that conversations are regarded as art.
Achebe’s incorporation of the Igbo language, traditions, creates a cultural bridge between the missionaries, and the Umuofian people. The use of Igbo words is rich throughout the text, while being difficult to understand without direct translation, the context eases its perceived interpretations, while some are left to the readers own appreciation. Igbo proverbs are pointed out to be the substance of interaction for the community; not only do they clarify a point, they assist in teaching a lesson. Taken together, sentence structure, Umuofian stories, proverbs, and language form a memorable informal narrative
This essay will argue Conrad lacked the sufficient knowledge of the content as having only stayed 6 months, resulting in the inaccuracies of the African cultural practices, customs and language in the novella Heart of Darkness. Hence Chinua Achebe’s essay “An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad’s Heart of Darkness” is accurate in claiming the literary work as “thoroughly racist” (Achebe, Image 1789), further indicating it as propagating negative stereotypical perspectives as embedded by the imperialistic power. Luckily, Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe greatly contests this argument by characterizing the Africans as revolutionaries, and members of a civil society. The traditions aid in forming a stable community, where every individuals finds a self of belonging and meaning. The various practices established by the elders have sustained Umuofia to be an orderly society, possessing diverse practices and languages. Discussion of Conrad’s work The novella Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad, is a story within a story, and a narrator within a narrator, that is following the journey of a British trading company and their expedition through the Congo. The story is an account of Marlow’s life as a captain of a steamboat, who is on a mission to take the boat down Congo River in search of an ivory-trader names Kurtz, as told through four different people. Early critics commented on the significance of the novella, claiming it a destructive literary masterpiece (Armstrong 308). Discussion of Achebe’s work in relation to: Joseph Conrad wrote Heart of Darkness during the period of British imperialism. Era when European perception of Africans was exceedingly prejudiced. The main character, Marlow, describes the various encounters with the local African communities, characterizing them as savages and primitive creatures. The European readers would not find this racist, as it was a normal way of thinking. Conrad projects the book to be ‘the other world,’ a sort of ‘antithesis’ of Europe as lacking civilization. For instance, in the discovery of a death pit, a sort of a cemetery, Marlow and his crew describe it as, “black shapes crouched, lay, sat between the trees, leaning against the trunks, clinging to the earth, in all attitudes of pain, abandonment, and despair, they were nothing earthly now, nothing but black shadows of disease and starvation, One of these creatures rose to his hands and knees and went off on all fours towards the river to drink” (Conrad 17). This categorizes the natives in the animalistic form, “shadows” and “unearthly” not as intelligent beings. Rather …show more content…
Marlow briefly mentions how this “trained dog”, has also the tendencies of a ‘knowledgeable animal,’ similar to the other natives; one that is too crude to be as sophisticated as the European. Enriching the predominant stereotype that natives are nature’s very own barbarian.
Things Fall Apart takes place in the African community Umofia, at the time of colonialism. The novel follows the life and experiences of Okonkwo as he struggles to survive against instructions of the imperialistic power. The novel unfolds in three parts. The first is about Okonkwo’s life and path to success, before his ultimate downfall. This part attempts to describe the cultural practices of the Igbo tribe, according to Achebe. Achebe dives into the many practices that make up the Igbo tribe, from their clothing to food, he always explains that conversations are regarded as art.
Achebe’s incorporation of the Igbo language, traditions, creates a cultural bridge between the missionaries, and the Umuofian people. The use of Igbo words is rich throughout the text, while being difficult to understand without direct translation, the context eases its perceived interpretations, while some are left to the readers own appreciation. Igbo proverbs are pointed out to be the substance of interaction for the community; not only do they clarify a point, they assist in teaching a lesson. Taken together, sentence structure, Umuofian stories, proverbs, and language form a memorable informal narrative