ENGLISH LITERATURE (CBSE/UGC NET)

Detailed explanation-1: -Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness retells the story of Marlow’s job as an ivory transporter down the Congo. Through his journey, Marlow develops an intense interest in investigating Kurtz, an ivory-procurement agent, and Marlow is shocked upon seeing what the European traders have done to the natives.

Detailed explanation-2: -Conrad’s famous novella is based on a real journey the author took up the Congo in 1890, during King Leopold II of Belgium’s horrific rule. It is a fantastic, imaginative journey to find a man named Kurtz who has lost his mind in the African jungle.

Detailed explanation-3: -Heart of Darkness examines the horrors of Western colonialism, depicting it as a phenomenon that tarnishes not only the lands and peoples it exploits but also those in the West who advance it.

Detailed explanation-4: -Not exactly a long story, and certainly not a novella, at barely 38, 000 words long, it first appeared in volume form as part of a collection of stories that included Youth: A Narrative and The End of the Tether. It has become Conrad’s most famous, controversial and influential work.