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challenging
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Violence, Xenophobia, Cannibalism, Murder, Injury/Injury detail
this is by far the most boring book that i have ever read, so boring and awful i didn’t even bother to finish it because it’s simply just so BAD. it’s just so lackluster to the point where i almost fell asleep while reading. it’s so bad that i don’t even want to continue reading it to try to find some “dEePeR mEaNiNg” behind it or the overall “message” of the book because whatever “meaning” this book might’ve had is completely overshadowed by the massive amount of racism that’s just sprinkled throughout the book, so i don’t even care to try to find what the meaning of this could possibly be because there’s just so much racism and bad writing in this that it’s too difficult for me to pay attention to what joseph conrad might be trying to say in this novella, like how in the world am i supposed to enjoy this book and figure out the meaning of it when almost every page has the n word in it. life’s way too short to read bad books so i’m not gonna finish it and i surely don’t plan on doing so like ever.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Colonisation
challenging
dark
informative
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Colonisation
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
“The Horror! The Horror!”
These words from Kurtz summarize the impact of unrestrained brutality by European colonialists on the people and countries of the African continent. And the words summarize the self-assessment Kurtz offers of his own misshapen soul in light of the horrors he committed. Problematic today and to be read with a large grain of salt in terms of its racial politics, this novel’s prose still transports the reader into a powerful narrative dimension unlike much else I’ve read before.
These words from Kurtz summarize the impact of unrestrained brutality by European colonialists on the people and countries of the African continent. And the words summarize the self-assessment Kurtz offers of his own misshapen soul in light of the horrors he committed. Problematic today and to be read with a large grain of salt in terms of its racial politics, this novel’s prose still transports the reader into a powerful narrative dimension unlike much else I’ve read before.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Xenophobia
challenging
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I can't believe I finally finished it. It took me a week and a half to slog through the whole 100 pages of this. Surely we have other books to hold up as great examples of modernist literature that don't involve this much racist and sexist drivel.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is my own opinion of the book. If you're reading this you may very well enjoy it more or less. For me, it was so dense and at the same time scattered in its narrative that when I finished it, I was hard-pressed to even recount the actual events. There is some good commentary in here on the nature of humanity, especially in the context of colonialism and exploitation, but it was too buried in the story (and perhaps unintentional, as there are racial slurs throughout).
If you intend to read this, be ready for a challenge, both narratively, morally, and in lexicon.
If you intend to read this, be ready for a challenge, both narratively, morally, and in lexicon.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs
Moderate: Death, Cannibalism, Colonisation
dark
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs
Moderate: Racism
Minor: Slavery
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book was difficult to read at points because of the racist attitudes and actions of many of the characters. I recognize it was a product of its time. But I am not of that time. The language was very evocative. The book is wonderfully written.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Racial slurs, Racism, Colonisation
Moderate: Death, Sexism, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Physical abuse, Racism, Slavery
Moderate: Body horror, Torture, Violence
Minor: Racial slurs
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This is really fascinatingly written; a very evocative portrayal of a man journeying both into the barbarity of his own culture and the psychological darkness of his on mind. The elliptic narration that grows more and more unsure of its own truthfulness is genuinely frightening and unsettling and had me at the edge of my seat. What does of course not work anymore is the use of local Congolese (for lack of a better discriptor) cultures as a "prehistoric mirror" the "savagery" of which reveals the darkness also lurking within European culture, I don't need to tell anyone that this is racist. But it's also a story with a distinctly anti-colonialist position, depicting and denouncing the mindless hypocrotical violence inflicted onto Africans under Colonialism, published in a mostly pro-Colonialism magazine, no less. So I think this is an interesting study in how anti-colonialist writing in Europe developed and how racist rhetoric was still very much a part of that, which we can use to reflect on our current political rhetoric, especially progressive ones which are nonetheless undoubtedly still marked by racist bias. I would recommend this both for quality of writing and relevance to contemporary discourse.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Colonisation
Moderate: Gun violence, Torture, Violence, Cannibalism