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3.03 AVERAGE
3.03 AVERAGE
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
No
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I have never been made to feel physically sick by any book before this. Colonialism has never been portrayed in such a filthy light. The fucking horror stabbed me in the gut.
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
“The horror, the horror”, I like to think that monster Henry Kissinger uttered those words when his last moments were hopefully plagued by images of his blood soaked legacy.
I felt no peace reading this book, just a profound sadness and resentment. Over 100 years after this novella was written the world still hasn’t learned it’s lesson, colonialism and imperialism wears mask, whole countries are being blown up and our kids will ask us the same questions we asked our predecessors “how could you have let that happen?”.
I felt no peace reading this book, just a profound sadness and resentment. Over 100 years after this novella was written the world still hasn’t learned it’s lesson, colonialism and imperialism wears mask, whole countries are being blown up and our kids will ask us the same questions we asked our predecessors “how could you have let that happen?”.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism
adventurous
challenging
dark
reflective
slow-paced
Loveable characters:
No
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Heart of Darkness is a novel written by Joseph Conrad. It was first published in 1899. The storyline follows the protagonist Charles Marlow who is in fact also the narrator. He tells his life story and things that happened while his time in Congo.
I immensely dislike this book. I had such a hard time reading it and I a few times considered putting it down. I fell sorry I didn't do it.
This book is indeed very short in pages, but the story itself is years long. It is very boring and repetitive. The descriptions are long and uninteresting, also, the narration is quite unpleasant.
Moving forward, there is one more thing I would like to address, which is the racism I found is a normal occurrence in this book. I understand it was "normal" in the time the book was written, however, it still made me uncomfortable. Also, I am not sure if the racism is only a characteristic of the novel or if the author Joseph Conrad is himself a racist. I guess it doesn't matter, but I still wanted to address it.
In conclusion, I sincerely disliked this book and don't really recommend it to anyone.
I immensely dislike this book. I had such a hard time reading it and I a few times considered putting it down. I fell sorry I didn't do it.
This book is indeed very short in pages, but the story itself is years long. It is very boring and repetitive. The descriptions are long and uninteresting, also, the narration is quite unpleasant.
Moving forward, there is one more thing I would like to address, which is the racism I found is a normal occurrence in this book. I understand it was "normal" in the time the book was written, however, it still made me uncomfortable. Also, I am not sure if the racism is only a characteristic of the novel or if the author Joseph Conrad is himself a racist. I guess it doesn't matter, but I still wanted to address it.
In conclusion, I sincerely disliked this book and don't really recommend it to anyone.
My 76th book of 2019! Which was my total number of reads in 2018. Anyway.
I don't understand the comments on this being a boring read. It's dense, considering it's only about 90 pages long, but not boring. Conrad's writing is unbelievable. I would happily read his descriptions of the river or the weather all day long. I'll include some of my favourite quotes in a moment, as always. This has excited me greatly to read Lord Jim, if the writing is up to the same standards. This book is harrowing; there are small moments of terror, of evil, dropped in so subtly that we almost react passively like Marlow does. The focus on darkness, especially in the end of the novella, is crafted like that of a modern writer, who has all the greats behind him and has studied them. Conrad writes wonderfully and his theme pulses through the whole book to a fantastic last line, in a way, reminiscent slightly of The Great Gatsby's final line.
The moments of intensity and violence I will leave out of my review, but know that they belong in these highlighted quotes. I don't want to spoil them.
The first quote which made we fall for Conrad's writing:
'But there, was in it one river especially, a mighty big river, that you could see on the map, resembling an immense snake uncoiled, with its head in the sea, its body at rest curving afar over a vast country, and its tail lost in the depths of the land.'
And my favourite description of all:
'The edge of a colossal jungle, so dark-green as to be almost black, fringed with white surf, ran straight, like a ruled line, far, far away along a blue sea whose glitter was blurred by a creeping mist. The sun was fierce, the land seemed to glisten and drip with steam. Here and there greyish-whitish specks showed up clustered inside the white surf, with a flag flying above them perhaps. Settlements some centuries old, and still no bigger than pin-heads on the untouched expanse of their background.'
Throughout there is this mystical power of nature conjured up by Conrad which I adore. This quote felt poignant to me. The line before this quote contains a word I do not wish to write in my review, even as a quote. Essentially, a native is being beaten.
'They said he had caused the fire in some way; be that as it may, he was screeching most horribly. I saw him, later, for several days, sitting in a bit of shade looking very sick and trying to recover himself: afterwards he arose and went out - and the wilderness without a sound took him into its bosom again.'
It's harrowing. A horrible image of the man being beaten but that final line, there's such relief and power - catharsis; the wilderness taking him in again.
To finish.
'We live, as we dream - alone...'
I don't understand the comments on this being a boring read. It's dense, considering it's only about 90 pages long, but not boring. Conrad's writing is unbelievable. I would happily read his descriptions of the river or the weather all day long. I'll include some of my favourite quotes in a moment, as always. This has excited me greatly to read Lord Jim, if the writing is up to the same standards. This book is harrowing; there are small moments of terror, of evil, dropped in so subtly that we almost react passively like Marlow does. The focus on darkness, especially in the end of the novella, is crafted like that of a modern writer, who has all the greats behind him and has studied them. Conrad writes wonderfully and his theme pulses through the whole book to a fantastic last line, in a way, reminiscent slightly of The Great Gatsby's final line.
The moments of intensity and violence I will leave out of my review, but know that they belong in these highlighted quotes. I don't want to spoil them.
The first quote which made we fall for Conrad's writing:
'But there, was in it one river especially, a mighty big river, that you could see on the map, resembling an immense snake uncoiled, with its head in the sea, its body at rest curving afar over a vast country, and its tail lost in the depths of the land.'
And my favourite description of all:
'The edge of a colossal jungle, so dark-green as to be almost black, fringed with white surf, ran straight, like a ruled line, far, far away along a blue sea whose glitter was blurred by a creeping mist. The sun was fierce, the land seemed to glisten and drip with steam. Here and there greyish-whitish specks showed up clustered inside the white surf, with a flag flying above them perhaps. Settlements some centuries old, and still no bigger than pin-heads on the untouched expanse of their background.'
Throughout there is this mystical power of nature conjured up by Conrad which I adore. This quote felt poignant to me. The line before this quote contains a word I do not wish to write in my review, even as a quote. Essentially, a native is being beaten.
'They said he had caused the fire in some way; be that as it may, he was screeching most horribly. I saw him, later, for several days, sitting in a bit of shade looking very sick and trying to recover himself: afterwards he arose and went out - and the wilderness without a sound took him into its bosom again.'
It's harrowing. A horrible image of the man being beaten but that final line, there's such relief and power - catharsis; the wilderness taking him in again.
To finish.
'We live, as we dream - alone...'