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catdaddy_b 's review for:
Heart of Darkness
by Joseph Conrad
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I reread this after a sequence of books on the Democratic Republic of the Congo - Cobalt Red, The Poisonwood Bible, and King Leopold’s Ghost. Reading this for what it is - a beautifully written but devastating account of the horrors visited upon the Congo rather than an object lesson in literary techniques as it’s usually taught in high school, is a sobering experience. One finds in Kurtz and the malevolent emptiness at his heart a disturbing parallel to certain prominent figures of our times. This is a dark and awful tale, brilliantly told.