Stevenson and Conrad The Duality of Human Nature - 949 Words

Conrad also employs the literary device of symbolism to further display the theme, the duality of human nature in his novella Heart of Darkness. Three major examples of symbolism are evident in this novella. These examples include, light and dark, the Congo River, and ivory. Similar to Stevenson, Conrad uses light and dark symbolism throughout his novella. Yet curiously in Heart of Darkness, light does not symbolize genuine goodness nor does dark symbolize pure calamity. Marlow proves this when he says as a comment to the Nellie’s sailors that, â€Å"I know that the sunlight can be made to lie, too† (Conrad 1944). The true essence of the light and dark symbolism is portrayed when Marlow compares the white men to the black men, concluding that†¦show more content†¦The darkness is ultimately described as a living woman. This is shown through Marlow commentary when first landing on the location of Kurtz’s station: â€Å"the immense wilderness, the colossal body of the fecund and mysterious life seemed to look at her, pensively† (Conrad 1935). Conrad goes on to personify the soul of darkness when Marlow relates it to Kurtz savage mistress: Dark human shapes could be made out in the distance, flitting indistinctly against the gloomy border of the forest†¦And from right to left along the lighted shore moved a wild and gorgeous apparition of a woman†¦She was savage and superb, wild-eyed and magnificent†¦the whole sorrowful land, the immense wilderness, the colossal body of the fecund and mysterious life seemed to look at her, pensive, as though it had been looking as the image of its own tenebrous and passionate soul (Conrad 1934-1935). The duality of human nature is an important aspect of not only the Victorian literature, but in English history itself. The notion of the duality of human nature threated the traditionalist way of life and how many Victorians had perceived religion. Robert Louis Stevenson and Joseph Conrad helped to preserve this crucial theme by embodying it into their own novellas, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and Heart of Darkness. Both novellas portray the controversial theme in an intriguing manner. When first reading The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and Heart of Darkness the themesShow MoreRelatedStevenson and Conrad: The Duality of Human Nature 778 Words   |  3 Pagesaspects of human life. In 1859 Charles Darwin published The Origin of Species, a work that opposed the traditional way of perceiving religion. Candyce Klin author of â€Å"Darwinism as A Cultural Issue†, states that The Origin of Species proposed the theory that all living creatures had to compe te within their own preconditions in order to survive. This may be why the controversial issue of the duality of human nature has been found at the heart of many Victorian works. The theme of the duality of man canRead MoreStevenson and Conrad: The Duality of Human Nature 680 Words   |  3 Pagesis shown to further demonstrate the theme, the duality in human nature. Personification is defined as the ascription of a personal nature or human characteristics to something nonhuman, or the representation of a theoretical quality in human form. Stevenson uses personification to figuratively make London come alive. Mr. Utterson comments on the scenery by saying: â€Å"the fog still slept ... lamps glimmered like carbuncles† (Stevenson 1959). Stevenson further describes the city through the literaryRead More Stevenson and Conrad: The Duality of Human Nature 1793 Words   |  8 Pagesaspects of human life. In 1859 Charles Darwin published The Origin of Species, a work that opposed the traditional way of perceiving religion. Candyce Klin author of â€Å"Darwinism as A Cultural Issue†, states that The Origin of Species proposed the theory that all living creatures had to compete within their own preconditions in order to survive. This may be why the controversial issue of the duality of human nature has been found at the heart of many Victorian works. The theme of the duality of man canRead MoreVictorian Novel9605 Words   |  39 Pagesrevolutions and fighting across the Channel, in Britain was completely different. Here, the most vital issue for all citizens was stability and rising standards of living. Artists of ‘Pre- Raphaelite Brotherhood’ claimed to write only true about nature, concentrate only on the true ideas. These three years saw the rise of such works: of Bronte sisters’ Poems, Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre, Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights, William Thackeray’s Vanity Fair. The Following twenty years could be seen