Wednesday
Quote: "... The dark 'interlopers', of Eastern trade, and the commissional 'generals' of the East India fleets." pg. 5
Date: 17 October 2007
Reflection: This quote exposes Conrad's values and the reason why he is in Africa. Conrad is interested in the natural resources that come from Africa . Although Conrad is interested, he is not as obssesed as others, which is what I think is the point he is trying to get out to the reader. I think Conrad is trying to say that Africa does have very valuable things, and he does take notice in them but some men are over doing it.
Quote: "... It was just robbery with violence, aggravated murder at a great scale, and men going at it blind" pg. 9
Date: 17 October 2007
Reflection: This is another quote that also reflects on Conrad's point of view regarding men and how they become once they begin collecting ivory. He is describing what he thinks the men look like, and how obssessed they truly are with all the ivory. I'm pretty sure that ivory is a beatiful thing, but the fact that men were and still are willing to go to Africa and take away what is not theirs is increadible. The worst part is that the men are not collecting this for the benefit of the Congolease, but for their own benefit; to become rich.
Thursday
Quote:"... He wacked the old nigger mercilessly, while a big crowd of his people watched him, thunderstruck.." pg 13
Date: 18 October 2007
Reflection: This quote exposes what Conrad thinks about the Congolease and how much he cares about what happens to them. Obviously, he does not care. If he can watch "the old nigger" being beaten without interfering or showing any emotions whatsoever, then it is clear that he does not care. This can also be because he waas surrounded by people who felt the same way he did, and is probably influenced by them. Either way, it is a horrible thing.
Quote: "... I arrived in a city that always makes me think of a white sepulcher. Prejudice, no doubt." pg 14
Date: 18 October 2007
Reflection: In this quote, Conrad arrives in a city that reminds him of a burial chamber. I think that Conrad does not really see anything wrong about it. I think that he is not lying when he says that it reminds him of a burial chamber, but i also think that he quickly notices how what he thinks makes him look prejidice. This is only because he is talking about white people, because i noticed that he does not hesitate to make foul remarks about the Africans.
Friday
Quote: " Alot of people moslty black and naked, moved about like ants." pg 23
Date: 19 October 2007
Reflection: Once again, this is another quote where Conrad notices the "black" people. I noticed that he talks alot more elegantly when mentioning white people. In other words, he makes white people look better, and makes nice remarks about them. I do not think that he would compare a white person to an ant or any other bug. It seems as if Conrad enjoys to torment the black people not through any physical harm, but verbally.
Quote: " I could see every rib; the joints of their limbs were like knots in a rope; each had an iron collar on his neck, and were all connected together with a chain whose bights swung between them, rythmically clinking." pg 24
Date: 19 October 2007
Reflection: I personally do not understand how someone can witness something to horrible but be so ok about it, or undisturbed. It is even disturbing to learn about how the Congolease were treated but the fact that people have actually witnessed these things and are not doing anything to help or would rather see them in an unfortunate situation, just makes me think about the changes in our society. There have been technological changes, but overall I think that people have not cleansed themselves of the evil that has and will always exist in our world.
Saturday
Quote: "... If a lot of mysterious niggers armed with all kinds of fearful weapons suddenly took to travelling on the road... I fancy every farm and cottage therabouts would get empty very soon." pg 31
Date: 20 October 2007
Reflection: A lot of people underestimated the Congolease. They believed that they were not capable of living up to their perfect standards. They also believed that they were not properly educated or did not deserve to be educated. This quote relates to the beliefs ot many people. The quote says that the Congolese would not be able to handle weapons, and that if they happend to travel, every farm and cottage that was in their path, or that they crossed would probably be destroyed.
Quote: " he was neither civil nor uncivil... He allowed his 'boy'- an over fed young negro from the coast to treat the white men, under his very eyes, with provoking insolence."
Date: 20 October 2007
Reflection: Once again, another quote that brings out the bad in Conrad even though throughout the majority of the novel, he is making racist remarks. Although he does make racist remarks, I have to say that i somewhat agree wth Conrad in this quote. He is saying that it was not such a good idea for somebody to allow a Congolese to treat the white men, because it was just provoking danger, and something bad is more likely to happen this way. It is strange how Conrad does have some good points, but throuhout the novel he sounds racist and like he lacks respect for the Congolese.
Monday
Quote: " A nigger was being beaten nearby. They said he had caused the fire in some way... he was screeching most horribly." pg 38
Date: 22 October 2007
Reflection: It is really wierd and horrible how someone can stand to hear somebody in agonizing pain. I have never heard someone scream for help or out of pain but I know that if I did hear someone yell like Conrad described, I would try and help somehow. I just do not understand how you cannot help someone, especially if you witnessed it. But of course, Conrad does appear to be a disturbed individual.
Quote: " Black figures strolled about lislessly, pouring water on the glow, whence, proceeded a sound of hissing; stean astended in the moonlight, the beaten nigger groaned somewhere" pg 41
Date: 22 October 2007
Reflection: This quote also ties in with the previous quote. It is interesting how he can describe the Congolese and you can tell that there are no words of sympathy in there for them. Not that I expect him to feel pity, but the fact that he does not feel anything at all is just not cool. Something that makes me believe that he does not care is how he has been surrounded by all of the choas and violence for a while. I think that he has grown used to seeing people getting beaten.
Tuesday
Quote: " You see I rather chummed with the few mechanics there were in that station, whom the other pilgrims naturally despised- on account of their imperfect manners, I suppose" pg 47-48
Date: 23 October 2007
Reflection: Everyone who goes to Africa and goes to Congo obviously has one goal and that is to get their hands on some precious ivory. I think that this quote is comparing those who want it so bad, and others who are there for the same reason but not as obssessed. It is horrible how greedy people can become, and it is even worse that they become greedy over something like ivory. If it was something that was more important that these people were fighting for like to live or to die then I would understand but besides that I think it is increadibly stupid.
Quote: " Long afterwards the news came that all the donkeys were dead... less valuable animals ...found what they deserved." pg 55
Date: 23 October 2007
Reflection: Obviously Conrad is not thankful for what he has. I do not think that donkeys are very great and increadible animals, but if they were offering something to Conrad and his friends whether it was food or transportation, they should all be thankful that they have that. When Conrad calls the donkeys " less valuable animals" and that they " found what they deserved" it makes me believe that he is not a very thankful person and that he has a dark personality.
Wednesday
Quote: " We went deeper and deeper in to the heart of darkness. It was very quiet. We were wanderers on a prehistoric earth, on an earth that wore the aspect of an unknown planet."pg 59-58
Date: 24 October 2007
Reflection: When I came across this quote, it made me realize how increadibly stupid Conrad is to say that they are "wanderers on a prehistoric earth" as if nothing around them has ever been discovered or known to any human. Just because him and his white friends have not come across it does not mean the entire world does not know about it either. This reminds me of Achebe, and how he talked about this book and how bad it made Africa look. Well i can see why Achebe though this, especially after reading this particular quote.
Quote: " They howled and leaped, and spun, and made horrid faces; but what thrilled you was the thought of their humanity... this wild and passionate uproar. Ugly." pg 59
Date: 24 October 2007
Reflection: Conrad is obviously in denial. He does not appreciate the Congolese and their cultural beliefs. He cannot believe that they are on the same earth as he is, and he thinks high of himself. He believes that he is better, and more educated and stronger. I think that Conrad most likely has more education under his belt, but either way, that does not determine how much better you are than someone. The funny thing is that the Congolese are not even given the opportunity to have an education. It is horrible.
Thursday
Quote: " It was very curious to see the contrast of the expressions of the white men and of the black fellows..." pg 67
Date: 25 October 2007
Reflection: Conrad gives me the impression that he is really dumb. Of course the expressions of the "white men" and the expressions of the "black fellows" is going to be different. Who is being treated with less respect? Who suffers more day after day? Who has to watch their own people being killed and tortured? Not the white people. I am not sure if they are entertained and like what they see and do, but the Congolese definetly do not appreciate it at all. I do not know if Conrad expects them to share the same feelings, but i guess he does!
Quote: " The approach to Kurtz grubbing for ivory in the wretched bush was beset by as many dangers though he had been an enchanted princess sleeping in a fabulous castle." pg 71
Date: 25 October 2007
Reflection: Kurtz is a man who is determined. He is very determined to get his hands on some ivory and is willing to take any risks in order to do so. What I think Conrad is getting at in this quote is that some people truly do become obssessed. I doubt that Conrad is bearly realizing this, but I do think that he has never been introduced into this obssessed form of Mr.Kurtz. I think that it is something new for Conrad to see Mr. Kurtz weak over ivory.
Friday
Quote: "... and then, suddenly, as though a veil had been removed from my eyes, I made out, in the tangled gloom, naked breasts, arms, legs, glaring eyes- the bush was swarming with human limbs in movement, glistening of bronze color." pg 75
Date: 26 October 2007
Reflection: I think that in this quote, the congolese are examining Conrad. I think that they are a bit surprised to see him, but at the same time angry. I think they are angry, because they are staring at a man who is associated with the people who have been hurting the Congolese, their people, and their culture as well. They have been destroying the Congolese people and hunting for something precious, that does not even belong to them. I think that the gazes that the people in the bush are giving Conrad are out of anger.
Quote: " The tumult of angry and war like yells was cheked instantly, and then from the depths of the woods went out such a tremulous and prolonged wail of mournful fear and utter despai.. of the last hope from the earth."
Date: 26 October 2007
Reflection: The Congolese at this point, I believe, have had it. They are fed up with all of these people trying to take away what is theirs. I think taht the " angry and war like yells" represents the helplessness that the Congolese feel. I am sure that there are a lot of them, and I am sure that they are all fed up.
Saturday
Quote: "... I dragged him out, after first jerking the spear out his side, which operation I confess I performed with my eyes tight shut." pg 86
Date: 27 October 2007
Reflection: Unlike the other quotes that showed how evil Conrad is, this is one that makes him look different. It acutally exposes that Conrad does have feelings, and he does have a heart. In other quotes, he watched people being beaten, and he talked to low about them. In this quote, he feels sympathy for the guy that Conrad pulled the spear out of. I think that later into the novel, Conrad begins to feel a little more sympathy for the Congolese, but i also think that some of his thoughts and opinions will not change.
Quote: " I suppose Kurtz wanted an audience, because on a certain occasion, he encamped in the forest, they had talked all night, or more probaby Kurtz had talked." pg 93
Date: 27 October 2007
Reflection: I remember somewhere in the beggining of the novel, when Conrad met Kurtz, I got the impression that Conrad was not very fond of him. I think it is because he seemed to talk about him a lot in the novel and it made me believe that he was paranoid. I do not know if you could call it that, but maybe he did not conifde in him and suspected him of something.
Monday
Quote: " But the wilderness had found him out early, and had taken him on a terrible vengeance for the fantastic incasion I think it had whispered to him things about himself which he did not know things of which he had no conception till he took counsel with this great solitude- and the whisper had proved irresistibility fascinating." pg 98
Date: 29 October 2007
Reflection: In this quote, Conrad is saying that while Mr. Kurtz was out in the wilderness searching for his dearest ivory, he found himself. He had discovered things about himself that he did not know, and that the wilderness had helped him in this discovering process. I think that Conrad is also trying to say that if Kurtz had never been isolated and never been in the wilderness, he would have never gotten to truly find out he he is.
Quote: " If it had come to crawling before Mr. Kurtz, he crawled as much as the veriest savage of them all. I had no idea of the conditions... thse heads were the heads of rebels." pg 99
Date: 29 October 2007
Reflection: Mr. Kurtz was abandoned and needed medical attention. Unfortunately, he was affected by the lack of medicine and medical attention and was saying things that should have been kept to himself. The things that Kurtz said made me think of him as someone who thinks highly of themselves. He thinks that he is increadibly intelligent and that he can withstand any obstacle. Unfortunately for Kurtz, this situation might prove him wrong, because he is so close to dying.
Tuesday
Quote: "Mr. Kurtz.. was as good as buried. And for a moment it seemed to me as if I also were buried in a cast grave full of unspeakable secrets. " pg 105
Date: 30 October 2007
Reflection: I find that this quote is very significant. Conrad is saying that Mr. Kurtz is as good as dead, he has a scarce chance of survival. Although Conrad is healthy and has no ilness or is not in a critical condition he feels as if he is as good as " buried" as well. I think he thinks this because he has endured so much, and has seen so much, and some things he saw were things that he must keep to himself, therefore he is as good as buried because he shall not speak of the events that took place in the wilderness to anyone.
Quote: " I though I would never get back to the Steamer, and imagined myself living alone and unarmed in the woods to an advanced age. "pg 110
Date: 30 October 2007
Reflection: Conrad is scared!! Finally, he shows some emotion! It was not easy to determine what it was that Conrad was feeling early in the novel. Like I mentioned earlier when he witnessed the Congolese being beaten, he did not show any emotion. Now, that he is stuck in a difficult position, it hits him that life is not always going to go your way. I'm pretty sure he was excited because he was going to get him some ivory, but now that he is stuck in the wilderness, he feels helpless.
Wednesday
Quote: " He stuggled with himself, too. I saw it- I heard it. I saw the inconceivable mystery of a soul that knew no restraint, no faith and, no fear, yet struggling blindly with itself." pg 113
Date: 31 October 2007
Reflection: Conrad is talking about Mr. Kurtz, and how confused he truly was. Well not necessarily confused, but he did not give himself limits. He did not restrain himself and for that reason he was left out in the wilderness to discover how desperate he became, and how he lost self-control. Unfortunately for Mr. Kurtz, he did not get another chance to change. Even if he lived, I think that he would still continue to be the same way.
Quote: "...I affirm that Kurtz was a remarkable man. He had something to say... I understand better the meaning of his stare... piercing enough to penetrate all the hearts that beat in the darkness." pg 119
Date 31 October 2007
Reflection: Overall, besides how lost Conrad thought Kurtz was, and how despicable he was in the wilderness, he liked him. He liked his personality, and respected his values. I do not know why, but i always got the impression that he did not like Kurtz. Maybe he just respected Kurtz because they were the same " people". Who knows but apparently I was wrong, and Conrad was influenced by Kurtz and truly admired him.
Thursday
Quote: " I though his memory was like the other memories of the dead that accumulate in every man's life- a vague impress on the brain of shadows that had fallen on it in their swift and final passage... as if to devour all the earth with all the mankind." pg 124
Date: 1 November 2007
Reflection: Conrad was heavily influenced by Kurtz. It is obvious to see that he was affected by his death, and as he was going through all the things that Kurtz left behind he realized that he was a great man ( at least in the eyes of Conrad). To me, this quote seems to describe that Kurtz could have changed things if he would have survived, but he did not. Therefore, all the things he has left behind is all that is left of Kurtz.
Quote: " And later on I seemed to see his collected languid manner, when he said one day, ' This lot of ivory now is really mine'". pg 125
Date: 1 November 2007
Reflection: These were the intentions of Kurtz the entire time. All he wanted was to collect all of the ivory and keep it to himself for his own benefit. I do not understand how you can look up to someone like that. It is horrible. Well Conrad thinks otherwise, and he thinks it was brilliant. But of course, it is different knowing that he has been surrounded by these people and is most likely used to hearing people and how beautiful ivory is to them.
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