Black and White as the Symbols of Civilization and Savagery in Heart of Darkness
Wide varieties of literary techniques are used throughout Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness. One predominant method of his storytelling is his use of black and white symbolism. These symbols are commonly used in literature, and have held some specific symbolic meanings for hundreds of years. White commonly symbolizes good, while black symbolizes evil. As in Heart of Darkness Europeans are usually described in terms of white, identifying them with goodness, knowledge, and civility, although Africans are described in terms of black, identifying them with evil, savagery, and mystery. But as Marlow proceeds deeper into the heart of the African jungle and begins to understand savagery as a primitive form of civilization and, therefore, a reflection on his own reality, those white and black symbols, infused with special meanings, begin to show contradiction to what they usually mean to readers.
While the use of white and black, good and evil contrasts are common themes in the novel, the meanings of these symbols are fundamentally reversed by Conrad. His story is about the intrusion of the corrupt white Europeans into the dark forest of the Congo River, with the purpose that “we bring light and our civilization” to people who they consider ignorant and savage, and what consequences resulted from this intrusion. In the story light is often viewed as more threatening and evil than the darkness, and the corruption of white characters stand in contrast to the innocence of black. Throughout the story, people are thought to have white souls or black souls depending on their innate “goodness” or “badness” or the role they are fulfilling at the time. The colour of a person’s soul is often contrasted to the colour of their skin. A black souled, white skinned person is thought to be dishonest and evil. For example when Marlow encounters the Company’s chief accountant says “…I met a...