A review by arkeith85
Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad

challenging dark sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

  • I got the version that has an intro from Karen Swallow Prior bc I knew I’d need some extra help understanding this book, and I was totally right. Her intro gave me context into the author and where it fits in history. Basically, the first part is narrated an unnamed guy in a boat with a few other guys in a boat just floating away. Then, one of the other guys, Marlowe, tells the longest story ever about his trip into Africa as colonizer going to colonize - or civilize as they said - Africa. He is racist and prejudiced, a product of his own time, but he did question his role as the colonizer as his story meandered on and on. 
  • The story gave a lot of “what men will do instead of going to therapy” vibes. Seems like Conrad (the author) had a lot of questions and feelings that he needed to process and did it by writing a book about a man who also had a lot of questions and feelings. Conrad wrote the book as three installments to be published in the newspapers so the book is just three long parts. Also, the book isnt long, it just feels long. 
  • I didn’t love this, but I didn’t intend to. It was a good discipline to read something that wasn’t an easy read for me.

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