Joseph Conrad and Paul B. Armstrong - Heart of Darkness: Library Edition

Pros: Wonderful descriptions, cliffhanging suspense, powerful message...
Cons: If you've seen "Apocalypse Now" there are few surprises

“The Heart of Darkness” is yet another of those classics I was supposed to read at some point in high school with the rest of the English-speaking world, and yet I somehow passed it by in my quest to read every word John Steinbeck ever wrote. And every...

Pros: Two of modern fiction's greatest authors...
Cons: Why don't they make them like they used to?

In comparing the works of Conrad and Hemingway we find ourselves dealing with the argument as to whether dynamism or symbolism constitutes the more powerful writing style. Conrad’s Heart of Darkness remains one of the most monumental and inspiring...

Pros: Developed characters, layered meanings and mystique, Conrad's ability to sets the mood, morality play
Cons: Verbose language and dated vocab, crawling pace, sometimes wish for less talk and more action

Although I am reluctant to concede this fact, like many American males in their twenties, the reason I was inspired to read Conrad's Heart of Darkness was because of my own love of Apocalypse Now. It is no secret that the three-hour-long Francis Ford ...

Pros: Challenging text, one of the modernist marvels!
Cons: Wow this is a lot of work for such a short book--but it's worth it!

This is an edited excerpt from a paper I wrote for an upper division English course in 1998. It is a little more in-depth than most epinions. Please leave comments about what you think: is this too much for this format? or would you like to see me...

Pros: Very deep and thought provoking, excellent imagery
Cons: VERY difficult to read

I had to read Heart of Darkness last week for my AP English class and when I first tried reading it, I could not get past the first page. I would read the same sentences over and over again, never remembering where I had left off. It was incredibly...

Pros: symbolism, exploration of human mind
Cons: some people cannot seem to get through it

Heart of Darkness, is in many senses a psychological novel, however as I believe Conrade said, its ment mainly to be an experience. An expression of the madness and rawer nature of humanity, which Conrade through Marlow experienced while working on the...

Pros: wonderfully eerie, complex layers
Cons: Racist, slow read

Heart of Darkness has survived the ages not solely because of Conrad's writing voice, but moreso because this novella captures a dark and bleak feeling on the experience of human life. (The making of Apocalypse Now hasn't hurt, either.)

Heart...

Pros: Message to reader and symbolism.
Cons: Language style is difficult.

Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness is a "must read" for all ages. Conrad's descriptive journey up the river is a metaphor for man's technological progress, for his conquering of nature in the name of civilization. Although written in the early...

Pros: Interesting psychological study
Cons: None

I seem to have read something completely different. Kurtz is a "good" man as defined by his society, and his (European) society rewards and reinforces his behavior. As he journeys farther away from that society, the external props of moral...

Pros: A true account of the nature of Imperialism in the late 19th century
Cons: Hard to grasp who "Kurtz" really is

Kurtz, who was Joseph Conrad’s main character in the Heart of Darkness, was initially a metaphor European imperialism. However, Kurtz's journey deep into the Congo revealed the truth of his initial imperialistic intent. His experience proved the...

Pros: Definitely a classic, great details, just long enough, good plot
Cons: Ambiguous and confusing, better the second time through, gets a bit boring sometimes

Being a senior in high school, I didn't really think I would like this book.

We were required to read Heart of Darkness for AP English a total of two times. At first, I didn't really understand why. Then after reading through the first time,...

Pros: Excellent theme and story line
Cons: Difficult language

After reading the first few pages of this novel, it's not unusual to wonder how you can possibly plow through the rest of it. That's why I don't suggest reading this casually on your own, unless you've got an extremely good knack for words. The beauty of...

Pros: Useful for Essays, Very Deep, Hypnotic
Cons: Redundant Descriptions, Slow Parts, Not much Action

I read this part as a part of my Independent Study Unit of Grade 12 English along with Conrad's The Secret Agent. This one, however was something else. Heart of Darkness is very complex and sometimes difficult to understand through...

Pros: Deep, powerful, timeless.
Cons: Thick prose.

Many people call this novella, published in 1902, the first real book of the 20th century, in that it deals with loss of innocence, moral ambiguity, exploration of the subconscious - all issues that factored prominently into the past hundred years.
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