Heart of Darkness Part I

Compare the narrator’s voice to Marlow’s.

Write a P1 (thesis) as well as 3 P2s and 2 P2s/P3

How does the first 3 pages set up the rest of the novella?

Find hints of foreshadowing in the first few pages.

What is the mood of the narrator’s initial writing?

How does this compare to Marlow?

Create a list of dichotomies listed so far in Part I. What is Conrad

saying by including these?

In the frame story section of the book, what details does Conrad

include to create a sense of comfort and peacefulness? What elements contrast the serenity?

How does Marlow’s aunt, “the excellent woman,” depict him to the wife of the high dignitary?

What problems might this pose for Marlow? Why?

Characterize how Marlow describes the African coast

(beginning on p. 66)?

On occasion, “black fellows” in boats visit the ship that Marlow is

aboard. Do you think that the description of these fellows is

mostly positive or mostly negative? And, how do these descriptions compare to most

depictions of whites in the novel?

Look at page 32. “He broke off. Flames glided in the river”

How does this break in narration affect our

understanding of Marlow?

Perform a textual analysis for Marlow’s statement on page 33: “True, by this time it was not a

blank space any more.”

What is Marlow’s attitude toward Africa, and what literary devices does he use to achieve desired

effects?

Consider Marlow’s first impression of the Africans on

page 40. How does he characterize them? What is his attitude towards them? What

does this reveal about Marlow?

Turn to the section on the Grove of Death. What literary elements

does Marlow use to describe these men? What effects do

these choices have on the overall meaning of the selection?

“I avoided a vast artificial hole somebody had been digging…” to “this of white thread from beyond the seas”

Consider one of the first descriptions of Kurtz (p. 51-2).

What do we learn about him, and how does Conrad construct him as such a mysterious character?

MOTIF MANIA

• Describe and analyze the significance of the following motifs in the novella so far:– Light/Dark - Fod– Death - Europe vs. Africa– River– Jungle– Women– Kurtz– Ivory– Rivets