Symbolism, Plot, and the Element of Conflict in Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad

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HEART OF DARKNESS BY JOSEPH CONRAD
Heart of Darkness is a novel by writer, Joseph Conrad, who is of Polish and British ancestry. The book is about a voyage through the Congo River going up to the state of free Congo. The state is situated in the heart of Africa. The narrator of the story in the book is Marlow, who narrates the story abode a vessel anchored on the Thames River in London. It is in this setting that the narrator can portray his interest in an Ivory trader by the name Kurtz. Through this narration, the writer can show the reader the similarities of London and Africa as places of darkness. In this context, we are going to look at three elements of conflict the author has used, namely, symbolism, plot and the element of conflict. (Joseph).
Element of symbolism: In the short story the author uses women as a symbol of decency and purity. The quote "It is queer how out of touch with truth women are" (Conrad 18). They live in a world of their own" and "We must help them to stay in that beautiful world of their own, lest ours gets worse." They are portrayed as the only ones who maintain the virtue of humanity in the world where men have witnessed all sorts of evil. It also portrays that they are the only ones that can bring back sanity when it seems to be lacking from society. All in all it is the same society that conducts these evils and makes itself believe that it does so for the greater good. The author has also used darkness as a symbol of evil and chaos (Odak). This is portrayed when Marlow travels to the darkest parts of the world. There he realizes that because of the white mans greed for ivory; he has brought more chaos and suffering to this dark part of the world. The author portrays Marlow as one who would have expected this white man to have brought light to this dark part rather than darkness. The author uses Kurtz painting to symbolize Kurtz's view on the place of women in the society. The painting shows a woman standing against a black background, blindfolded and held a torch. This symbolizes that women should be the keepers and the ones who spread all things that are good for the world, and that is why the woman is holding a torch. It also symbolizes that women should be kept away from all the evil things that go on in the world, and that is why the woman is blindfolded in the painting (Odak). The author also symbolizes the accountant of the company as a staunch enforcer of the company's policies by standing firm in appearance as well as in his work despite the suffering and even death that is going on around him. He is portrayed as the symbol of defiance and philosophy (Odak).
Element of plot: In the short story, the author uses the River Thames in England to tell the tale of Marlow, one of the men on board a ship anchored there. It is a tale of Marlow's time spent in the African state of Congo, a Belgian colony, as a riverboat pilot. Marlow gets a job as a steamboat pilot on the Congo River with the help of his Aunt. The Steamboat belongs to a Belgian company. He then goes to this company's headquarters in Belgium, a country he refers to as a "whited sepulchre" (Conrad 13)'. Later he travels to the state of Congo and on his way there he witnesses all sorts of atr...