psychological significance of journey

In Joseph Conrad's story, Heart of Darkness, the main character Marlow not only goes through a journey physically but mentally. His prejudices about Africans are prevalent in the things he says; however, Marlow demonstrates the ability to change through his recognition of right from wrong. Towards the beginning of the story he refers to the continent of Africa as a “God-forsaken wilderness.” Even though he voices his racist or ignorant opinion often, Marlow appears to be more ethical than his peers. For example, he shows sympathy towards the natives being mistreated by the settlers which means he has a strong moral code. Since Marlow is still battling his early prejudices against his morals, he still has a long journey to go before he can become enlightened.

Question #6 p. 430

The painting of "a woman, draped and blindfolded, carrying a lighted torch" symbolizes how imperialism supposedly helps the natives by guiding them to civilization and truth (which is symbolized as a lighted torch). A woman being blindfolded usually represents justice being blind to all prejudices; however, the idea of a superior country conquering others because they are "primitive" is anything but justice. Instead, the blindfolded woman could represent the blind leading the blind because the imperialist nations are just as or even more ignorant and blind to the truth than the natives they want to "save."

Marlow would agree somewhat with this message because he is very critical towards imperialism. In his mind, he views that the natives and even the continent of Africa reject European "improvement"; therefore, they should leave the people to continue being savage and misguided. After witnessing a fight between the natives and the imperialists, Marlow realizes how cruel mankind can be towards one another.

Heart of Darkness Question Number 2

Marlow begins his tale of a journey to the heart of darkness with an account of London to demonstrate his feelings of uneasiness and uncertainty by comparing his voyage to the Romans traveling to a gloomy and mysterious place like London. The English traveling to Africa had no idea what to expect; to them, Africa is a wild and dangerous place. The repetition of dark words such as "brooding gloom" paints an ominous picture in the reader's mind. Similarly, the Romans felt that London was also a primitive place which was why they used London as a place of exile.

Tone and Mood

The tone and mood of a literary piece are quintessential in understanding the author's message. In To An Athlete Dying Young by A.E. Housman, the speaker's tone is more celebratory than mourning which helps the reader comprehend that the athlete dying young now is better than him suffering because he lived past his prime. Similarly, Maxine Kumin's poem, Woodchucks, demonstrates a light and humorous tone while describing a tragic event. Dark humor allows for the reader to reevaluate his or her views on death on a small scale (killing woodchucks) or on a grander scale (genocide). Diction contrasting with tone and mood makes the message more significant.

Diction

Diction plays a pivotal role in communicating verbally the message each character wants to convey or conceal. In the play Hamlet, William Shakespeare uses diction to portray Hamlet as a complex and mad character.  "I am but mad north-north-west. When the wind is southerly, I know a hawk from a handsaw.” (2.2, 327-331)." Here he admits that he only acts mad in certain circumstances which can confuse and baffle the people around him because they can't understand what he really means through his choice of language. 

Figurative Language & Imagery

Figurative language and imagery work hand-in-hand to entice the reader's five senses. In the poem, "Fast Break", Edward Hirsch use of literary devices allows for one to see, hear, feel, taste, and even smell the players play a fierce game of basket ball. For example, the first line of the poem, "A hook shot kisses the rim" personifies the shot while letting the reader imagine hearing the sound the ball makes going through the hoop by using plosive language (or repetition of the k sound). Other words such as "floating, scissoring, and gliding" add a visual sense to the poem. A similar poem to "Fast Break" is Yusef Komunyakaa's poem, "Slam, Dunk, & Hook". Lines such as "Swish of strings like silk" and "All hands and feet...sprung rhythm." demonstrate how graceful and synchronized basketball can be through vivid imagery.

Poetry Sounds

The way a poem sounds has a great affect on the reader's interpretation. Through the use of sound devices, writers can manipulate how they want the feel of their poem to be. In Robert Frost's poem, "Out, Out--" words like "buzz", "snarled" and "rattled" depict an inanimate object like a buzz-saw as an uncontrollable animal. Sibilance in the line "sweet-scented stuff" adds a sinister, snake-like feel that reinforces the animalistic quality in the poem. In Yusef Komunyakaa's poem, "Slam, Dunk, & Hook", sibilance appears yet again, only this time it is used to emphasize the fast, yet smooth, pace of the basketball players: "Swish of strings like silk." The reader can fully visualize the ball swishing perfectly inside the net.