In Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad relies heavily on the differences between appearances and reality to develop conflict in the story. From the appearance of the ivory trade and the continent of Africa, to the image of Kurtz himself, Conrad clearly shows us that appearances can be deceiving. As Marlow relates his story, the reader is drawn into a world of contradictions. These contradictions challenged the widely accepted European views of that time. <…showed first 75 words of 672 total…

…showed last 75 words of 672 total…century civilized and sheltered readers. Yet, this message still bears meaning for us today. We, who rely upon the media and news for all of our information have little idea of the reality of life in far off places like Africa, Afghanistan, and Peru. The savage jungle still exists, and most of us are still blissfully unaware of how our perceptions of such places, of such people, holds up to the reality of life there.