HOD #14

“I let him run on, this papier-mache Mephistopheles” (p.23). Mephistopheles is the fictional devil from the legend of Faust. He has been referenced in many works of literature, normally as a devil-figure. Papier-mache is a form of art where the shape of a figure is created, and wet paper is placed all around it. The figure can become anything the creator wishes, and it is hollow inside. Conrad writes how this man who claimed to be a brick maker, was really a liar and hollow like papier-mache.
“Mephistopheles in popular culture.” Wikipedia. 29 Aug. 2009. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mephistopheles_in_popular_culture

HOD #13

“He alluded constantly to Europe, to the people I was supposed to know there” (p.21). Marlow meets a young aristocrat who is very interested in Marlow. He talks to him for a long while, and mentions people from Europe that he thought Marlow would know. To the reader it seems as though the man believed that Marlow, being from Europe, knew of everybody that lived there. This is a common deception of mankind that Conrad might have wanted to point out. Throughout this novel the author hints at a few of our kind’s mistakes in life, and he must want his audience to notice them as well.

HOD #12

“By Jove! I’ve never seen anything so unreal in my life” (p. 20). “By Jove” is an exclamation of surprise, and is very British. In ancient Roman times, Jove was a name for the god Jupiter. Jupiter was the god of the sky and had similar powers to the ancient Greek god Zeus. Throughout the novel the author incorporates this exclamation through the narrator, Marlow. It seems to be a common phrase of Conrad's time period, and a very common saying throughout the book.
“By Jove.” World Wide Words. 28 Aug. 2009. http://www.worldwidewords.org/qa/qa-byj1.htm

HOD #11

“Perhaps on some quiet night the tremor of far-off drums…and perhaps with as profound a meaning as the sound of bells in a Christian country” (p.17). The sound of bells in a Christian country is the Christian people’s call. The narrator relates these people to Christians and the far-off drums to bells. He says how “appealing, suggestive, and wild” the tremor of these drums is to these people, similar to the bells for Christians. Bells are usually located at a church, the meeting place for Christians. The mentioning of Christianity in Conrad's novel suggests that he could have been Christian. He might have been relating to his own experiences. The sound of the drums in this story could be coming from the tribe's confluence.

HOD #10

“It was hot there, too; big flies buzzed fiendishly, and did not sting, but stabbed” (p. 15). The narrator of this novel is an excellent story teller. He can draw in his audience using imagery such as “did not sting, but stabbed”. Even though Conrad may exaggerate, it helps to more accurately elucidate the events and moods throughout the novel. In this example the narrator emphasizes just how obnoxious the flies are.

HOD #9

“He had a uniform jacket with one button off, and seeing a white man on the path, hoisted his weapon to his shoulder with alacrity” (p.13). The usage of the word ‘white’ by the author shows how racism is still a factor in this era. There are a few examples of this throughout the novel, enough so that it is noticeable by the reader. This may not have a decent effect on the book, but it does give the reader a better perspective about the time period in which the novel was conceived.

HOD #8

“I felt as though, instead of the center of a continent, I were about to set off for the center of the Earth” (p.10). Throughout the book Marlow tends to use imagery while telling his story, trying to recreate his feelings as best as possible. He may sometimes exaggerate a little bit, but he succeeds at getting through with his listeners. Here he emphasizes the unknown ahead of him, and the feelings of importance that he has. Conrad applies imagery in Marlow's story; which establishes the overall effect it may have on the reader.