Heart of Darkness 5

Through varying viewpoints, Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness can be perceived as both racist and tolerant towards the African people.  One of the greatest examples of this ambiguity is the presence and role of the cannibals that Marlow encounters.  On one hand, Marlow is describing the worst image of an African culture that a racist European society can imagine.  He expresses slight fear of being eaten and hope towards looking "unappetizing" (Conrad 116).  However, with the descriptions of the cannibal people, though not completely positive, Marlow expresses admiration for their restraint.  He expresses some sense of sympathy towards the men after realizing that they must not have eaten recently and that they have consequently become weaker.  He describes the men as "with courage, with strength, even yet, though their skins were no longer glossy and their muscles no longer hard" (Conrad 116).  In this sentence, he both compliments the men, calling them courageous and strong, and feels bad that they were forced to become physically weaker.  In addition, Marlow recognizes their strength and willpower of the restraint it has taken for these men to temporarily not eat usual food source.  He compares their restraint to that of "a hyena prowling amongst the corpses of a battlefield" (Conrad 117).  Through one lens, this description could be seen as a racist remark, referring to black men as manipulative and sneaky animals.  However, on the other hand, Marlow is commending the men for the great strength and expressing how hard this experience must be for them.