Heart of Darkness Thesis

For my Heart of Darkness essay, my thesis is going to be the question, What is Joseph Conrad’s purpose when contrasting the identities of the Mistress and the Intended, which are shaped by white male assumptions due to the women’s race and social class?  I will be focusing on quote that show how the white males make assumptions about both women. One of the quotes I will be using about the Mistress is, “...a wild and gorgeous apparition of a woman. She walked with measured steps, draped in striped and fringed cloths, treading the earth proudly, with a slight jingle and flash of barbarous ornaments...innumerable necklaces of glass beads on her neck; bizarre things, charms, gifts of witch-men...” (Conrad 141-142).  Another quote I will use is, “Her face had a tragic and fierce aspect of wild sorrow and of dumb pain mingled with the fear of some struggling, half-shaped resolve.” (Conrad 142) The quotes i will be using about the Intended is, “But I couldn’t. I could not tell her. It would have been too dark--to dark altogether…” (Conrad 164) Another i have is, “She came forward, with a pale head, floating towards me in the dusk. This fair hair, this pale visage, this pure brow, seemed surrounded by an ashy halo from which the dark eyes looked out at me.” (Conrad 160) In order to answer my question about Conrad’s purpose I will give examples in the text to show the contrast between the two women. I will also show that the descriptions of the women’s looks, thoughts, and actions are characterized based on white male assumptions which concerns itself with social class and race.