Comparison of Conrad’s and Achebe’s Presentation of Africans

Conrads Heart of Darkness and Achebes Things Fall unconnected, twain take place in the heart of Africa and center around the melodic theme of colonialism held by the European powers in 19th century. The differences between the two novels argon ironically as app bent as black and white-hot. As we begin to think active why Conrad and Achebe have apply so un want tones on much(prenominal) a similar subject, we feel equivalent we ar solving a mystery plot.While reading Heart of Darkness we feel as if we are led by means of a never resting, dark, damp, gloomy and stinky corridor and the novel ends in an atmosphere which is darker, gloomier and filled with hostile sight or whitethornbe creatures. After reading Achebes Things Fall Apart, immediately our minds revert to a close region in Africa, to Umuofia, and we begin to think whether Nigeria is on the same continent as Congo, and if these dark creatures double-dyed(a) at the boat from the riverbank, are really related to Obi erika, or even to the never smiling Okonkwo, who are in our minds sharing palm-wine and breaking kola perk upds.Conrads and Achebes different approach to the themes of voice of Africans, demo of colonizers and the effects of colonialism distinguish the two works from each a nonher(prenominal). The voice and presence of Africans differ clearly in two works because Conrad is looking through the perspective of the colonizer and Achebe, from that of the settled. As stated in the introduction, Conrad has been conceive of of seeing the dark continent since childhood and has managed to go to Congo with the ambition to explore it.Marlow, just like Conrad, has al guidances had the interest in maps and he decides to go to this journey later on seeing Congos map on a shop window. As Marlow says when he is telling his story, It had ceased to be a fresh space of delightful mystery- a white patch for a boy to dream gloriously over. It had blend in a place of darkness, (p 22) we can real ize that the mysterious land he was expecting to see didnt end up being enjoyable and frightened him. We know that whenConrad first travelled to Congo, he was actually surprise with what he saw but although he was surprised and horrified, he thought all the savage acts of white custody as a part of reality and a necessity to keep this colony functioning. The way he refers to natives as black things, criminals or unhappy savages with no indication of pain in his feelings shows that, as a civilized European who is a stranger to this new land, he convinces himself very easily to the idea that the Africans should be treated as savages.When he sees a young African reclining against a tree with change posture eyes, waiting for his death, it is non his condition that strikes him the most but he is more interested in where he ability have found the white thread tied around his neck. Also when he admits to himself that the accountant had verily accomplished slightlything difficult (p 37) by teaching a native woman to do the shoes tasks, we once again understand that he doesnt see them as of his equal and in some sense regard them as bounderish beings with no intellect. crimson if Conrad, as a writer who has be present a citizen of Great Britain, one of the leader countries of colonialism, regards all the atrocities in Congo as dark memories, he does not help the African voice to be heard and does not provide each take chances for an African to express himself properly, except a natives words, Mistah Kurtz, he dead (p 112) On the other hand, Achebe is no stranger to this land. He is in point one of the dark mysterious figures, watching Marlows boat, water travel up the river. Naturally he has a very different story to tell.In Heart of Darkness, we are given a surreal view near the Africans. On the contrary, Achebes success, is presenting them as human beings, with names, no different in characters and in feelings than other people living in any part of t he world. Although their customs baron sometimes seem inexplicable to us, such as the oracle ordering Ikemefuna to be killed for no motive and villagers following his order, they still carry the same feelings any person would. After Ikemefunas death, Okonkwo who has loved him like his witness child, cannot taste anything for two days because of his sorrow.Similarly, after Okonkwo is exiled from the clan, Okonkwos friends destroy Okonkwos barn and shanty as part of a tradition with no hatred in their hearts. But later on Obierika, Okonkwos best friend who was among those people, questions his friends punishment. Even though the Africans presented in Things Fall Apart identify themselves with their culture and have to follow the rules set by their ancestors, they always show the reactions expected from any person. These people share the same concerns, affections and flaws as every human being whereas Conrad, chooses to present them as primitive creatures or rather dark threats.As the boat sails on the river in Heart of Darkness, we are reminded of Jules Vernes move to the Center of the Earth where in similar dark surroundings, the scientists encounter extinct creatures whereas in Things Fall Apart, we get a chance to observe the richness of the Ibo culture and look at Africans from an objective point of view. The resemblance of how the colonizers are presented in two novels portrays clearly the recurring opposition between civilization and wilderness. This time, Conrad, openly displays the sinister intentions of the colonizers, their greed more openly than Achebe.When the reader is told about how experienced agent Kurtz is in stash away ivory, how unrelentingly the Africans are used as labor force and are forced to work until they go bad exhausted, wear out and starve to death, it is seen that the so-called civilizing mission of the colonizers is actually destroying the Africans. We understand clearly that the colonizers are after wealth, which in fact does not belong to them. Moreover, in both works, there is the irony about the colonizers, who are supposed to be representing civilization but instead acting way more primitively than the colonized Africans who are considered as savages.In Heart of Darkness, Mr. Kurtz who is admired and even worshipped by the Europeans, is collecting the heads of the natives and performing very brutal actions to acquire his ivory. Company Doctors comment stating that any change the men undergo in Congo is internal (p 27), is a foreshadowing to the transition Kurtz goes through in the jungle. wild has changed him he is no longer a member of a civilized society having lived together with the natives in wilderness. Also, when the Manager claims that Kurtzs methods are unsound (p 101), we start questioning the accuracy of the Managers birth methods.The company responsible for extracting ivory is operating under a hierarchy, with many business principles so since Kurtz is a part of this chain, it can be argued that the methods of the colonizers are also as unsound as Kurtzs. When Marlow agrees with the Manager and says that he sees no method at all in Kurtzs actions, we can understand how Kurtz, as a colonizer has separated himself from civilized methods. Therefore, there is the contrast in between his reputation as a remarkable agent among colonizers, and his denial to play the game by the rules of a civilized society.On the other hand, the colonizers in Achebes Things Fall Apart, are given a more humane approach. They, like the natives are expound as ordinary people whom you can meet on the street, in your everyday life. Their most apparent(a) feature are their arrogance and in fact their lack of knowledge and understanding. Achebe also emphasizes the irony about Africans turning out to be more civilized than the colonizers in many ways.When there is a opposition between missionaries and Africans caused by Mr.Smith, the new intolerant leader of the church, Ajofias words, W e cannot leave the matter in his reach because he does not understand our customs, just as we do not understand his. We say he is foolish because he does not know our ways, and perhaps he says we are foolish because we do not know his, (p191) show that in fact the villagers are wiser, more mature and more civilized in way of thinking than the colonizers. Africans can accept to be wrong in certain points, whereas the colonizers disregard anything outside(a) their own agenda.Even if Heart of Darkness gives us a better opinion about the cruel and uncivilized characters of the colonizers, Achebe also portrays the destruction of African villages so dramatically that in global, we can say that both works demonstrate the corrupted souls of the colonizers effectively. The destructive effects of colonialism are presented both by Achebe and Conrad, but Conrad does not bring up the criticism of colonizing a country, whereas Achebe underlines its tragic results clearly.At the time Heart of D arkness was published, there were many people in the world who thought that there was nothing wrong with colonialism and in fact it was the right move to take for a powerful country. It was retrieved by many that the natives were nothing but savages. Therefore, what Conrad says about colonialism, is well ahead of his time, but still the argument of whether he had to go along with the idea of seeing natives as dark savages , is of course questionable. From the beginning of the novel, Conrad shows the suffering caused by colonization through Marlows observations.We see natives each having an iron collar on their neck, all connected together by chains, empty paths that were used to belong to villages in which the population had cleared out. All these unpleasant images show the devastating results of colonialism but since Marlow, who experiences these brutalities with his own eyes, does not reach to the conclusion that all these are a result of human greed, it is not practical to say that Conrads Heart of Darkness is a direct critique of colonialism.However Achebe, having lived in a colonized country, knows what it feels like to have lived under the command of others. He intentionally emphasizes the presence of a government, in any event the church and shows that the white man, does not only want to convert the natives to Christianity or take away their ivory and gold but also wants to rule them. Achebe does not hesitate to show how Okonkwos own people, although they might not be from his own clan, have joined the colonizers and are serving them as their messengers.When the messengers tell the villagers that they should gestate a fine of two hundred and fifty cowries to release the several arrested men from the clan including Okonkwo, they stick out to keep the fifty cowries for themselves and give the rest to the district commissioner who had initially decided on the fine as two hundred cowries. As it is seen, colonialism has not only caused the suffering of many Africans but also it created such a corruption that the people of the same land ended up betraying and fighting against each other.Even if both writers have based their story on the terrible outcomes of colonization, Achebe, as a representative of the African voice emphasizes the moral tragedy that leads to the formation of a chain of never-ending treasons between Africans. Colonization may work for the benefits of the colonizers, but for those who are being colonized, it gives only suffering, death, loss of identities, in short destruction and humiliation. The general attitude displayed by the colonizers, in justifying their actions, is their claims of bringing civilization to savages, faith and order to cannibals, technology or wellness care to the poor or ignorant.The fact that Heart of Darkness, begins on the river Thames, right in the heart of London, the river describe as calm and beautiful, and moves into Congo river, its waters rough, full of dangers, dark, threatening, offering nothing but unexpected and inexplicable menaces, shows us the exact mentality of the colonizers, as they view Europe and Africa. It is a clear account of how they believe that, their civilization is superior, giving them the right to expand their interests to wherever they see fit. A boat trip on the Congo River, according to them, is a measuring device which will reveal how primitive the Africans are.The further you travel, the point in time of primitivism rises. Just as Thames River is the antithesis of Congo River or Africa, with Conrad, Achebes characters show that the Africans are not subhuman or part of a different species, but are members of the human race with their flaws and virtues. Achebes last words in Things Fall Apart are The Pacification of the Primitive Tribes of the Lower Niger, the name of the commissioners book, is the very banality colonial powers live by. It is in fact the most tragic ending to these sad stories of shattered lives, erased cultures an d a whole continent torn apart, by colonialism.