Heart of Darkness

In his short story “Heart of Darkness,” Joseph Conrad often uses contrastsó such as lightness and darknessóto reinforce his themes and ideas. Among the many contrasts included in the story are those describing the settings. As Marlow relates the story of his journey up the River Congo, he describes a number of different places he passes through on his way to the Inner Station. One of the most obvious contrasts is between Europe and Africa, but there are also clear contrasts between the different stations within Africa. For this Assignment, select two contrasting locations in “Heart of Darkness” and discuss how the contrast between these two places serves to reinforce themes and ideas within the novel as a whole. Be sure to avoid merely summarizing the plot.

Your essay should be approximately one to two pages in length. Use one-inch margins

and a 12-point font.

• The first paragraph should contain a thesis statement in which you clearly present the

argument you want to make in your essay.

• Each body paragraph should begin with a topic sentence in which you clearly state the

argument for that paragraph.

• Be sure to support your arguments with brief, relevant examples. Each body paragraph

should include at least three pieces of supporting evidence and should be clearly linked

together with intelligent commentary.

• When using direct quotations from the text, document your citation using standard

conventions (for example, use line numbers when quoting poems, act and scene

numbers for drama, and page numbers for fiction).