Last week, you discussed Marlow's definition of civilization. Now, select a quote from Heart of Darkness that describes the way Marlow defines savagery. Discuss the significance of the quote in 3-5 sentences.
Please cite the quote. If the quote contains language that you feel is inappropriate, you may omit that word using a [...] in its place.
"And between whiles I had to look after the savage who was fireman. He was an improved specimen; he could fire up a vertical boiler. He was there below me, and, upon my word, to look at him was as edifying as seeing a dog in a parody of breeches and a feather hat, walking on his hind-legs. A few months of training had done for that really fine chap." (52)
ReplyDeleteThis quote is a very good example of how Marlow views savagery, because it provides a comparison of the savages to dogs made by Marlow himself. This comparison shows that Marlow sees the savages as unintelligent beings who reside below him in social status. His view of savagery is similar to how southerners viewed their slaves in the Civil War. Marlow also later goes to say that the savage could be made into a "fine chap". This shows that he still views savages as people too even though they reside below him on the social ladder and level of intelligence. That is how the quote shows Marlow's view of savagery.
"...a burst of yells, a whirl of black limbs, a mass of hands clapping, of feet stamping, of bodies swaying, of eyes rolling, under the droop of heavy and motionless foliage." (105)
ReplyDeleteThe quote describes the tribe that Marlow was attacked by while on the steamboat. They seem like animals, clapping and screaming and stamping their feet. Marlow and his fellow white crew members see the tribe attack, and realize that the tribal people have minds that are not the same as theirs. Their weapons are not as advanced and their attack methods are like that of wild animals. Marlow sees these tribal members as savage.
"The prehistoric man was cursing us, praying to us, welcoming us - who could tell? We were cut off from the comprehension of our surroundings; we glided past like phantoms, wondering and secretly appalled, as sane men would be before an enthusiastic outbreak in a madhouse." (51)
ReplyDeleteMarlow compares these savages to crazy people within a asylum by the reactions of the natives to himself and his crew. They are on the brink of nutting up and attacking, which they later do, and that is a key characteristic of a savage for Marlow. They are also described as prehistoric men or cavemen. The natives have no modern technology to fight, which makes Marlow belittle their way of life as a life of savagery. In conclusion, the unintelligent and traditional lifestyle of the natives, which isn't necessarily bad, makes Marlow think he is superior to them and it defines his definition of savagery in the Congo.
"It culminated in a hurried outbreak of almost intolerably excessive shrieking, which stopped short, leaving us stiffened in a variety of silly attitudes, and obstinately listening to the nearly as appalling and excessive silence. 'Good God! What is the meaning--' stammered at my elbow one of the pilgrims......to rush out incontinently and stand darting scared glances, with Winchesters at 'ready' in their hands. (57)
ReplyDeleteThis quote describes that Marlow and the men on the boat, all civilized and gentlemen, were startled by shrieking and grabbed some grabbed weapons, ready to fight against a uncivilized tribe, inefficient in weaponry as compared to the natives. Though the natives are inferior to Marlow, they are ready to fight, and therefore as a superior force, Marlow sees the tribes as savage.
"from the point of development we had arrived at, 'must necessarily appear to them (savages) in the nature of supernatural beings-- we approach them with the might of a deity' and so on, and so on." (82)
ReplyDeleteThis quote shows that Marlow and many others believed that whites were super humans compared to savages. It shows that he believed that savagery was somewhat necessary to life. Whites were supposedly more civilized and would continue to develop more civilization than the savages would ever be able to have. Marlow felt that they would never catch up.
"this suspicion of them being inhuman. It would come slowly to one,. They howled and leaped, and spun, and made horrid faces; but what thrilled you was just the thought of their inhumanity" (pg 51)
ReplyDeleteThis quote shows that Marlow thinks of the savage people as "inhuman." I think this is significant because it truly shows how much below himself that Marlow views the savage people. Even a few lines earlier he says that he is accustomed to seeing them shackled but not let loose like in Africa which also mirrors his actual line of them being "inhuman."
"It was unearthly, and the men were—No, they were not inhuman. Well, you know, that was the worst of it—this suspicion of their not being inhuman. It would come slowly to one. They howled, and leaped, and spun, and made horrid faces; but what thrilled you was just the thought of their humanity—like yours—the thought of your remote kinship with this wild and passionate uproar. Ugly." (pg. 51)
ReplyDeleteIn this quote it shows Marlow beginning to gain kinship with the natives. He is starting to look away from the traditional views of imperialists and see them different as if Marlow is starting to see the conquered native africans as human. Like in the quote it says the thought of your remote kinship is ugly, although Marlow still casts the africans as primitive versions of himself rather than equal, the kinship is growing on him.
"a burst of yells, a whirl of black limbs, a mass of hands clapping, of feet stamping, of bodies swaying, of eyes rolling, under the droop of heavy and motionless foliage. The steamer toiled along slowly on the edge of a black and incomprehensible frenzy." (pg.36)
ReplyDelete-Marlow, I believe, sees these people as savages. They are acting crazy and for no reason. He has never seen people act this way before, plus they aren't civilized. It looks like they have crazy dances and rituals and normal civilized humans don't act the way they do. This makes Marlow feel uneasy as he heads toward Kurts.
"They howled and leaped, and spun, and made horrid faces; but what thrilled you was just the thought of their humanity -- like yours -- the thought of your remote kinship with this wild and passionate uproar." (pg. 51-52)
ReplyDeleteMarlow questions the humanity of the people in Congo. He observed their crazy rituals and noticed their uncivilized behavior. He had never seen actions like that before back in England. Therefore, this place he came to is the epitome of savagery in his eyes. The uncivilized people made Marlow worried of who he was coming in contact with when he finally would meet Kurtz.
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ReplyDelete"Ugly. Yes, it was ugly enough; but if you were man enough you would admit to yourself that there ywas in you just the faintest trace of a response to the terrible frankness of that noise, a dim suspicion of there being a meaning in it which you- you so remote from the night of first ages- could comprehend." (pg. 52)
ReplyDeleteMarlow is shocked by the rawness of these people but recognizes that all mankind started out in a state of savagery. Some regions developed past tthis state and some did not. However, no matter how far one has surpassed it, he will still contain in him the innate characteristics of a savage.
"In a few days the Eldorado Expedition went into the patient wilderness, that closed upon it as the sea closes over a diver. Long afterwords the news came that all the donkeys were dead. I know nothing as to the fate of the less valuable animals. They, no doubt, like the rest of us, found what they deserved." (pg 48)
ReplyDeleteThe Eldorado Expedition is a group of bandits that use to work for the central station but they're lives of rebellion is short lived as they are the "less valuable animals." Marlow sees the haunting details of the Congo and chooses to ignore the savage ways as long as he can. Throughout chapter 2, he fails to acknowledge the lurking black eyes on the land as they ride in his steamboat. He is arrogant to the wild and the savage ways but brushing them off.
"We two whites stood over him, and his lustrous and inquiring glance enveloped us both." -Marlow, pg. 66
ReplyDeleteMarlow says 'we two whites stood over him.' I believe he means this both figuratively and literally. As a 'savage', the man's intellect is not level with the white men. The savages' 'inquiring glance' evoked a sad feeling in me, because this man, this human, is looking up at them both and wondering why he had to die at the hands of 'civilized' people. To him, Marlow and co. probably don't seem civilized. Maybe just as 'savage' as they are.
"I would no doubt have been properly horrified, had it not occurrednto me that he and his chaps must be very hungry..." (Pg 58)
ReplyDeleteMarlow remarks in his quote that he would been terrified had he not known they were hungry. He sees these men as as savages because they eat other humans. However, he is sympathetic toward them because he knows they're hungry. He is shocked because of knowing them, but he begins to grow fond of them which shows change and growth as a person.
"The earth seemed unearthly. We are accustomed to look upon the shackled form of a conquered monster, but there - there you could look at a thing monstrous and free." Page 51
ReplyDeleteIt seems to me that Marlow is saying that these people are human, but they're not at the same time. It is like you can see the civil person they could be, but they have never been taught that way from the beginning so they are a person but they are labeled as a savage instead of human. Marlow's definition of savagery is how all people start until they are taught right or it is just a label we stick on the explainable.
"They howled and leaped, and spun, and made horrid faces; but what thrilled you was just the thought of their humanity - like yours - the thought of your remote kinship with this wild and passionate uproar." (pg 51)
ReplyDeleteMarlow is looking at the natives, seeing them as human but also in a lot of ways seeing them as different. As he talks about them "howling and leaping", it sounds a lot like he is comparing them to animals in the way they are talking and behaving. Marlow is also fascinated by the thought that he is somehow, distantly, related to these people that seem so foreign to him at first sight. He is frightened but also so intrigued by the natives and their way of life.
"They howled and leaped, and spun, and made horrid faces; but what thrilled you was just the thought of their humanity - like yours - the thought of your remote kinship with this wild and passionate uproar." (pg 51)
ReplyDeleteIn this quote, Marlow is seeing the natives on the river bank. He is questioning the humanity of these people, but realizes that he is somehow related to them at the same time. The significance of this quote is that Marlow makes the connection between himself and the savages he encounters.
"Unexpected, wild, and violent as they had been,they had given me an irresistible impression of sorrow" 61
ReplyDeleteMarlow here was explaining the savages looks while attacking the Nelli. This is a clear representation of savagery given the key words Unexpected, wild, and violent. He explains them as having a look of sorrow as if being forced to attack the ship, or die of hunger. This is a savage trait, civilized people would stop the ship and ask for spare food, but the savages do not know better.
"One of hungry and forbearing friends was sounding in the bows just below me." (Pg 63)
ReplyDeleteMarlow describes the cannibal criminals as their "hungry and forebearing friends". This means that they are hungry for flesh and intimidating, but he calls them his friends because he says they are good "fellows". Her feels their savage nature can be tamed and realizes that these people are actually human and not animals. He discusses this and thinks about this a lot throughout the part.
Error with the quote. Forgot the word "my" between "of" and "hungry"
DeleteMarlow defines savage as "the prehistoric man" pg. 51. This indicates that the savages are behind. That they aren't significant. Also everything prehistoric is extinct which could imply that they don't deserve to exist. Marlow has the view of him being more than these people.
ReplyDelete"Yes; I looked at them as you would on any human being, with a curiosity of their impulses, motives, capacities, weaknesses, when brought to the test of an inexorable physical necessity. Restraint! What possible restraint? Was it superstition, disgust, patience, fear - or some kind of primitive honour?" (pg. 59)
ReplyDeleteMarlow sees the savages for once in a sense how you would any other human being. He is intrigued by how they don't automatically attack him. He thinks that it must be something human that stops them from doing so.
"They howled and leaped, and spun, and made horrid faces; but what thrilled you was just the thought of their inhumanity" This shows how he feels about savages because of how he describes them. He says they have horrid faces and basically just act crazy.
ReplyDelete"a burst of yells, a whirl of black limbs, a mass of hands clapping, of feet stamping, of bodies swaying, of eyes rolling, under the droop of heavy and motionless foliage. The steamer toiled along slowly on the edge of a black and incomprehensible frenzy." (pg.36)
ReplyDeleteThis quote is talking about the tribe that attacks Marlow and the crew of the steamboat. It makes it seem as if these people are more animal than human wen it says that their limbs were whirling and their feet are stamping. It causes Marlow to think harder about how he feels about the natives as he heads further up river towards Kurtz.
"Unexpected, wild, and violent as they had been, they had given me an irresistible impression of sorrow. " (61)
ReplyDeleteMarlow is speaking of the natives that attack him. Despite their violent nature, Marlow reveals that he saw a glimpse of real human feelings in the savages. This suggests that he realizes the natives aren't just 'savages,' but humans capable of feelings just like him.
"He ought to have been clapping his hands and stomping his feet on the bank, instead of which he was hard at work, a thrall to strange witchcraft, full of improving knowledge" (pg 53)
ReplyDeleteMarlow is now seeing the comparison of "savages" and "civilized" man. When he sees this native he first thinks he should be out clapping stomping and acting like an animal but instead he is hard at work. He even goes as far to call this Civilized work or knowledge "witchcraft". Marlow is now seeing that the "civilized and savage" have more in common then he once thought.
"I stood in the doorway, peering, and the arrows came in swarms. They might have been poisoned, but they looked as though they wouldn't kill a cat. The bush began to howl." (pg.43)
ReplyDeleteThe short battle is significant. The pilgrims did attack them with brute force, but they had fear in their eyes. Later, the Russian admitted to Marlow that they were afraid that they were going to take "him" away--speaking of Kurtz. Marlow pictures them as wild creatures that howl and leap around like savages. The pilgrims may believe that they must be savage in order to protect something dear to them--Kurtz.
"The earth seemed unearthly. We are accustomed to look upon the shackled form of a conquered monster, but there - there you could look at a thing monstrous and free. And the men were - No they were not inhuman." (page 60)
ReplyDeleteAt this point in the book, Marlow had realized something not many people have - the so-called "savages" were not really savages, the were just like us, imperfect, fallible humans. Where they originated or the color of their skin made them no different than Marlow even Kurtz. Marlow goes on to say how the "savages" screamed and made "horrid faces", but they were acting like any other person would under the same circumstances. In part two, Marlow begins to realize how the "savages" are just like the ones he described as civilized - imperfectly human.
“They were dying slowly—it was very clear. They were not enemies, they were not criminals, they were nothing earthly now—nothing but black shadows of disease and starvation, lying confusedly in the greenish gloom.” Part 1
ReplyDeleteHe's saying that they are almost not human. They are savage and beasts confused. The gloom signifies that they are in the shadows and are more beast like than man like.
"this suspicion of them being inhuman. It would come slowly to one,. They howled and leaped, and spun, and made horrid faces; but what thrilled you was just the thought of their inhumanity" (pg 51)
ReplyDeleteMarlow is saying that these humans behave so differently than himself that it's almost impossible to even view them as humans. He has tried to put himself in their shoes and understand why they act the way they do. Marlow has discovered really how difficult it is to accept others who behave what we see as strange.
"They howled and leaped, and spun, and made horrid faces; but what thrilled you was just the thought of their humanity -- like yours -- the thought of your remote kinship with this wild and passionate uproar." (Page 51-52). This quote about the savages in the Congo shows that while Marlow is shocked by how inhuman the savages are, he recognizes that they are human just like him. Most importantly, he recognizes that deep down, even in the most civilized of people, they all share the same instinct and wildness that the savages express.
ReplyDelete