Marlow sets off for an adventure as he enters the unknown or the darkness in the heart of Africa, and thought it was not his plan, he loses all his connections and any respect given to him within or by his company. It becomes apparent Marlow's personality does not fit with those around him as he first meets characters such as the manager or the brick maker. Marlow automatically spots the brick maker's corruption as he tries to get on Marlow's "good side" because he believes Marlow to be allied with Kurtz, and because nothing in the brick breaker's office is remotely connected to his given occupation. The point of the story when it becomes certain Marlow is no longer on the same page as his corrupt counterparts and no longer holds even a remotely respectable relationship with the manager, is when he describes Kurtz as a "remarkable man," directly after the manager makes a futile attempt to explain to Marlow that Kurtz is in fact illogical and unsound. Marlow is now unfairly placed under this category of being unstable because he cannot give into the corruption and agree with the manger, similar to how the Magistrate cannot agree with figures such as Colonel Joll. On returning home Marlow is not only physically sick but also psychologically unsound. Conrad never shows us Marlow's return to normalcy.
The Magistrate, on the other hand, is already settled into his community. Yet similar to Marlow he cannot side with corruption as his morals are strong, and though it starts off as being unintentional he ultimately alienates himself from those he is supposed to cooperate and work with, in his case the Third Bureau and society. The Magistrate's main turning point, which he admits as being one of his faults, is when he grabs his lantern and goes to check on the two prisoners, the grandfather and the younger boy, only to unveil a horror, as the old man's dead, mutilated body lies in the same room as his tortured grandson. Another turning point that is more apparent occurs when the Magistrate openly tells the Lieutenant who comes from the empire that the barbarians are harmless and he makes dangerous comments, that make him look not only crazy but an enemy, such as, "I wish that these barbarians would rise up and teach us a lesson, so that we could learn to respect them." Similar to Marlow he is now viewed as unsound, and later on as a complete lunatic and an animal when he is imprisoned. After being let out of prison, the Magistrate wanders the streets feeling isolated and empty, and even on returning back to his old apartment he is haunted by his thoughts of the barbarian girl. As the Magistrate approaches a group of children building a snowman he describes his desolate feelings as he explains, "This is not the scene I dreamed of. Like much else nowadays I leave it feeling stupid, like a man who lost his way long ago but presses on along a road that may lead to nowhere."
(493)
Sunday, December 6, 2009
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