Limiting the selection of quotations to pages 98-99, analyse how Steinbeck presents the character ‘Crooks’ from the novella ‘Of Mice and Men’ In ‘Of Mice and Men’, Crooks is the black stable buck who suffered from prejudicial treatment from others on the ranch. Throughout the introduction of Crooks, racism is cardinal theme, “Crooks, the negro stable buck…” ‘Crooks’ was the name assigned to him as he has a crooked back, the idea that he was ‘assigned’ a name turns back to the times of slavery where slaves were often given a name by their owners. By being ‘given’ this name, Crooks is disempowered; it is thought that names given an identity and to be recognised by a disability, it would be thought that Crooks may have a low self-esteem. As aforementioned, this also lays emphasis on how Crooks is dominated by the other white ranch hands as they provided him this name. “…The negro stable buck…” The term ‘negro’ denotes black and Steinbeck defines Crooks by his race before bringing in his profession.
They made the claims that because they were uncivilized, this was a perfect justification for conquest. Europeans were looking for excuses to make Africa look like it needed European help; this made all African customs seem savage and not normal in the eyes of the Europeans. All of this encompassed the myth of the Dark
WR 122 11 August 2010 King Leopold’s Ghost: Illuminating Congo’s Heart of Darkness King Leopold’s Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror, and Heroism in Colonial Africa by Adam Hochschild is a sweeping and often revolting account of the atrocities of the Belgian colonization of the Congo and its aftermath. Using a variety of writing techniques, Hochschild creates an engrossing narrative which not only unveils a dark chapter in our global history, but also fosters an empathy in the reader to the victims of the barbarity of the time. The story unfolds around the turn of the twentieth century when European powers began to explore and colonize Sub-Saharan Africa. Belgian king Leopold II laid individual claim to the enormous chunk of land surrounding the Congo River and proceeded to strip the land of its resources, including, but not limited to, rubber, ivory, and people using a deadly system of forced labor. Under the ironic and spurious guise of humanitarianism, Leopold built himself an empire in central Africa, lining his pockets and satisfying his egotism, becoming the largest individual landowner in the world, while the brutality of his reign slashed the Congolese population by 10 million people, or approximately in half (Hochschild, 233).
Set in the palaces and boardrooms of Europe and in the villages of central Africa, it tells the story of the tragedy that took place during Leopold's so called rule, a tragedy that is so familiar to African-Americans, being told of our African brothers residing in the homeland. This horror story is just in fact that, a horror story, giving and revealing the utter most secrets of the respected King Leopold. Allow me to take you on a journey, pointing out the King's determination and, reasoning for what he'd done and the scars he left deep within the heart of the Congo. In the introduction I stated that Morel was the character that I considered to be the hero of this story, now the main question behind that would be, why? Along with, Who is Morel?
Europe, Africa, the river, and Kurtz are all plausible candidates for the heart of darkness within Joseph Conrad’s Heart Of Darkness. Marlow may refer to Europe when mentioning the heart of darkness for numerous reasons. The European governments and trade organizations have been the primary reasons for the infiltration and development of Africa. The Europeans have been the ones to enslave the African people and bring misery upon them. Marlow encounters much of this misery when first being introduced to the Chief Accountant of the Trade Company.
In fact, Joseph Conrad provides a more realistic image of Africa in his 1899 novella Heart of Darkness – a story about a young man’s journey to Congo. Unlike the positive atmosphere that “The Lion King” settles, Heart of Darkness describes the other side of Africans and reveals that white conquerors use brute and unnecessary force to surmount the aborigines, who unfortunately display no resistance. They allow the captors to treat them as those of a lower class, and the captors cease the opportunity to exploit poor Africans for their personal service. The Africans also accept humiliation that comes with the white conquerors – which predominantly formed because of African looks – and this accepting leads to their further negligence. However, not all of the Africans are defenceless.
He then establishes a system of forced labor that keeps the people of the Congo in a condition of slavery for ivory and rubber. So, we can deduce that the novel itself, its excerpt to Joseph Conrad’s The Heart of Darkness, and journalism within the Free Congo State portrayed the situation with the darkness it deserved. In the novel, Hochschild shines light on the darkness of the situation in Belgium Congo. Hochschild captures the essence of Leopold’s true intentions and the darkness of his nature when he says, “What mattered was the size of the profit. His drive for colonies, however, was shaped by a desire not only for money but for power”.
The question here which will carry on this research paper is, is Conrad really racist, or he is just trying to be a realist? After reading a few lines of Conrad's racist description to the denizens of the Congo, I really could not fathom why such an open-declared racism against people whose only fault is that they were born with a skin that is different in colour. Conrad did not hesitate from making bitter statements in his description to the black
Hypocrisy in the Heart of Darkness Heart of Darkness, written by Joseph Conrad is a novella that exposes the hypocrisy of imperialism. This novella’s main character, Charlie Marlow, describes the atrocities committed by the Europeans in the Congo at the end of the 19th century, considered one of greatest examples of genocide at the time. (Paul Brians, et al.) Marlow sets out on the river towards the station of a Belgian company’s employee named Kurtz deep in the heart of Congo. Upon arriving in the colonized country and during his travels up the river he begins to see the truth about the company’s “trade” as well as the “cultivation” of the “uncivilized” inhabitants and culminates his enlightenment during his encounter with Kurtz.
The novella “Heart of Darkness” was considered as the beginning of the “Early Modernism”. It is a novella written in 1899. It reflected the absurdity of slavery and negativity. In the novella the protagonist Marlow talks about his past experience in Africa where he meets the “amazing” Mr. Kurtz. Although he is indicated as the “amazing” Mr. Kurtz, readers find out at the end that Mr. Kurtz was the one with the dark heart.