Neva McConnaughey McConnaughey 1

English Undergrad

Gender Analysis in Heart of Darkness

Characterization is important in a text for helping the reader understand the

motivations and identity of each individual in the story. Joseph Conrads Heart of

Darkness uses characterization to properly illustrate communal views about gender

differences. To call attention to social ideas about masculinity and femininity, and how

they relate to each other, Conrad creates two characters to epitomize each role, finishing

with one character blurring the bold line between the two.

The idea of gender differences is not uncommon. Conrad illustrates it beautifully

in his novelette, but an article on European politics and societies breaks the study down

plainly. Gender is an analytical category that, like class, focuses attention on a

fundamental social relationship in society, the one between masculine and feminine.

We can investigate how this social relationship operates through studies of symbolic

representation, in processes of social inequality, and in the reproduction of society.(Gal,

2) Judith Grant Called gender, a binary [structure] where the most hegemonic forms of

masculinity and femininity figure as two socially constructed poles against which all

human beings are judged and into which we are all socially constructed as male and

female... while some are captured by this patriarchal structure of consciousness, others

are resistant to it.

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By thinking historically, we can create a foundation of social norms for gender in

the time period. Remember that as this is taking place we are looking at the tenets of

colonialism. It takes place long before the revolutionary Womens Rights movement,

which means there is a more strict ideology about male and female roles in society. A

commonly discussed theme in Conrads writing is the emphasis on different spheres,

relating to culture and gender. Conrad uses his protagonist, Marlow, to draw distinction

between those male and female spheres. Our first illustration of this can be seen when the

reader first learns of Mr. Kurtzs intended. This is the passage allotted to her: " Girl!

What? Did I mention a girl? Oh, she is out of it - completely. They - the women I mean -

are out of it - should be out of it. We must help them to stay in that beautiful world of

their own, lest ours gets worse. Oh, she had to be out of it (Conrad, 64).

Not only does this exerpt create a gender separation, it creates a geographical one

as well. While he and Mr. Kurtz are out braving the untamed Congo, the woman he is set

to marry stays in London, unaware of the impending dangers and reality the situation

presents. Women here, men there. Marlow seems to detest London, yet he uses the phrase

beautiful world, because the phrase refers more to state of being rather than location,

although it does matter where the woman resides. The societal norms at the time would

abhor the mere thought of a woman joining escapades in dangerous Africa. What with all

those savages? Absurd. Its no pregnant-and-barefoot-in-the-kitchen creed, but its just as

limiting.
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This idea is extended further when, at the end, Marlow offers a lite to the intended

to save her from the awful truth about her beloved. His language highlights the major

design of inequality between men and women. Its queer how out of touch with truth

women are. They live in a world of their own, and there had never been anything like it,

and never can be. It is too beautiful altogether, and if they were to set it up it would go to

pieces before the first sunset. Some confounded fact we men have been living

contentedly with ever since the day of creation would start up and knock the whole thing

over (Conrad 27). Here again world refers more to a state of mind, or ignorance, on

behalf of the woman, although he speaks of women as though they are from a completely

different planet. There is a prevailing sense of male superiority, as though women are too

fragile and unaware to fully understand the true horrors of the world, even when they

have a personal connection to someone who does. However this was the general

consensus viewed. A womans responsibility was oriented towards homemaking and

child rearing. A man was the breadwinner, the fighter, the protector.

When Marlow begins his rant about the Romans to the crew members of the

Nellie, he gives insight into the male psyche. The suggestions about masculinity go back

to Psychology 101 and Dr. Freuds theories about the human mind. They were no

colonists; their administration was merely a squeeze, and nothing more, I suspect. They

were conquerors, and for that you want only brute force - nothing to boast of, when you

have it, since your strength is just an accident arising from the weakness of others. He
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continues, The conquest of the earth, which mostly means the taking it away from those

who have a different complexion or slightly flatter noses than ourselves, is not a pretty

thing when you look into it too much(pg. 21). Although Marlow seems to be talking in

opposition to the conquest of civilizations, we must remember that he is speaking

retrospectively.

Similarly, when Marlow begins to ponder about the French, he says, Her ensign

dropped limp like a rag; the muzzles of the long six-inch guns stuck out over the low

hull... Pop, would go one of the six-inch guns; a small flame would dart and vanish, a

little white smoke would disappear, a tin projectile would give a feeble screech - and

nothing happened. Nothing could happen. (Conrad, 29) Freud would have drawn such

conclusions from this passages phallic references as to accuse someone int he story of

penis envy. Such information is not relevant to our case, but point this demonstrates is

that Marlow is considering those misconceptions about masculinity, and that which

makes a man, male.

Throughout history and literature there have been men obsessed with conquest and

power. Whatever makes them feel super macho. Freuds theories generally inspire such

thinking, but one could easily make the claim that the subjugation of women and other

male acts of dominance are somehow related to a mans belief that his masculinity is in

danger. Based on Conrads spheres, we can imagine what that masculinity entails.

Johanna M. Smith calls attention to a passage that almost goes unnoticed, when Marlow

silences a simple laundress. That the laundress is silenced indicates Marlow's power, as
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the masculine narrator of his story, to conceal not only her story but those of the other

silent women in Heart of Darkness. (Smith, 173) Smith places notable weight on the

notion of a male preoccupation with conquest over women, and such a passage clearly

supports it. "The masculine oppression that remains invisible to him is because it seems

'natural' that a native woman should do a white man's laundry." (Smith, 173)

In consideration of the subjugation or conquest of women, gender roles come

back into play. An article about ideological dominance and cultural representation said,

Sociologists of deviance and critics of ideology have shown how naming is a form of

social control. To be called a son and not a lover implies a different identity, different

rights and duties, different norms and sanctions. Such categories and their use as labels

do not only describe a prevailing reality. They also constitute that social reality. (Brown,

658/659) Very few characters in Heart of Darkness are actually named, but it is an

interesting realization that two men are named when no women are. Browns idea is that

a persons title defines his/her duties. If such is the case, one might wonder why the

intended is never referred to as anything else. Kurtz never gives her an endearing term,

and although she calls him her beloved, he doesnt express much emotion for her. This

could be considered another illustration of masculinity, where women are more prone to

feelings and expression, but men arent.

By now the underskirts of Conrads text are beginning to show. We have seen

evidence of men dominating women, and seeking to dominate territory or nature. At the
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heart of the novelette is a surprise character that emblematically equates the two.

There is an instance where Marlow becomes completely fascinated by a particularly

outstanding African woman. For our purposes, well call her the African Queen. She

was savage and superb, wild-eyed and magnificent... She stood looking at us without a

stir, and like the wilderness itself, with an air of brooding over and inscrutable

purpose(pg. 77). The African Queen is a symbol of the jungle; wild and exotic, a

mystery, and she presents a challenge to men. While she is a woman, she is also depicted

as strong and unyielding, a quality untypical of the women in the story.

Johanna M. Smith offers a similar perspective about the African Queen, calling her the

dark continent of both the African jungle and female sexuality. Smith understands her

role in the story as a representation of sex and desire, the proverbial greener pasture, as it

were, that a man seeking to escape lifes doldrums would find irresistible. These

assumptions lead us to draw new ideas about the enigmatic Mr. Kurtz. In that African

wilderness where life is all about the hunt, we can see how he might have been attracted

to this exotic other woman. One could speculate about the real relationship she and Mr.

Kurtz had developed before Marlow crossed the scene, but her evident power over the

natives shows that she maintains a superior status with or without him. Kurtz lusts for

that power, drawing the conclusion that control over her leads to ultimate control of the

natives. While she retains this power, Kurtz remains in the jungle to seek it.
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In most critical analysis of Conrads Heart of Darkness, you might often see the word

patriarch, in various contexts. I offer you the following definitions, taken from the

Oxford English Dictionary, for consideration.

1. A mature male animal in a flock, herd, or social group, esp. a dominant one; the

oldest, greatest, or most venerable animal or tree in a category or area.

2. A man regarded as the founder or chief typifier of something.

3. In extended use: a male head or ancestor of any people, tribe, or family.

Note that each definition begins with man, and yet the same traits are

recognizable in the African Queen. Although she is not named a chief or figurehead, she

exudes some of the same qualities, and she is not even a man. She is, in a sense, a

combination of the two genders; she is gorgeous and desirable - female characteristics -

yet she is powerful and strong, like a man. In this way she becomes the apex at which

both gender roles meet. Neither submits to the other, and the line becomes rather

indistinct. Smith holds that the African Queen is a symbol of the jungle, as if she were

something to be conquered. Mans lust for woman parallels the hunger for exploration

and acquisition of power or territory. The African Queen is what ties all the elements

together. Just as in the novelette, everything slows and seems to pivot around her for a

shining moment. She is the connection between the ideals of masculinity and femininity.

A man would be the head of his household or chief of his people, and she has the nature
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to be the same. In a very indirect way, she holds foremost significance in refuting the

normalcy of gender roles in colonial society.

 Works Cited

Brown, Richard Harvey. "Cultural Representation and Ideological Domination." Social

Forces 71.3 (1993): 657-676. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 9 Dec.

2010.

Conrad, Joseph. Heart of Darkness. Boston, NY. Bedford/St. Martins, 1996.

Gal, Susan. "Gender and Circulation in East European Politics and Societies: Introduction

to the Special Issue." East European Politics & Societies 20.1 (2006): 7-13.

Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 9 Dec. 2010.

G r a n t, J u d i t h. "Andrea Dworkin and the Social Construction of Gender: A

Retrospective." Signs: Journal of Women in Culture & Society 31.4 (2006): 967

993. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 9 Dec. 2010.

Smith, Johanna M. Too Beautiful Altogether: Ideologies of Gender and Empire in

Heart of Darkness. Boston, NY. Bedford/St. Martins, 1996.