I read Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad, here's what I think

By Lake_Frog

No spoilers from me. About three months ago I read *Heart of Darkness* by Joseph Conrad. The book I had wasn’t super long, and it also included a couple of his other short stories. More on that in a second. The story opens on the Thames in London. Marlow (the main guy) starts a voyage, and it doesn’t take long to realize it’s headed to the African sub-continent. It feels more like a slow, thoughtful journey than anything action-packed—sort of sober and heavy as it describes the rough, feverish wilderness of Africa, the untamed landscape, and Marlow slowly realizing what it all really looks like. It doesn’t exactly feel like there’s any mercy there. It’s like Africa just swallows people, kind of the same way the crocodile goes after the impala. There’s also a lot going on about exploiting African land, like hopes and dreams get crushed there, and it’s hard to tame any of it. And it leaves you thinking about the moral side of slavery, too. The other stories in the collection are kind of similar in vibe—more meditative thoughts about people traveling to different places, and lives that end up going wrong. Overall, I’d definitely recommend *Heart of Darkness*.