Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
11. Joseph Conrad immortalized the Congo in his classic modernist novel
Heart of
Darkness
, a topic also considered to have generated many condescending Western
perceptions of sub-Saharan Africa
Coppola's film also came with a tale within a tale, simultaneously generating the docu-
mentary film
Hearts of Darkness,
a record of the making of
Apocalypse Now
that was a
testimony to real-life corruption, decadence, and insanity worthy of the fictional Kurtz. In
all cases - the topic, the film, and the film about the film - the story is told only from the
perspective of the outsiders. No effort is made to understand the alien continent through
which the river flows. This can be criticized as emblematic of Europe's mythologizing of
Africa in general, and of the Congo in particular, and of the USA's blinkered crusade for
freedom and democracy. But this lack of an alternative frame of reference is also essential
to the multi-faceted objectives of each story. Each is intended to be an essentially solitary
journey involving profound spiritual change in the voyager, a mission to the very centre of
things that cannot find simple answers to the questions of human existence. Kurtz's charac-
ter remains as enigmatic as the darkness in which he has taken up residence. In each case,
