Heart of Darkness: Nature versus Nurture

The title Heart of Darkness has a direct connection to our lessons at the beginning of the year concerning the nature of man. The title alludes to the fact that people succumb to stresses in their environment (in this case they succumb in a negative way). The environment "molds" the person. Throughout the book, Kurtz is referred to as mysterious, dark, wise, and so on. He is portrayed as somewhat dangerous because of how far he has ventured into the primitive wilderness. Because of Kurtz' surroundings, the unpredictable and pitiless wild, Kurtz becomes savage and primitive in order to survive. For example, Kurtz had decapitated some natives, and he had placed their heads like posts on the fence outside his home. In addition, he frequently went to extremes in order to obtain ivory (killing, etc.). The nature of his experiences in the wild, and the effect they had on molding his character, can best be summed up by his final words: "The horror! The horror!"