A couple days late....

Last time we talked about the book, the class tried to convince me that heart of darkness was either a psychological trip into Marlow's subconscious, or an observation of colonialism in Africa. Most people in class had evidence to support the psychological trip, for instance the repetition of earth and men imagery through the book, perhaps suggesting a look in the nature of man, and quotes like, "The mind of a man is capable of anything", which seems to indicate a discovery larger than just the discovery of Africa. However, after class Sophie asked Ms. Drezner her opinion, and I have to say, her argument won me over.
The argument that convinced me was really rather a simple one. First and foremost, the book IS basically a journal of Conrad's account of what he saw in Africa. The psychological argument was one that came about later because of uncompfotable feelings toward racism. To say the book is not about colonialism and racism is to almost let the white supremacists in the book off the hook. I think that viewing the book as a coarse look into colonialism is more interesting than our own creating of a psychological journey. Truth is stranger than fiction after all...