FANTASY AND REALITY IN JOSEPH CONRAD’S 'HEART OF DARKNESS'
FANTASY AND REALITY IN JOSEPH CONRAD’S 'HEART OF DARKNESS'

Summary/Abstract: The purpose of the present paper is to reveal the meaning of the double language employed by Western nations in their relationship with less advanced countries. It is of utmost importance to establish to what extent in 'Heart of Darkness', diplomatic language promotes an abiding falsification of the economic, political and social reality that characterised the world at the time of Conrad’s writings. Diplomatic language is often perceived as a form of altering the truth by creating a more positive image of the actions initiated by the great powers in distinct regions of the world. In the context of 'Heart of Darkness', it is assimilated to the imperialist discourse acting as a tool that attempts to disguise the financial interests of certain European countries in a benevolent mission of civilising the Congo Free State. Inevitably there appears a conflict between words and facts, between the good intentions preached by the representatives of influential Western nations and the harsh conditions of life and work that have to be endured by the African people presented in the novella.

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