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Heart of Darkness · Chapters

Chapters explained

Chapter companions for Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad.

  1. Chapter 1

    I

    Marlow describes his arrival at the Outer Station, witnessing the absurd and exploitative behavior of the colonial agents, the burning of a grass shed, the beating of a native, and first hearing the name of Kurtz. He observes the hypocrisy and futility of the station's operations, the silence of the surrounding wilderness, and later embarks on a grueling two-hundred-mile trek through abandoned villages and oppressive solitude.

  2. Chapter 2

    II

    Marlow describes the journey deeper into the jungle, the eerie stillness and the incomprehensible frenzy of the natives, his struggle to keep the steamboat running, the encounter with the Russian trader, and the growing anticipation of meeting Kurtz as they approach his station.

  3. Chapter 3

    Chapter III

    Marlow pursues Kurtz after his escape into the jungle, confronts him, and persuades him to return to the steamboat. Kurtz is carried back, and during the journey downriver, his health deteriorates rapidly. He dies with the words 'The horror! The horror!' Marlow later returns to Europe and ends his tale.