Saved Papers

Save papers so you can find them more easily!

Join Now

Get instant access to over 100,000 papers.

Join Now!

Heart Of Darkness

Heart of Darkness
by Joseph Conrad

Marlow’s Modest White Lie

According to the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, the definition of the verb to lie is to make an untrue statement with intent to deceive. In the novel Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad, Marlow lies to Kurtz’s Intended. When asked by Kurtz’s Intended what Kurtz’s last words were, Marlow replies “‘The last word he pronounced was – your name’” (75). Marlow lies to Kurtz’s Intended by telling her that Kurtz’s last name was her name, while Marlow knows that Kurtz’s true last words were “‘The horror! The horror!’” (68). Why does Marlow lie to Kurtz's Intended about Kurtz's last words? Why not tell her the truth, or tell her that Kurtz had no last words, instead of confirming her sentimental ideas?

Although Marlow claims he “hate[s], detest[s], and can’t bear a lie” (29), he was in a situation where telling the truth would have caused a severe amount of grief and pain.......


View the rest of this paper...

Approximate Word Count: 378
Approximate Pages: 2 (250 words per double-spaced page)

Why should you join Frat Files?

  • - It's safe, secure, and private.
  • - Instant access to over 100,000 papers. New papers are added hourly.
  • - Fast and reliable customer support.

Credit Card

PayPal

Bank Account

Similar Essays

  1. Heart Of Darkness

    Heart Of Darkness The Visions of Light Vs Darkness When Joseph Conrad composed Heart of Darkness he created a literary masterpiece which embodied the essence of light contrasting

  2. Heart Of Darkness

    Heart of Darkness Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness does not explicitly deal with a struggle between war and peace: the conflict is a psychological, moral one; however, the text's

  3. Heart Of Darkness

    Heart of Darkness Context JOSEPH CONRAD DID NOT BEGIN TO LEARN ENGLISH until he was twenty-one years old. He was born Jozef Teodor Konrad Korzeniowski on December 3, 1857, in the

  4. Heart Of Darkness

    heart of darkness Various parallels can be drawn when comparing and contrasting Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness and Frank Coppola's "Apocalypse Now", while taking into

  5. Heart Of Darkness

    Heart Of Darkness In Heart of Darkness it is the white invaders for instance, who are, almost without exception, embodiments of blindness, selfishness, and cruelty; and even in