Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness: Symbolism of Light and Dark What are the characterizations of a civilized person? Is it a person who conforms to a standard social molding, which "we" determine, sophisticated? Is it being education and staying within the societal stereotypes? In Joseph Conrad's 1901 literary masterpiece, Heart of Darkness, these concepts of what is considered to be "civilized" in our European-adopted culture is the main theme of the story. Conrad's theory that when …showed first 75 words of 987 total…

…showed last 75 words of 987 total…savage. Joseph Conrad's novel Heart of Darkness takes on a physical journey through the lightness and the darkness. Marlow is on his quest for the inner truth where he must find the light and the dark within himself. He must find reality, his "self", to be free to understand the complexity of life that surrounds him. Conrad's use of symbolism, metaphors, and irony was crucial in the portraying the overall premise of Heart of Darkness.