Undergraduate Review Volume 10 | Issue 1

Article 6

1997

Civilization and Savagery in Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness and Francis Ford Coppola's Apocalypse Now Laura Kesselring '97 Illinois Wesleyan University

Recommended Citation Kesselring '97, Laura (1997) "Civilization and Savagery in Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness and Francis Ford Coppola's Apocalypse Now," Undergraduate Review: Vol. 10: Iss. 1, Article 6. Available at: http://digitalcommons.iwu.edu/rev/vol10/iss1/6

This Article is brought to you for free and open access by The Ames Library, the Andrew W. Mellon Center for Curricular and Faculty Development, the Office of the Provost and the Office of the President. It has been accepted for inclusion in Digital Commons @ IWU by the faculty at Illinois Wesleyan University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. ©Copyright is owned by the author of this document.

Kesselring '97: Civilization and Savagery in Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness an

IE UNDERGRADUATE REVIEW

lal Academy Press, 1995.

inted with HIV." Bangkok Post 23 Feb. 1996.

at AIDS, stop Preaching." World Press Review

Civilization and Savagery in Joseph

Conrad's Heart of Darkness and Francis

Ford CoppoJa's Apocalypse Now

Laura Kesselring

In Apocalypse Now, the film adaptation of Joseph Conrad's novel Heart of Darkness, Francis Ford Coppola uses the transformation of Captain Willard to characterize the power of the savagery inherent in all humanity; this view contests Conrad's character Marlow, who affirms the models of Western civilization above any primordial instincts by his resistance to those instincts. To be civilized, according to the New American Webster's Dictionary, is to be "educated in the usages of organized society"; before their journey into the jungle (the "heart of darkness"), both Marlow and Willard live according to certain standards of value prevalent in the civilized, orderly world. These values include morality, class, wealth, intellect, and religion, and make up the way one sees oneself in relation to others and to the world-one's identity. These values are challenged in the "heart of darkness," and while Marlow retains his principles of civilized thought, Willard cannot aban­ don the truth of his origins and rejects the standards to which he once subscribed. In departing from the book's direction, Coppola makes the "heart of darkness" universally accessible, especially to the viewers of his film; he suggests that any human being can be seduced like Willard and the antagonist Kurtz, dismissing Conrad's portrayal of Kurtz as an isolated deviant. Published by Digital Commons @ IWU, 1997 21

1

.­

Undergraduate Review, Vol. 10, Iss. 1 [1997], Art. 6

22

CIVILIZATION AND SAVAI

THE UNDERGRADUATE REVIEW

In both the novel and the film, the standpoint of the narrator is crucial to the reader's or viewer's perception of him. Conrad constructs his novel as a tale told by Marlow in retrospect, which reveals Marlow's physical and emotional distance from the "heart of darkness." Even before hearing the story's conclusion, the reader knows that Marlow did not succumb to the power of the jungle; this is established by his civi­ lized existence outside the "heart of darkness" as a storytelling seaman in London after the fact. Coppola, on the-other hand, translates Conrad's retrospection into an unpremeditated monologue, exposing Willard's thoughts throughout the story. This adaptation stays true to the novel by transforming Conrad's elaborate descriptions into a spoken narrative, aiding the viewer in passages where the story progresses through the main character's mental deliberation. However, the viewer also feels the acute immediacy of Willard's journey, and there is a sus­ pense surrounding his character's outcome that is not present in Heart of Darkness. Willard's gradual conversion to a more savage, elemental outlook (in the present time) allows the viewer to feel what he experi­ ences; in Conrad's novel, however, the reader observes from Marlow's distant perspective, assured of his deliverance from the "heart of dark­ ness." Marlow and Willard begin their journeys with similar back­ grounds. Marlow, a seaman with a penchant for exploring, lives primar­ ily within European civilized standards; he tells his companions on the Thames that after sailing on the Indian Ocean, the Pacific Ocean, and the China Seas, "I had got a heavenly mission to civilize ..." (Conrad 215). Although rather independent ("I always went my own road ..." [Conrad 216]), he seeks ajob as captain of a steamboat for "the Company," and submits, on paper, to its statutes: "I flew around like mad to get ready ... show myself to my employers, and sign the con­ tract" (Conrad 218). Willard, under contract to the American military, is a successful assassin in that his superiors trust him to complete a deli­ cate assignment, Kurtz's termination. In the same way, both Kurtzs had subscribed to the respective maxims of the Company and the military; upon their falls from grace, however, the Company describes Kurtz as http://digitalcommons.iwu.edu/rev/vol10/iss1/6 ~-_._-------

--~-_.-

"unsound ... shows a complete want of judI while Willard's superior accuses Kurtz of "0 restraint. ... Very obviously he has gone ins These parallels are instrumental in establishi Marlow and Willard originate and from whic digresses but Marlow does not. Marlow feels that the mystery behind) transformation lies in the jungle, in what Co of darkness." The "overwhelming realities c plants, and water, and silence" (Conrad 244) ronment, and Marlow senses that he is litera: entering another. As he moves further away fundamentally connected to his surrounding~ "thrilled" at the idea of a "remote kinship wi uproar" (Conrad 246). However, Marlow is found relationship with the "heart of darkne~ of its power. He says, "When you have to at dents of the surface, the reality-the reality, inner truth is hidden-luckily, luckily. But I often its mysterious stillness watching me .. speaks of a "truth," a connection that transce common passion and savagery of human nat retained throughout the ages and that here, it common to all humanity, including Marlow; power which drew Kurtz irreversibly toward of mind, Marlow concludes that "he could n_ ably lost" (Conrad 279) from logic and conv nation with Kurtz, Marlow is content to men tal truth and existence, ultimately returning t This satisfaction is absent from Willarc personal justification beyond his official mili Kurtz; searching the dossier for a glimpse in­ to know the man that first "broke from them' himself." Conrad feels that the mystery of tI­

2

1

•

Kesselring '97: Civilization and Savagery in Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness an

HE UNDERGRADUATE REVIEW

ad the film, the standpoint of the narrator is viewer's perception of him. Conrad constructs if Marlow in retrospect, which reveals Marlow's listance from the "heart of darkness." Even s conclusion, the reader knows that Marlow did :r of the jungle; this is established by his civi­ le "heart.of darkness" as a storytelling seaman Coppola, on the-other hand, translates Ito an unpremeditated monologue, exposing ~hout the story. This adaptation stays true to g Conrad's elaborate descriptions into a spoken ~er in passages where the story progresses ter's mental deliberation. However, the viewer ~diacy of Willard's journey, and there is a sus­ lafacter's outcome that is not present in Heart ~radual conversion to a more savage, elemental me) allows the viewer to feel what he experi­ ,however, the reader observes from Marlow's red of his deliverance from the "heart of dark­

·d begin their journeys with similar backnan with a penchant for exploring, lives primar­ lized standards; he tells his companions on the ~ on the Indian Ocean, the Pacific Ocean, and ot a heavenly mission to civilize ..." (Conrad Idependent ("I always went my own road ..." a job as captain of a steamboat for "the on paper, to its statutes: "I flew around like lW myself to my employers, and sign the con­ llard, under contract to the American military, is that his superiors trust him to complete a deli­ . termination. In the same way, both Kurtzs had tive maxims of the Company and the military; lce, however, the Company describes Kurtz as

CIVILIZATION AND SAVAGERY

23

"unsound ... shows a complete want of judgement" (Conrad 275), while Willard's superior accuses Kurtz of "operating without any decent restraint. ... Very obviously he has gone insane" (Apocalypse Now). These parallels are instrumental in establishing a point from which Marlow and Willard originate and from which Willard irrevocably digresses but Marlow does not. Marlow feels that the mystery behind Kurtz's disappearance and transformation lies in the jungle, in what Conrad refers to as the "heart of darkness." The "overwhelming realities of this strange world of plants, and water, and silence" (Conrad 244) suggest a primordial envi­ ronment, and Marlow senses that he is literally leaving one world and entering another. As he moves further away from civilization, he feels fundamentally connected to his surroundings and to the natives, "thrilled" at the idea of a "remote kinship with this wild and passionate uproar" (Conrad 246). However, Marlow is not blinded by this new­ found relationship with the "heart of darkness," but is instead conscious of its power. He says, "When you have to attend to ... the mere inci­ dents of the surface, the reality-the reality, I tell you-fades. The inner truth is hidden-luckily, luckily. But I felt it all the same; I felt often its mysterious stillness watching me ..." (Conrad 244). Here he speaks of a "truth," a connection that transcends time and civilization, a common passion and savagery of human nature that the natives have retained throughout the ages and that here, in the "heart of darkness," is common to all humanity, including Marlow and Kurtz. Observing this power which drew Kurtz irreversibly toward a primitive, instinctual state of mind, Marlow concludes that "he could not have been more irretriev­ ably lost" (Conrad 279) from logic and convention; in spite of his fasci­ nation with Kurtz, Marlow is content to merely observe this fundamen­ tal truth and existence, ultimately returning to civilization. This satisfaction is absent from Willard's drive for truth. He seeks personal justification beyond his official military orders for terminating Kurtz; searching the dossier for a glimpse into Kurtz's soul, he desires to know the man that first "broke from them" and then "broke from himself." Conrad feels that the mystery of the "heart of darkness" in the Published by Digital Commons @ IWU, 1997

,..-.-------------------,.

3

­

Undergraduate Review, Vol. 10, Iss. 1 [1997], Art. 6

24

CIVILIZATION AND SAY

THE UNDERGRADUATE REVIEW

novel is too dangerous to. explore, citing Kurtz's fate as proof of its power. However, Coppola paints Willard as a man obsessed with pene­ trating the conundrum of Kurtz; Willard feels that to kill Kurtz he must first understand him, but once he permeates the mystery of the "heart of darkness," he is unable to return to his innocence. Willard feels the same connection to the savagery of the jungle and its people that Marlow does. His profession as a military assassin is a civilized, rea­ soned form of killing, but these regulated limits begin to blur as he moves deeper into the "heart of darkness" and away from military influ­ ence. In the film, a snag in Willard's mission occurs in the form of a wounded Vietnamese girl on a passing boat; he kills her without remorse, determined at this point to let nothing stand in the way of his journey. This is a sign of a fundamental change in his value system-he sheds his morality and military conduct in favor of instinct and selfish desire. After killing the girl, Willard himself admits that "Those boys were never going to look at me the same way again, but I felt like I knew one or two things about Kurtz that weren't in the dossier" (Apocalypse Now); he is altered inwardly as well as outwardly. In Heart ofDarkness, Marlow addresses the meaninglessness of civilized conventions in the heart of the jungle; in the wilderness, he says man "must meet the truth with his own true stuff-with his own inborn strength. Principles won't do. Acquisitions, clothes, pretty rags-rags that would fly off at the first good shake" (Conrad 247). However, instead of permanently discarding these standards, Marlow retains his Western value system and accepts both outlooks on life for their applications in different situations. This balance is upset in Apocalypse Now when Willard approaches Kurtz's end of the river. Tossing Kurtz's dossier into the water (a symbolic rejection of the mili­ tary and their judgement of Kurtz), he leaves his prior belief systems behind and yields to the power of the jungle and whatever lies ahead in Kurtz's world. In the novel, the manager responds to Kurtz's actions with proper Company procedure, declaring, "It is my duty to point [Kurtz's actions] out in the proper quarter" (Conrad 275). However, http://digitalcommons.iwu.edu/rev/vol10/iss1/6

Company policy is meaningless to Kurtz. ' "the inconceivable mystery of a soul that k and no fear ..." (Conrad 274); he does not Company and civilization do, according to forsaken. Finally, the dichotomy in the fates of evident from the final scenes of both the ne Darkness, Kurtz has irrevocably retreated i: into "the wilderness ... that seemed to dfa' by the wakening of forgotten and brutal ins However, Marlow is able to withstand such enters Kurtz's realm after witnessing the co Kurtz's fate is absolute; Marlow believes th taken him, loved him, embraced him, got ir flesh, and sealed his soul to its own ..." (C vives the transition from jungle to civilizati soul behind: "The brown current ran swift!) ... and Kurtz's life was running swiftly, tOI heart into the sea of inexorable time" (Com poraneity and value systems of the modem the "heart of darkness," Conrad upholds the survival and narration of Kurtz's story. On the other hand, the death of Apocc tated by the savagery of basic human natun camp, Willard is "baptized" in rain and mUI his kinship with them. The finality of Will. fests itself in the instinctual, savage mannel "termination" itself resembles one creature ty within a group, and places Willard on the Kurtz. Coppola places his actions on a par; ter of the ox; Willard emerges the victoriou .fices himself to the '~heart of darkness." Kl primordial connection with the jungle, retu: death; in essence, Kurtz belongs to the "he.

4

1 1

[Ii

Kesselring '97: Civilization and Savagery in Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness an UNDERGRADUATE REVIEW

explore, citing Kurtz's fate as proof of its a paints Willard as a man obsessed with pene­ Kurtz; Willard feels that to kill Kurtz he must once he permeates the mystery of the "heart of I return to his innocence. Willard feels the lvagery of the jungle and its people that sion as a military assassin is a civilized, rea­ t these regulated limits begin to blur as he ~art of darkness" and away from military influ­

n Willard's mission occurs in the form of a on a passing boat; he kills her without lis point to let nothing stand in the way of his , a fundamental change in his value system-he ilitary conduct in favor of instinct and selfish ~irl, Willard himself admits that "Those boys at me the same way again, but I felt like I Ibout Kurtz that weren't in the dossier" altered inwardly as well as outwardly. ss, Marlow addresses the meaninglessness of he heart of the jungle; in the wilderness, he truth with his own true stuff-with his own es won't do. Acquisitions, clothes, pretty I off at the first good shake" (Conrad 247). Ilanently discarding these standards, Marlow system and accepts both outlooks on life for :rent situations. This balance is upset in rillard approaches Kurtz's end of the river. nto the water (a symbolic rejection of the mili­ of Kurtz), he leaves his prior belief systems power of the jungle and whatever lies ahead in vel, the manager responds to Kurtz's actions ocedure, declaring, "It is my duty to point he proper quarter" (Conrad 275). However,

CIVILIZATION AND SAVAGERY

25

Company policy is meaningless to Kurtz. To Marlow, Kurtz possesses "the inconceivable mystery of a soul that knew no restraint, no faith, and no fear .. ." (Conrad 274); he does not judge Kurtz, as the Company and civilization do, according to the standards that Kurtz has forsaken. Finally, the dichotomy in the fates of Marlow and Willard is most evident from the final scenes of both the novel and the film. In Heart of Darkness, Kurtz has irrevocably retreated into the "heart of darkness," into "the wilderness ... that seemed to draw him to its pitiless breasts by the wakening of forgotten and brutal instincts ..." (Conrad 279). However, Marlow is able to withstand such an entrapment when he enters Kurtz's realm after witnessing the consequences of such a choice. Kurtz's fate is absolute; Marlow believes that "The wilderness ... had taken him, loved him, embraced him, got into his veins, consumed his flesh, and sealed his soul to its own ..." (Conrad 260). Marlow sur­ vives the transition from jungle to civilization, while Kurtz leaves his soul behind: "The brown current ran swiftly out of the heart of darkness ... and Kurtz's life was running swiftly, too, ebbing, ebbing out of his heart into the sea of inexorable time" (Conrad 282). While the contem­ poraneity and value systems of the modem world are dead to Kurtz in the "heart of darkness," Conrad upholds their strength through Marlow's survival and narration of Kurtz's story. On the other hand, the death of Apocalypse Now's Kurtz was dic­ tated by the savagery of basic human nature. On his arrival at Kurtz's camp, Willard is "baptized" in rain and mud by the natives, symbolizing his kinship with them. The finality of Willard's transformation mani­ fests itself in the instinctual, savage manner in which he kills Kurtz; the "termination" itself resembles one creature killing another for superiori­ ty within a group, and places Willard on the same level of "insanity" as Kurtz. Coppola places his actions on a parallel with the natives' slaugh­ ter of the ox; Willard emerges the victorious hunter while Kurtz sacri­ fices himself to the ".heart of darkrless." Kurtz's blood symbolizes his primordial connection with the jungle, returning to the earth after his death; in essence, Kurtz belongs to the "heart of darkness" and has sev­ Published by Digital Commons @ IWU, 1997

----------------------------",.

5

'

.......

1

1 i

Undergraduate Review, Vol. 10, Iss. 1 [1997], Art. 6

26

CIVILIZATION AND SA'

THE UNDERGRADUATE REVIEW

ered any ties to his family and to civilization. Coppola illustrates the dominance of the savage and the instinctual over Willard's learned con­ ventions; rather than using a more convenient and logical form of assas­ sination (such as bullets or poison), Willard reverts to the savage hunter within his being, stalking and finally "slaughtering" Kurtz. Willard's severance from his former civilized life and values is complete; as he leaves the camp, he turns off the radio, a construct of civilization and the military, and departs for an unknown destination. The viewer, hav­ ing felt his transformation, knows that he will not return to the military, nor to his place in civilized society. In Heart of Darkness, Conrad manifests his belief in the strength of Western value systems through the character of Marlow. Faced with the horror of his own brutal origins, Marlow keeps a perspective that returns him, secure in his identity, to London. This image is a contrast to Conrad's Kurtz, whose divergence from the path of civilized reason is attributed to emotional weakness and insanity; Marlow reports, "his soul was mad" (Conrad 280). On the other hand, Coppola illustrates the fun­ damental need for Willard to return to jungle savagery in Apocalypse Now; his survival in the "heart of darkness" is contingent upon the shed­ ding of constructs of both civilization and the military. In the novel, Conrad expects his readers to relate to Marlow as a narrator and similar­ ly arrive at the same conclusions by the story's end. By drawing his viewers into Willard's mind with the immediacy of the action, Coppola connects them fundamentally to the "heart of darkness" and to Willard's transformation and reassessment of values. This break from Conrad's point of view causes the viewer of Apocalypse Now to question their own belief systems, whereas Conrad's reader is reassured of the rele­ vance of such values.

http://digitalcommons.iwu.edu/rev/vol10/iss1/6

WORKS CIT)

Conrad, Joseph. Great Short Works oflosl Harper & Row, 1966. Apocalypse Now. Dir. Francis Ford Coppc

6

4

Kesselring '97: Civilization and Savagery in Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness an HE UNDERGRADUATE REVIEW

y and to civilization. Coppola illustrates the and the instinctual over Willard's learned con­ 19 a more convenient and logical fonn of assas­

or poison), Willard reverts to the savage hunter ~ and finally "slaughtering" Kurtz. Willard's ~r civilized life and values is complete; as he : off the radio, a construct of civilization and for an unknown destination. The viewer, hav­ n, knows that he will not return to the military, ed society. ss, Conrad manifests his belief in the strength , through the character of Marlow. Faced with tal origins, Marlow keeps a perspective that ; identity, to London. This image is a contrast ~ divergence from the path of civilized reason is 'eakness and insanity; Marlow reports, "his soul On the other hand, Coppola illustrates the fun­ d to return to jungle savagery in Apocalypse 'heart of darkness" is contingent upon the shed­ 1 civilization and the military. In the novel, rs to relate to Marlow as a narrator and similar­ ~lusions by the story's end. By drawing his ind with the immediacy of the action, Coppola tally to the "heart of darkness" and to Willard's ~ssment of values. This break from Conrad's viewer of Apocalypse Now to question their ~eas Conrad's reader is reassured of the rele-

CIVILIZATION AND SAVAGERY

27

WORKS CITED Conrad, Joseph. Great Short Works of Joseph Conrad. New York: Harper & Row, 1966. Apocalypse Now. Dir. Francis Ford Coppola. United Artists, 1979.

Published by Digital Commons @ IWU, 1997

7

-