The Horror, the horror...

In Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness, we're introduced to Mr. Kurtz, a dark, demented ivory trader who has lost his mind and 'gone native'--committing unspeakable acts, while he exploits the native population. Hooray for colonialism!

But, simply saying that Kurtz has become a savage and implying that all African tribesman act this way, is unfair and really quite racist, since he is obviously embodying the worst of Africa, not the ordinary.

See: Racism in the Heart of Darkness

In Coppola's Apocalypse Now, a film set in Vietnam and based on Conrad's book, General Corman sums up what war has done to Colonel Kurtz. Corman said, 

“In this war, things get confused out there—power, ideals, the old morality, and practical military necessity . . . because there’s a conflict in every human heart between the rational and the irrational, between good and evil. And good does not always triumph.”

Here Corman blames Kurtz's actions on the environmental effects that war has on the human soul and psyche. But, is there really a good vs. evil conflict in each of us? This is a truly dark and terrible thing to think about, but perhaps its enlightening in lieu of the actions of humanities worst.

Coppola tries to get at the root of what Conrad introduced as 'the horror' through the film's antagonist Colonel Kurtz. And I think Marlon Brando, who plays Kurtz, provides a outstanding performance, which helps explain the heart of darkness. He distills his actions down to the essence of wartime necessity--that judgement defeats us if we let it, so we must overcome it and do what's necessary to win.

Here's some audio from the movie--Brando at his best:




I, for one, disagree and hope that our judgement brings us victory in this life not defeat. But, perhaps I'm just a starry-eyed dreamer. 

No matter what, I still feel, that how we win matters.