research essay on Heart of Darkness, on one of the topics overleaf or a topic of your own choosing

Write a research essay on Heart of Darkness, on one of the topics overleaf or a topic of your own choosing. Your essay should demonstrate original thought, authentic engagement with the novel you are examining, and intelligent, focused research. You must use at least three scholarly sources in this essay. On November 24, submit your thesis statement and the full list of sources you’ll be using. A completed first draft is due November 26 (5%). Instead of class on December 1 you will be assigned a partner to exchange essays for a peer review, as we did for the analysis (5%). The final draft is due December 3 (10%).

Prepare for this essay by reading Heart of Darkness, making note of the plot but also considering what larger ideas Conrad may be grappling with. Look carefully at literary techniques: character, point of view, image patterns, recurring motifs, etc. Think about what you’ve discovered and develop some ideas of your own into a focused thesis. Search out scholarly criticism and decide which sources to use, keeping a list of relevant sources as you go. Read the critics you’ve chosen and mentally challenge their ideas, noting your early responses. Finally, construct an argument with a strong, well-worded thesis that you find personally challenging and fascinating. Then write an engaging, serious, and grammatically-correct essay. Easy! Integrate quotations smoothly into your essay. Do not drop them into the text without introduction or explanation

. A good way to accomplish this task is to introduce a quotation with your own thought. Here is an example: In The Importance of Being Earnest, Wilde frequently has his characters invert common sayings or conventional wisdom, as when Algernon tells Jack, “You don’t seem to realize that in married life, three is company and two is none” (Wilde 37). Use block quotation for more than three lines of prose (no quotation marks around a block quotation). Essays should be in MLA format,

Pick one of any of these topics, 1925 words University

Need 3 sited quotes, ideas from 3 sources in the essay

1. Colonialism/Imperialism in Heart of Darkness Approaches to this large question might address: Conrad’s Verdict on Colonialism in Heart of Darkness Marlow’s judgement of Kurtz and his actions
2. Civilization v. the Primeval World Marlow is forced to see himself and his fellows in relation not to the human community in which they feel protected and at home, but to a natural world in which they are insignificant and radically insecure. How does Conrad use this contrast in his argument?
3. Images of the dark: “Darkness, dream and nightmare” The relentless images of darkness woven through Conrad’s novel may represent death, violence, oppression of a people, loss (of love, of life), falseness—or nightmare and horror. Darkness may speak to the blind greed of western civilization. Conrad attached great importance to image in writing. Investigate image strands in the book, drawing your own conclusion as to what the darkness conveys.
4. Race and Resistance in Heart of Darkness a) The possibility of native resistance to colonial tyranny (and the threat of the loss of colonial “order”) is a sustained anxiety throughout Heart of Darkness. What is Conrad trying to tell his European audience about the trade they profit from? How does Conrad’s portrayal of white v. non-white characters differ? b) Is Conrad’s novel a critique of colonialism, or an example of it? No book can provide expiation for a whole culture, or for capitalism. But if some crimes are irredeemable, a frank acknowledgment of the crime might lead to a partial remission of sin. Has Conrad written such an acknowledgment, or is Chinua Achebe or Edward Said correct to condem the book as racist?
5. Telling the story: the function of Marlow as narrator The book’s structure depends on shifts in time and narrative threads. Distinguish the various strands to see who narrates each part of the story, and how—and why Conrad chose this way of telling the story, telling the truth or telling the lie. Why does Marlow decide not to tell Kurtz’s fiancée the truth? What other instances of the choice between lies and truth operate in Heart of Darkness?