An Analysis Of Binary Oppositions In Heart Of Darkness

Joseph Conrad(1857-1924)is a pioneer of the English modernist novel.He has had sailing experience for many years.Bing good at writing adventure novels about sea,he is called the "master of sea novel".He is regarded as the representative of the transitional figures from traditionalism to modernism,bridging the outstanding Victorian novels and the best modernist works.With the further deepening of globalization,his works provide us with important references to better understand and deal with the relationship between different cultures.Heart of Darkness,written in 1902,is one of Conrad's major works,being considered to be the first truly modernist novel in the history of English literature.In this work,the author makes a profound reflection on the theme of human civilization and human nature.Therefore,this thesis will focus on the research method of binary opposition.Through the study of binary oppositions in the text,the thesis deepens the theme,and discusses how different civilizations shall exchange and develop.At the same time,the theme of this novel clearly reveals the contact and collision of two civilizations.This thesis will also focus on its reference to the exchanges between modern civilizations.This thesis focuses on the research method of binary opposition.Through the study of binary oppositions in the text,the thesis deepens the theme,and discusses how different civilizations shall exchange and develop.It is divided into five parts,with three chapters between the introduction and conclusion.The first chapter analyzes binary pairs between the themes and draws the conclusion that civilization needs to communicate on the basis of equality,and bloody colonial rules will eventually harm people and colonists themselves.The second chapter analyzes structure using binary opposition.Through the rearrangement and division of the surface structure and inner structure of the novel,it is more conducive to analyze the author's writing intention.Chapter three focuses on the analysis of the binary pairs of characters.From white and black,master and slave,Marlow and Kurtz,and their mutual transformation,we can see that the colonists' uncontrollable behaviors make them become colonized in another sense.