Heart Of Darkness

                       In Joseph Conrad’s work, Heart of Darkness, four men are on a ship outside Thames. The four men are one Lawyer, one Accountant, Marlow and the ships Captain. At sun down, Marlow recalls that the spot they are in once was the “ darkest place on earth.” He begins his story by describing the old Roman Empire and their conquest of England. Furthermore, Marlow emphasis on how when the Roman’s first invaded the land it was merely a “savage wilderness.” The men imagine what it must have been like for young soldiers to march through what “seems” to be the “unknown.” Marlow’s story forces the reader to contemplate the thoughts and actions of the Roman’s.  He wants us to understand where the Roman’s are coming from as appose to brushing it off. He believes that the only way not to repeat history is to learn from it. For instance, when England later colonized Africa they treated the indigenous people as savages and viewed the land as a “savage wilderness.” This is clear evidence of history repeating itself. By not learning from and understanding the mistakes of the Roman’s, the English later followed in their footsteps. Ironically, both the Roman Empire and the British Empire lost control the their territories and shrunk into small kingdoms. The connection between the Roman Empire and the English Colonization is apparent in that the once one is conquered, it later becomes the conquerer. Before the Roman Empire was created, its original Kings were citizens of Troy. After the Armies of Greece conquered Troy, Romulus and Remus who were decedents of Troy founded Rome. The Roman Empire like that of the British, found its birth by being conquered  by other people. The connection to be made by Marlow's story is that History and repeat itself if not learned from.