Narration: Some of the points for the narrative of the text: 1. Frame narrative-story within story 2. First Person Narrator 1: Unnamed person…introduces setting (Nellie)…we meet Marlow through because of him 3. First Person Narrator 2: Marlow. Most of the novel is told through his point of view because he is telling the framed story…because of this the reader’s perspective may be changed because we only see things through Marlow’s eyes. 4. Because of the unnamed narrator…there are breaks in the story allowing the reader to hear commentary on the surroundings. 5. Page 30-break in the story…Marlow questions if people are sleeping. Page 35-break in story…people are not sleeping. 6. Page 38-Marlow questions himself a lot.
I was in Zoe's group and we were discussing narration, so I just wanted to add a few things. Marlow spends a lot of time while telling his story trying to justify it. The frame narrative serves to shows these attempts, and makes his narration seem less reliable.
The style of narration also leads the reader to question the reason for Marlow's telling the story. He seems to feel a propelling desire to tell it, to remember it, and to have it known and remembered. This shows the reader that he is still bound by the story. This creates suspense and leads the reader to wonder about Kurtz and what transpired to keep Marlow perpetually enthralled in his existance.
Also the breaks in the story such as the one on page 30 where the narration shifts to "we listeners" and talks about Marlow as "he" show the views of the listeners. He is seen as the voice from the dark telling the story. This also shows the confusion that the listeners have, and their inability to fully comprehend the story. The listeners appear to be uneasy.
On page 36 the use of hypens shows the extent of his emotions. These are the places where he is tripped up, and reflecting on his feelings. He also edits himself frequently. It seems as though he is trying, but not always suceeding to convey the true picture to the reader.
Finally the questioning he does on page 38 seems as though Marlow is projecting the doubts he has in himself onto the listeners/ readers and trying to justify himself. This way he can get defensive because it is against them not himself.
1. The setting seems to exist as a character in itself -the specificity of the description of the setting evokes the sense that it has its own complex personality -personification is used to make the jungle seem alive. The sea also has its own qualities -this may reflect the concept of animism, because in some cultures native to the Congo, there is a belief that nature is endowed with spirits, particularly of the deceased.
2. Extensive use of desert imagery -desert imagery is used to describe the jungle -this reflects that despite the natural richness of the Congo there is a sense of perpetual thirst and deprivation -presents a vital paradox/binary to the story that provides social commentary on the nature of colonialism
3. People of the Congo (page 17) -description of the people as though they are an extension of the setting -very specific diction--"bundles of acute angles," "moribund shapes"
4. About the Thames -simultaneously symbolizes freedom and imprisonment. For Marlow, the river is an open and free domain, yet he and the others on the boat are stuck with nothing to do in this passage between different ports. -the narrator (prior to Marlow) describes the river respectfully
Okay, so double post from Tommy and I- our group dealt with characters:
1. Marlow is characterized by his obsessions, and his story chronicles his descent into madness. He's only narrating for his own benefit. The point of view changes a few times to exemplify this: "The others might have been asleep, but I was awake" (27).
2. Kurtz is indirectly characterized; we only view him through the keyhole of Marlow's obsession. So, he exists as a sort of myth. He's labeled as a prodigy, a genius, and a master of persuasion.
3. The natives fully exhibit the symptoms of their crazy environment, which makes them an idlest collective. "[The cries] had not the fierce character boding of immediate hostile intention... they had given me an irresistible impression of sorrow" (43). (Well, as nonviolent as they may have seemed from a distant, they attacked anyway.)
4. Most of our knowledge concerning the peripheral characters of the Manager and Uncle in Part II is through a strange conversation that Marlow overhears on the deck of the steamboat.
5. Another minor character is the doctor, whose odd procedures seem to flare a warning signal to Marlow concerning the danger and mystery of the descent into darkness he's about to embark on. The Fates, in the form of two women knitting feverishly in the waiting room, also contribute to the ominous mood that's building.
4 comments:
Narration:
Some of the points for the narrative of the text:
1. Frame narrative-story within story
2. First Person Narrator 1: Unnamed person…introduces setting (Nellie)…we meet Marlow through because of him
3. First Person Narrator 2: Marlow. Most of the novel is told through his point of view because he is telling the framed story…because of this the reader’s perspective may be changed because we only see things through Marlow’s eyes.
4. Because of the unnamed narrator…there are breaks in the story allowing the reader to hear commentary on the surroundings.
5. Page 30-break in the story…Marlow questions if people are sleeping. Page 35-break in story…people are not sleeping.
6. Page 38-Marlow questions himself a lot.
I was in Zoe's group and we were discussing narration, so I just wanted to add a few things. Marlow spends a lot of time while telling his story trying to justify it. The frame narrative serves to shows these attempts, and makes his narration seem less reliable.
The style of narration also leads the reader to question the reason for Marlow's telling the story. He seems to feel a propelling desire to tell it, to remember it, and to have it known and remembered. This shows the reader that he is still bound by the story. This creates suspense and leads the reader to wonder about Kurtz and what transpired to keep Marlow perpetually enthralled in his existance.
Also the breaks in the story such as the one on page 30 where the narration shifts to "we listeners" and talks about Marlow as "he" show the views of the listeners. He is seen as the voice from the dark telling the story. This also shows the confusion that the listeners have, and their inability to fully comprehend the story. The listeners appear to be uneasy.
On page 36 the use of hypens shows the extent of his emotions. These are the places where he is tripped up, and reflecting on his feelings. He also edits himself frequently. It seems as though he is trying, but not always suceeding to convey the true picture to the reader.
Finally the questioning he does on page 38 seems as though Marlow is projecting the doubts he has in himself onto the listeners/ readers and trying to justify himself. This way he can get defensive because it is against them not himself.
About Setting
1. The setting seems to exist as a character in itself
-the specificity of the description of the setting evokes the sense that it has its own complex personality
-personification is used to make the jungle seem alive. The sea also has its own qualities
-this may reflect the concept of animism, because in some cultures native to the Congo, there is a belief that nature is endowed with spirits, particularly of the deceased.
2. Extensive use of desert imagery
-desert imagery is used to describe the jungle
-this reflects that despite the natural richness of the Congo there is a sense of perpetual thirst and deprivation
-presents a vital paradox/binary to the story that provides social commentary on the nature of colonialism
3. People of the Congo (page 17)
-description of the people as though they are an extension of the setting
-very specific diction--"bundles of acute angles," "moribund shapes"
4. About the Thames
-simultaneously symbolizes freedom and imprisonment. For Marlow, the river is an open and free domain, yet he and the others on the boat are stuck with nothing to do in this passage between different ports.
-the narrator (prior to Marlow) describes the river respectfully
Okay, so double post from Tommy and I- our group dealt with characters:
1. Marlow is characterized by his obsessions, and his story chronicles his descent into madness. He's only narrating for his own benefit. The point of view changes a few times to exemplify this: "The others might have been asleep, but I was awake" (27).
2. Kurtz is indirectly characterized; we only view him through the keyhole of Marlow's obsession. So, he exists as a sort of myth. He's labeled as a prodigy, a genius, and a master of persuasion.
3. The natives fully exhibit the symptoms of their crazy environment, which makes them an idlest collective. "[The cries] had not the fierce character boding of immediate hostile intention... they had given me an irresistible impression of sorrow" (43). (Well, as nonviolent as they may have seemed from a distant, they attacked anyway.)
4. Most of our knowledge concerning the peripheral characters of the Manager and Uncle in Part II is through a strange conversation that Marlow overhears on the deck of the steamboat.
5. Another minor character is the doctor, whose odd procedures seem to flare a warning signal to Marlow concerning the danger and mystery of the descent into darkness he's about to embark on. The Fates, in the form of two women knitting feverishly in the waiting room, also contribute to the ominous mood that's building.
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