??

[Wes]

Ralph, my bet is that the reason you found the grammar so muddled is because your own grammar is muddled. Also, Heart of Darkness is a literary masterpiece due not only in part to its ambiguity, but also to the general context on the nature of mankind. If that is too much for you Ralph, you may want the Cliffs Notes movie version, which is Apocalypse Now. If you've already seen it Ralph, I would bet you did like it. However, I also bet that you didn't understand it (as it is nothing more than a cinematographer's "mental masturbation"), you just liked to see the pretty flashes when things blew up. Anyhow Ralph, I do hope that one day you will realize that just because a book is on your required reading list, it isn't necessarily bad.

[Aaron]

Ralph, your comments about _Heart of Darkness_ saddened me to the core, primarily because it highlighted the incredible literary ignorance of the public. I agree with Wes that you probably didn't understant it not because of its poor construction but because of your poor literary experience. Whether or not you liked this novel is not really an important question, and it definitely doesn't make a damn bit of difference. In the grand scheme of things, boring or not, this novel is a masterpiece of English literature. Personal preference and literary genius are in entirely separate spheres of consideration. Furthermore, beyond philosophical rambling, which too many commenters alluded to here, Conrad's novel is historically important because of its messages about Imperialism and colonization.

[Ashie]

Ralph, your amazing! lol! I totally agree! hahaha . You people get offended when someone criticize's this novel. WOW get a hobby! lol . Reading this novel was horrible. Thinking about reading it makes me cringe. I'd rather pour table salt into my eyes or even chew my own hand off! Yeah! So... Go cry you Conrad Lovers.. THIS BOOK SUCKED!<br>

[Unregistered]

Why does Conrad have to make literature so inaccessible? It seems as if he deliberately tries to make this book as convoluted and boring as possible.<br>Even my lit teacher hates it

[Anna]

To get to the point, I agree with Ralph and Ashie. Just for the record, I do value literature to a certain extent. However, this book was too ambigious. Even critics can never contemplate the full meaning of some of Conrad's words. Conrad did say that he thought words were misleading. You can say that again! I think that it's okay to have a book such as the Heart of Darkness, but I do not think that high school students should have to read such a book and take a test trying to figure out what the true symbolism he is utilizing means. To put it into a better perceptive, I utterly despise the heart of darkness. Read the "Once and Future King!"

[OLP]

Wow Ashie, those sound like good ideas, go ahead, go on, pour the salt in your eyes and chew on your hands. Maybe you can get Raplh to join in.

[Unregistered]

I just thought this book was confusing..it doesn't mean it was a bad book it is just super confusing in the way it was written...books off these college reading lists are all confusing..doesn't anyone agree? Is there any way to understand them better?

[An A.P. student]

Ralph, I read this book this year for an A.P. English assignment. I didn't enjoy the book very much, but was able to understand that it is, indeed, a literary masterpiece. It amazes me that people can brush off a book as "poorly done" simply because they can't handle analyzing its complexities. The "cloudy" writing style adds to the theme and setting of the book. It's about a man taking a journey down a river where civilization and order do not exist. It wouldn't make any sense for the tale to be clear-cut and easy to comprehend. It is a trip into the mind of a man that has seen trouble and learned from it. A trip into anyone's mind (perhaps with the exception of yours) would be intricate and complicated, especially the mind of someone that has suffered from disease and the fatigue of staying strong through the world's temptations. Summing up, I'm willing to bet that I, as a senior in high school, am younger than you and yet I understand that just because I don't necessarily like something doesn't mean that I can't learn from and appreciate it. Some of the greatest minds in the world view Conrad as one of the best writers in history; cash in your ignorance, Ralph, and go buy a clue.

[May]

I agree with Ralph and Ashie. Heart of Darkness has the potential to be interesting but it ended up making you wonder why you ever wasted the time to read the book. The people who defend Conrad, you're entitled, but I don't think it's very nice to mock others just because you don't agree with their viewpoint. Shame on you!

[OzBrad]

To understand this book is to answer this question. I encourage all of you who have criticised Conrad’s work to read it, and then re-read it again. Ask yourself what is "redemptive illusion"? Isn't this concept what Marlow was searching for, embodied in his illusion of Kurtz? This simple tale of Marlow’s journey up the Congo to find the mysterious Kurtz changed my life. It changed the way I look at the world and challenged everything I believed in. It may be a difficult, confusing and challenging text to understand, but believe me its worth it.

[Unregistered]

After reading the comments of the readers who found this novel to be confusing and difficult to read I feel sad about the state of the intellect of the world today. Perhaps if the story was presented as a TV miniseries on Fox it would be better received by the naysayers of the quality of this work.

[sabrina]

I agree with you!!!I found this book boring too and I don't understand why it is considered as a Best seller!

[Desi]

I would like to say that I am a senior in High School and was given this novel to read over the summer. Even though I did not understand it , and abhored the thought of having to read it again just to understand it, I had enough sense to realize that it is an amazing piece of literature. The complexity in the true underlying meaning of the text only makes me appreciate both the book and the author even more. I re-read it a few weeks ago and am able to say that I almost completely understand it ( although some specific parts still elude me ) and I am glad that I did read it again. Conrad's perceptions of civilizations and differences in cultures are so controversial and at times narrow minded that it makes it a pleasure to analyze this work.

[Unregistered]

It's kind of pathetic that a man writing a story in his third language strikes you as hard to understand... maybe you should brush up on your english?!

[adam]

Ok first off, I'm a freshman in highschool, thats right a freshman at a public school in fact and i had to read heart of darkness. Now truely im on page 40 right now and i have quit. I'm actually thinking about going and buying the clift notes just so i can get a better understanding of it. Also, I would like to add that i have read many writings of shakespear and understood them to the full extent so i ask you what kind of an idiot assigns a book like heart of darkness. Oh and also my teacher assigned it over springbreak and its for a history class!