In Cry, the Beloved Country, Alan Paton tells the story of his journey through Africa, his experiences with colonized Africa and the destruction of the beautiful , pre-colonialism homeland of Africa. Heart of Darkness also tells the story of a man and his experiences with colonialism, but a man who comes from a different time period and a very different background than Alan Paton's Stephen Kumalo. Although both Joseph Conrad and Alan Paton describe colonized areas as very negative, death-filled and sinful places, it is when analyzing the descriptions of the native lands of Africa that the authors' reasons for their disapproval of colonialism are truly revealed . Comparing the writing styles of Alan Paton and Joseph Conrad, their descriptions of the land and people in both works reveal their different attitudes and views towards colonialism. While Paton and Conrad ultimately oppose colonialism, Paton is concerned about the disappearance of African tribal tradition, while Conrad is concerned about the perceived corruption of white settlers. There are many contributors to the different attitudes and views projected by Paton and Conrad, including the time period in which they were born and their different backgrounds. Alan Paton and Joseph Conrad are from different time periods, which means very different periods of colonialism. Joseph Conrad began writing Heart of Darkness in 1890, during the early stages of colonialism, after beginning his journey through the heart of Africa. Alan Paton, on the other hand, began writing his novel in 1947 when he began to see the effects of colonialism affecting his own home. The time difference between the books may have influenced the vision of...... middle of the sheet......ca there are no big differences between the black and white, there is only the divine and magnificent earth . After exploring the backgrounds of Joseph Conrad and Alan Paton, we realize the differences in their upbringings and how this may have had an effect on their view of Africa. These authors grew up in completely different contexts in completely different time periods; Joseph Conrad in a predominantly white area among those who would be the future settlers of Africa, and Alan Paton in Africa itself among those most affected by colonization. These factors contribute to the different points of view that appear in the respective works. Analyzing the content of their writings, it is evident that although both authors have the same general opinion on colonialism, these opinions are due to two very different reasons.