The opposition between black and white in Heart of Darkness In Heart of Darkness Joseph Conrad explores the psychological “heart of darkness” present in all humanity. The text examines the false civilizational enlightenment of European societies, whose internal darkness it obscures, in relation to the psychological environment in which human beings are placed. Conrad contrasts black and white to show the superficial claim to light in European society and the true heart of darkness that is present in all humanity. From the beginning of Marlow's journey to the African Congo it is clear that he is a product of European colonialist society, where the first oppositions between black and white developed. Marlow understands the underlying premises of colonialism, but is unprepared for the ferocity and savagery of the Heart of Darkness. This is especially evident when Marlow encounters the “grove of death,” where many natives are sick and dying, yet Marlow, though confronted, is unable to deal with this foreign situation. He meets a little boy with a piece of white European thread around his neck. In this case, white is usually associated with purity and innocence, but Conrad challenges many of these assumptions, using the white thread as a symbol of the evil of colonialist practices. The white thread remains a constant reminder that it forms a contrast to the black child, seems out of place and artificial and, therefore, is symbolic of colonialist practices. Marlow responds to the situation with questions: "Why? Where did he get it?" (27) - demonstrated that he did not yet understand the effects of imperialism on wild lands. This is further underlined when he provides… halfway through the document… a false “light” of European society. Works Cited and Consulted Adelman, Gary. Heart of Darkness: In Search of the Unconscious. Boston: Little & Brown, 1987. Bradley, Candice. "Africa and Africans in Conrad's Heart of Darkness." (January 24, 1996). Internet online. October 3, 1998. Available: http://www.lawrence.edu/~johnson/heart.Conrad, Joseph. Heart of Darkness. Ed. Robert Kimbrough. 17th ed. New York: Norton, 1988. Levenson, Michael. "The value of facts in the heart of darkness." Nineteenth-Century Fiction 40 (1985): 351-80. Rosmarin, Adena. “Darkening the Reader: Reader Response Critique and the Heart of Darkness.” Joseph Conrad Heart of Darkness: A Case Study in Contemporary Criticism. Ed. Ross C. Murfin. New York: St. Martin's, 1989. Watt, Ian. Corrado in the nineteenth century. San Diego: University of California P, 1979. 168-200, 249-53.