This is a great question, partly because Joseph Conrad's "heart of darkness" could potentially be found in all the options you've listed. However, because you probably have to choose one answer, I'd say that the heart of darkness exists everywhere and is part of mankind is the most correct answer.
One of the overarching themes in the novel is the darkness, evil, and violence that resides in the heart of all humans. Marlow witnesses it...
This is a great question, partly because Joseph Conrad's "heart of darkness" could potentially be found in all the options you've listed. However, because you probably have to choose one answer, I'd say that the heart of darkness exists everywhere and is part of mankind is the most correct answer.
One of the overarching themes in the novel is the darkness, evil, and violence that resides in the heart of all humans. Marlow witnesses it firsthand as a manifestation of colonial conquest: those who help the company to enslave natives and steal ivory from the Congo become twisted, greedy, and corrupted. Kurtz is a perfect example of this trend: originally an arrogant but idealistic individual, he gradually loses his senses, commits terrible crimes, and dies a wretched death.
It would be a mistake to assume that this tendency is unique to Kurtz. Before Marlow embarks on his adventure, a doctor who inspects him asserts that those who venture off into Africa in search of ivory return changed. The implication here is that all people, not just Kurtz, have hearts of darkness, and certain experiences, such as engaging in colonial conquest, reveal this inherent rottenness. Though we tend to assume that civilization has reigned in the more primitive and violent tendencies of humanity, these qualities haven't actually disappeared. Instead, they're still somewhere inside of us, waiting to be brought back into the open. As such, we should assume that, for Conrad, the "heart of darkness" is one of humanity's essential qualities.
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