|
Featured English Song
Select Free Essays
 |
|
|
Black
is student's original writing
Blue is teacher's correction
Red is teacher's explanation
 |
Human Nature
Essay, English Composition Writing on Human Nature
Human nature is one of
the most thoroughly studied topics in human history. Even today the
battle rages over human nature and how it is influenced by
upbringing, society, and the context surrounding our lives. In our
era, this argument takes place in many disciplines and many areas of
study, from the labs of the psychologists to the political arenas
and philosopher’s papers. In one book, published at the turn of the
century, we are able to see a glimpse of this battle, a subliminal
and subtle argument about the existence of human nature. Living in a
time of colonial and imperial expansions and the racism accompanying
them, Conrad uses his literature as a criticism of the times and the
injustices he saw on a daily basis and during his own trip up the
Congo.
The time period of Conrad’s life, and the context it was written in,
had a large influence on personal views of Conrad and contributed to
his writing. As a political commentary, the African theme in the
Heart of Darkness was common at the time of its release. Indeed, the
world was in a “scramble for Africa” (Coffin, pg. 862) at the time,
and was gobbling up every chunk of land it could find. Every
industrialized nation was trying to get its hands on as much African
land as possible, in a “whole new scale of plunder” (Coffin, pg
865). Writing this book right in the midst of all the highest points
of colonialism and imperial expansion, Conrad was aware of these
events going on, and the fascination with that dark-skinned other;
“the African”.
Well, The Heart of Darkness has been lambasted time and again for
its use of racism and the way Conrad has portrayed Africa and
Africans as a foil for Europe and colonialism. Chinua Achebe, in his
critical essay of the Heart of Darkness, says as much, wondering
aloud why Conrad picked Africa to contrast Europe, which was then
considered the “civilized” or reasonable part of the earth. As part
of a larger context in the Heart of Darkness this is a valid yet
moot point. In order to point out the social problems and their
meanings to our concept of human nature, Conrad, whether or not he
“had a problem with niggers” (Achebe, Pg. 345), had to contrast
Europeans against another group of people to prove a point. Whether
he had used Southeast Asia, Madagascar, or any other place in the
world affected by colonialism and the blatant contradictions of
those encounters, there would have been racist words and
implications against those respective peoples. The point that Achebe
brings up, that this book contains racist views or Africans, is an
important one, but in fact what we should remember, and perhaps that
Conrad points out, is that colonialism and these interactions
between the West and the rest of the world at this time were
inherently racist in every context and in every location. At its
core, however, this is not a story about racism. Instead, the
underlying theme is that civilization is merely superficial. Once
taken away from the external physical and moral environments, human
nature is quick to return to its primal roots.
The suggestion that we have rationally grown away from some parts of
our human nature has been greatly supported by Freudian work. The
suggestion that we are at the mercies or our Id and our Superego,
which are only kept in check by the conscious and rational thought
of society, is the main idea in the Heart of Darkness. To prove this
point, Conrad continuously gives the “civilized” characters of the
book, who travel into the unknown, actions and feelings that we
should think are unbecoming of them. It even extends beyond the
immediate story of Europeans in the Congo to the Romans who feel the
“powerless disgust, the surrender, the hate” (Conrad, Pg. 20) of
their own explorations of a “dark place”: early Britain. The same
goes for the European people who were sent with an altruistic
purpose. Somewhere, we must think, something got lost in the
translation from altruistic purpose to slave holder and exploiter.
The author begins these human deteriorations with Marlow’s
predecessor, who, though the “gentlest, quietest creature” (Conrad,
Pg. 23) ended up beating on an old native because of a sale of hens.
Why then would a man who is sent on a noble civilizing mission then
snap? The same goes for one of the first white men Marlow meets, who
was resisting “the great demoralization of the land”. At this point
we start to wonder, what is it about this place, so far from an
industrial Europe, that he must use his starched collars to face?
This is where we are introduced to Kurtz. As a character he is
introduced to us as a manifestation of all the great things Europe
set out to do in Africa. He is a focus point of the quest to find
human nature, because though he was the man that wanted to make his
station the beacon on the hill, he is also the farthest point into
the interior, and is the most isolated and alone.
It then shouldn’t surprise us that Kurtz, as the prototype of
European ideals, has fallen the farthest of all those on the
continent. In his ambition to bring the light to the very heart of
the dark continent, he left himself open to the temptations afforded
him in leaving his society. In effect, he, like the Roman captain in
Britain, felt the “fascination of the abomination” (Conrad, Pg. 20)
as well. At some point Kurtz, perhaps unknowingly, began to take
control of the natives he met, and even start to become immersed in
their rituals and cultures. Much different than just being in
another cultural setting, Kurtz loses his entire identity to the
tribes he trades with. He loses the cultural aspect of the European
and becomes just like the African. In a Freudian way of speaking, he
reverts back to a more natural state as his Super Ego, the part of
him that wants to conform to society norms, is stripped away and
gives in to the “darkness”: his Id. In this primal state he
surrounds himself in this primitive darkness and begins to “forget
himself among these people” (Conrad, pg. 93) you could say that this
is a regression that probably happened to those Romans, conquering
the same darkness in Europe. As Marlow calls it, he had the “The
awakening of forgotten and brutal instincts” (Conrad, Pg. 106) and
the Id, in the end almost took over. Only the influence of another
European that had not given into the influence saved him, telling
him “You will be lost…utterly lost” (Conrad, Pg. 106). This is the
conflict people have studied for years, the ever raging battle
between civilization and the state that exists without
civilization’s restraints.
The collapse of the European, from Kurtz to the Swede that hung
himself, after arriving in this antithesis of Europe can be summed
up in one quote.
“...But if you were man enough, you would admit to yourself that
there was in you just the faintest trace of a response to the
terrible frankness of that noise, a dim suspicion of there being a
meaning in it which you -you so remote from the night of first ages
could comprehend. And why not? The mind of man is capable of
anything-because everything is in it, all the past as well as all
the future. “ (Conrad, pg. 63)
Here Conrad gives his main point. Not only do we relate to the
people that were being constantly abused and exploited but we when
we compare ourselves side by side with them, we can see the
similarities they had been trying for decades to deny through the
use of rhetoric like “savage” and “uncivilized”. This quote suggests
that at our cores we are not so different from the people whose
language or cultures are different from ours, we all came from the
same place, and maybe, just maybe, the only difference is our
experiences and upbringing.
In total, there are dominant themes of racism, colonialism and
imperialism in The Heart of Darkness, but there is a more subtle
message to the constant comparisons between the European and the
African. These hidden messages offer us a backlash against Conrad’s
own time and a critical portrayal of those themes that Conrad had
offered in his book. This critical comparison has given us an idea
of a human nature, as shown through the way everyone with a European
way of life starts to break down as soon as they left their own
society. Conrad is telling us a subliminal message here: no matter
the race, we are still human and still have the same origins.
Essay Example 2: Human Nature
Gaozi said: "The nature
of man may be likened to the willow tree, whereas righteousness may
be likened to wooden cups and wicker baskets. To turn man's nature
into humanity and righteousness is like turning a willow tree into
cups and baskets." Mencius replied: "Sir, can you follow the nature
of the willow tree, and make the cups and baskets? Or must you
violate its nature to make the cups and baskets? If you must violate
the nature of the willow tree to turn it into cups and baskets, then
don't you mean you must also violate the nature of man to turn it
into humanity and righteousness? Your words, alas, would incite
everyone in the world to regard humanity and righteousness as a
curse!"
Gaozi said: "The nature of man may be likened to a swift current of
water: you lead it eastward and it will flow to the east; you lead
it westward and it will flow to the west. Human nature is neither
disposed to good nor to evil, just as water is neither disposed to
east nor west." Mencius replied: "It is true that water is neither
disposed to east nor west, but is it neither disposed to flowing
upward nor downward? The tendency of human nature to do good is like
that of water to flow downward. There is no man who does not tend to
do good; there is no water that does not flow downward. Now you may
strike water and make it splash over your forehead, or you may even
force it up the hills. But is this in the nature of water? It is of
course due to the force of circumstances. Similarly, man may be
brought to do evil, and that is because the same is done to his
nature."
Gaozi said: "Nature is what is born in us." Mencius asked: "'Nature
is what is born in us'—is it not the same as saying white is white?"
"Yes," said Gaozi. Mencius asked: "Then the whiteness of a white
feather is the same as the whiteness of white snow, and the
whiteness of white snow the same as the whiteness of white jade?"
"Yes," Gaozi replied. Mencius asked: "Well, then, the nature of a
dog is the same as the nature of a cow, and the nature of a cow the
same as the nature of a man, is it not?"
Gaozi said: "The appetite for food and sex is part of our nature.
Humanity comes from within and not from without, whereas
righteousness comes from without and not from within." Mencius
asked: "What do you mean when you say that humanity comes from
within while righteousness comes from without?" Gaozi replied: "When
I see anyone who is old I regard him as old. This regard for age is
not a part of me. Just as when I see anyone who is white I regard
him as white, because I can observe the whiteness externally. For
this reason I say righteousness comes from without." Mencius said:
"Granted there is no difference between regarding the white horse as
white and the white man as white. But is there no difference between
one's regard for age in an old horse and one's regard for age in an
old man, I wonder? Moreover, is it old age itself or our respectful
regard for old age that constitutes a point of righteousness?" Gaozi
persisted: "My own brother I love; the brother of a man of Qin I do
not love. Here the sanction for the feeling rests in me, and
therefore I call it [i.e., humanity] internal. An old man of Chu I
regard as old, just as an old man among my own people I regard as
old. Here the sanction for the feeling lies in old age, and
therefore I call it [i.e., righteousness] external." Mencius
answered him: "We love the Qin people's roast as much as we love our
own roast. Here we have a similar situation with respect to things.
Would you say, then, that this love of roast is also something
external?"
The disciple Kongdu Zi said: "Gaozi says that human nature is
neither good nor bad. Some say that human nature can be turned to be
good or bad. Thus when [sage-kings] Wen and Wu were in power the
people loved virtue; when [wicked kings] Yu and Li were in power the
people indulged in violence. Some say that some natures are good and
some are bad. Thus even while [the sage] Yao was sovereign there was
the bad man Xiang, even a bad father like Gusou had a good son like
[the sage-king] Shun, and even with [the wicked] Zhou for nephew and
king there were the men of virtue Qi, the Viscount of Wei, and the
Prince Pigan. Now, you say that human nature is good. Are the others
then all wrong?" Mencius replied: "When left to follow its natural
feelings human nature will do good. This is why I say it is good. If
it becomes evil, it is not the fault of man's original capability.
The sense of mercy is found in all men; the sense of shame is found
in all men; the sense of respect is found in all men; the sense of
right and wrong is found in all men. The sense of mercy constitutes
humanity; the sense of shame constitutes righteousness; the sense of
respect constitutes decorum (li); the sense of right and wrong
constitutes wisdom. Humanity, righteousness, decorum, and wisdom are
not something instilled into us from without; they are inherent in
our nature. Only we give them no thought. Therefore it is said:
'Seek and you will find them, neglect and you will lose them.' Some
have these virtues to a much greater degree than others—twice, five
times, and incalculably more—and that is because those others have
not developed to the fullest extent their original capability.
Essays About Human Nature
Visit Home Page for More Great Essays
Copyright
©
www.my-english-writing.com
|