Today in class we talked about how Marlow stays sane through his adventures in Africa by focusing on steering the steamboat, or in other words, by having a task to accomplish. On page 803 in the Norton Anthology, Marlow asserts, “When you have to attend to things of that sort, to the mere incidents of the surface, the reality- the reality, I tell you- fades. The inner truth is hidden- luckily, luckily.” By focusing on piloting the ship, he does not allow his emotions to overcome him. In contrast, Dostoevesky's Underground Man lets his thoughts and memories conquer his life. His inaction (another form of action, according to existentialists) and lack of purpose lead to his bitter unhappiness. Both Dostoevesky's Underground Man and Marlow become disenchanted with society but differ in the ways they handle their disgruntlement.
Do you all see any other similarities or differences between Marlow and the Underground Man?
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5 comments:
That is a great point, Julia. In this aspect, Marlow serves as a foil to the Underground Man. Dostoevsky explores the life of a cynical hermit who becomes disillusioned with society, while Conrad outlines the journey of an explorer who likewise becomes disenchanted. Perhaps this suggests that it truly was impossible to find happiness in the corrupt and stagnant late 19th century.
I find that both men have an obsession. Marlow is obsessed with Kurtz. He wants to hear his miraculous voice. I think his obsession stems from the mystery surrounding Kurtz. He only hears second and third hand accounts of things Kurtz has done yet he knows the man is praised by many. This mystery drives Marlow into an obsession. The Underground man is almost obsessed with his emotions. He lets his emotions and memories conquer his life.
I think that another similarity between the two characters is that they are both very isolated. Although Marlow interacts with people throughout the novella, he does not take that much action. As Julia pointed out in her post, he was focused on the steamboat and nothing else around him. He lived a life of solitude and stayed focus on his task at hand. In some ways Marlow might have made his own "underground" that was just less isolated than the Underground Man's.
I agree with Chrissy in that both men have intense obsessions. The Underground Man focuses on his strange emotions and disillusionment, while Marlow obsesses with the navigation of his ship and Kurtz. There are several similarities between the two men--both forced to face harsh realities and changes in their respective societies.
Both Marlow and the Underground Man experience their own sort of hell in the novels. Marlow encounters the unknown in Africa, where Conrad even describes the natives as shadow figures. The Underground Man's hell comes from an isolated area, where he permanently removed himself from reality and the truth.
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