Connection: HoD and Eloquence

In Heart of Darkness, we see the effect of Kurtz's rhetoric and "magnificent eloquence" on others, especially the harlequin. He claimed that Mr. Kurtz had "enlarged his mind" and continued on praising Kurtz for the rest of his part in the story. When the subject of Kurtz's ruthlessness and brutality arose, he exclaimed "You can't judge Mr. Kurtz as you would an ordinary man. No, no, no! ... This man has suffered too much. He hated all this and somehow he couldn't get away" (Conrad 56). It almost seemed as if he was under a spell and when Marlow discusses Kurtz's report on page 50, he too appears to be hypnotized by Kurtz's eloquence. Conrad writes, "there were no practical hints to interupt the magic current of phrases ..." further emphasizing the magical capabilities of Kurtz's words. However, written at the bottom of the last page of Kurtz's report are the words "Exterminate the brutes!" Here we see Kurtz's true intentions.

This type of persuasion can be seen in many cases in the past. The obvious one being Hitler's control over Germany. He used his charisma and language to, in essence, brainwash people. This is a scary thought for me, because I like to be in control over my beliefs and actions. I think I'm going to take a page out of Descartes' book and doubt more because of the implications of being "hypnotized" could have. The idea of being subject to a person's eloquence is something that I'll try to always keep in the back of my mind from now on.