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This is a paper I wrote for my online Composition class that I got an "A" on and a "Good Job!" written on the top. It is an Aristotelian analysis of the story Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad. Aristotelian analyses are analyses written critiquing a story, based on the guidelines and principles proposed by Aristotle in "Aristotle's Poetics."
Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad is about four English seaman friends, one of whom is still an active seaman, Charlie Marlow. Marlow tells of his journey up a river as captain of a steamboat. Marlow worked for a company that traded in ivory. A man by the name of Mr. Kurtz was the company's prize ivory winner. The story is about Marlow's search for Mr. Kurtz.
According to Aristotle, plot must consist of three parts: recognition, reversal of the situation and scene of suffering. Aristotle defines recognition as a change from ignorance to knowledge. At the beginning of the journey, Marlow was ignorant of the dangers and the extent of his duties. When the actual experience came, he was brought to the knowledge about what this job was like and the extent of the danger they faced.
Following recognition comes reversal of the situation, which is defined as a change in which the action veers around to it's opposite. Kurtz, who they were seeking, was said to be an honorable, respected man who was the best provider of ivory for the company. However, when they actually found Kurtz, they came to find that the way he collected ivory was by abusing the natives and forcing them to worship him. He was not the man of strength and honor that the seaman believed him to be.
After both recognition and reversal of the situation comes the scene of suffering, which Aristotle defines as a destructive or painful action, such as death. The scene of suffering in this story was represented by the death of Mr. Kurtz, who recognized at his death that he was wrong. His last words were, "The horror! The horror!"
Overall, Heart of Darkness is a perfect example of an Aristotelian tragedy.
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