In this week’s post I’ll be focusing on the theme of keeping up appearances in Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad.

From the very first page, the reader is presented with appearances of characters. But as we learn throughout the book, just because something looks a certain way doesn’t mean that’s the way it is. The Director of Companies is first described as an exemplar figure: “We four affectionately watched his back as he stood in the bows looking to seaward. On the whole river there was nothing that looked half so nautical. He resembled a pilot, which to a seaman is trustworthiness personified” (1). He looks nautical and resembles a pilot, but who’s to say that is his true character?
The next appearance that comes to mind is that of the chief accountant. Marlow states, “…I met a white man, in such an unexpected elegance of getup that in the first moment I took him for a sort of vision. I saw a high starched collar, white cuffs, a light alpaca jacket, snowy trousers, a clear necktie, and varnished boots. No hat. Hair parted, brushed, and oiled, under a green-lined parasol held in a big white hand. He was amazing, and had a penholder behind his ear” (15). The reoccurring whiteness shows the colonizers’ push for white supremacy. Kurtz also writes about the way the whites must seem to the natives, believing that they “appear to them [savages] in the nature of supernatural beings” (45). More specifically, the accountant’s impractical attire (to say the least) flaunts his wealth and superiority in contrast to the lifestyles of the natives. Marlow respects these “achievements of character”, admiring that above all else,”he kept up his appearance” (15). The colonials are also trying to keep up appearances by making it seem like some meaningful work is going on, when in reality they are spending their time unnecessarily blasting a cliff that isn’t in the way of anything. Lastly, Marlow carries on Kurtz’s reputation after his death, telling Kurtz’s intended that the last words he spoke were her name. Kurtz seems to have been a symbolic figure in many people’s lives, which makes Marlow question how well he knew Kurtz. Through his actual final words, “The horror!” Kurtz created a mystery that allowed his legacy to live on, while his true character in life was hidden by false appearances.

These examples beg the question, why do we feel the need to keep up appearances? Who do we put on a show for, ourselves or others, or perhaps both? Why do we feel the need to perform “monkey tricks” as Marlow calls them? How and why do reputations form? The idea of keeping up appearances also reminds me of the saying, “All that glitters is not gold”, but more on that later!