“Africa is to Europe as the picture is to Dorian Gray – a carrier onto whom the master unloads his physical and moral deformities so that he may go forward, erect and immaculate.” Chinua Achebe
Having read The Heart of Darkness and the Picture of Dorian Gray, is the above statement correct?
Please e-mail your essay to me by midnight on Friday. Thank you!
4 comments:
Daniel Malouf
Mrs. Severson
English
January 31, 2008
Simply Wrong
Africa, like the portrait, did suffer from Europe’s exploits. Africa bore the deformities of Europe behind the veil of the jungle. While the natives were forced to work under awful working conditions, the rich businessmen in Europe benefited immensely. Society knew little of how these men attained their wealth and by what methods. Dorian’s predicament was somewhat similar because society could not see his soul rotting behind the locked door in the attic. In both cases we see the greedy benefiting while their deformities are infringed upon the innocent. Both Dorian and Europe were quite willing to tread others underfoot for there personal gain. Europe was looking for riches and Dorian was always looking to the next source of entertainment. Throughout history we see a consistent pattern of innocent people being exploited for the benefit of distorted people. In Africa, Europe’s practices resembled Dorian’s self minded mindset put into action. This leads me to believe that Chinua Achebe’s statement was true and he understood the direct correlation between Dorian and Europe.
When we look back at history we see many cases in which men came to power through corrupt and criminal methods. These men generally lead their nations into turmoil. Men such as Joseph Stalin, and Saddam Hussein subjugated the people and drained them of resources. These governments were willing to take advantage of the citizens for the gain of the government in power. So while elites in Russia and Iraq appeared happy and wealthy, the masses were unhappy and oppressed. This is the main reason that this whole topic relates to the essay question. While the governing faction looked “erect and immaculate” it did not take much in depth probing to figure out who these men really were and how they dominated the people. A corrupt ascension is generally a bad sign for the future.
When government treats citizens with the proper respect they deserve, a powerful symbiotic relationship is formed. For example In World War II the people of this nation responded to the cause. They bought and sold war stamps, collected newspaper and tires; anything to help with the war. The nation as a whole realized that in order to pull out a win, the people needed to unite and work together with the government. We produced an amazing amount of war materials that aided in the war effort. The best way to have a unified nation is one in which the people and government work together to work out problems both international and national. All governments have the capability of placing “deformities” upon the people. However a healthy administration will not and in the process may “go forward erect and immaculate” without blemish upon the people. Mutual respect is the key to the healthy existence of a nation.
When comparing “The Picture of Dorian Gray” and “The Heart of Darkness,” I discovered how similar Lord Henry and Kurtz were. They embraced the whole idea of “whatever I want, I should have.” Kurtz did not feel any remorse for robbing the natives of their ivory. He relished using his influence to exploit the people for his personal good. Both men were selfish self centered monsters. Both had hidden secrets unknown to anyone but themselves. If they had switched character roles in the books, the likely result would have been Henry stealing ivory and Kurtz living a hedonistic lifestyle. It is unfortunate that society produces an appearance of civility and honor, yet is void of true positive regard for the aspirations of others. No matter how hard international society tries to civilize, individual moral civility has not caught up with this end. Personal internal transformation would be required from all people to fulfill this dream. I believe that Jesus Christ offers this transformation – from a slave of self interest to servant of Christ. There will always be Henry’s and Kurtz’s in the world who live solely on selfish ambitions.
History has many lessons to convey to the reader. We have the privilege of learning from the mistakes of those who came before us. History has proven when greed and dishonesty are the underlying values behind a person’s heart or administration; destruction will be prompt and merciless. Governing bodies must realize that oppressing the people will only result in turmoil and unrest. Europe failed to realize the potential for a mutually beneficial (symbiotic) trade agreement with Africa, which would have created a powerful alliance with the largest continent on earth. Instead Europe was like a leach sucking life out of the native people, whose homelands had been overrun by materialistic fools. Likewise, Dorian removed himself from feelings of remorse over his sinful achievements. He ended up with no genuine friends but criminals and swindlers who looked only to their own interests. Both Dorian and Europe could have used their influence for good, but chose to use it for selfish ambitions. Neither had a conscience of any kind; what filled the void was greed and vain pride. The obvious conclusion is that unloading physical and moral deformities on the innocent not only fails to pay off, but is simply wrong.
Kevin Doody
Mrs. Severson
Literature/Composition
2/1/08
A Way Out
Chinua Achebe stated that, “Africa is to Europe as the picture is to Dorian Gray – a carrier onto whom the master unloads his physical and moral deformities so that he may go forward, erect and immaculate.” After researching the relation between Africa and Europe, and after reading The Picture of Dorian Gray, I can make the educated opinion of agreeing with Chinua Achebe.
Europe used Africa strictly for their gain. They did not think twice about the lives they were ruining with their slave trades and quests for riches. Yet on the outside, Europe was viewed as a virtuous country filled with pure morals. Perhaps the most demeaning and terrible thing done to the innocent African natives was the slave trade. At the beginning of the 1600s, slaves for the Trans-Atlantic slave trade were sourced in Senegambia. Around 1650 the Kingdom of the Kongo started exporting slaves. These slaves were either sold or used for Europe’s gain; mainly the exportation and location of ivory. Despite the extremity of the atrocities that were bring performed in Africa, very few people knew of these inhuman acts. It seemed to be a well-kept secret that very few knew. And on the outside, Europe still shone of righteousness and economically benefited from their presence in Africa.
In the book Picture Of Dorian Gray, the painting hid all of Dorian’s faults and shortcomings. On the outside, Dorian was a rich, young man who had his life together. He held many parties and enjoyed entertaining people. He attended operas, dined with is friends, and invested his time into finding many collectible items including perfumes, musical instruments and books. But theses things were but a mask, hiding Dorian’s true self. He became fully immersed in an evil, hedonistic lifestyle that was ruining lives and destroying relationships. Since Dorian could not afford for people to find out about his true self, he killed Basil and therefore eliminated the chance of being discovered. And so, the death of Basil was buried away along with all of Dorian’s ugliness. Dorian’s life, on the outside, was filled with pleasure and happiness. Little did his friends know that in Dorian’s heart there raged a battle between good and evil. Sadly, evil was the victor, and it was not until Dorian’s death that his true self was revealed. He had hidden behind a false image his whole life.
Just as Europe committed its atrocities in Africa and avoided criticism, all of Dorian’s sins were hidden away in a painting that he kept locked away. Both Africa and the painting served as a carrier onto whom their masers unloaded their physical and moral deformities so that they were able to go forward, erect and immaculate. Africa’s slave trade resulted in thousands of broken families and thousands of wasted lives. Dorian’s seemingly righteous escapade with sin resulted in the death of a close friend and, eventually, his own. Dorian ruined his chance at the happiness that comes from a pure conscience, as did Europe.
Europe and Dorian made the same mistake. If Europe had done good works in Africa and if Dorian would have seen his sin and changed, they would have added to their already sterling reputation. They would have been respected much more, and they would not have had to bear the burden of a heavy conscience. But Europe’s lust for riches overpowered her sense of right and wrong, and Dorian’s luxurious life style and influential friends prevented him from wanting to clear his conscience. It is up to us to use the opportunities that God gives us in the right manner. It would be prudent for us, when an opportunity arises, to pray and seek God’s guidance in the matter. This will prevent us from becoming involved in something wrong. If Europe and Dorian had only considered the consequences that their actions were producing, they would have thought twice about committing these atrocities. Instead, they decided to unload all their wrongs and ugliness onto the closest carrier and move on with their lives; unwilling to see the affects of their choices.
nice job, daniel.
i like your parallels between dorian gray and the heart of darkness. they were very well-placed.
i also liked your last paragraph. especially the line, 'Both Dorian and Europe could have used their influence for good, but chose to use it for selfish ambitions.' i like it because it brings out the fact that we can choose to use our 'gifts' (influential power, money, fame) for good or evil.
good work!
Great work Kevin! I really like how you consistently proved the parallels between Dorian and Europe. You did a good job making your points, especially because you proved your points using data from the books and observations from history. Another thing you did very well was sticking to the essay question and not side tracking.
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