Cannibals aren't the only savages

Heart of Darkness“Why in the name of all the gnawing devils of hunger they didn’t go for us...amazes me now when I think of it...I saw that something restraining, one of those human secrets that baffle probability, had come into play here... Yes; I looked at them as you would on any human being, with curiosity of their impulses, motives, capacities, weaknesses, when brought to the test of an inexorable physical necessity. Restraint! What possible restraint? Was it superstition, disgust, patience, fear- or some kind of primitive honour? No fear can stand up to hunger, no patience can wear it out, disgust simply does not exist where hunger is; and as to superstition, beliefs, and what you my call principles, they are less than chaff in breeze. Don’t you know the devilry of lingering starvation...It takes a man all his inborn strength to fight hunger properly (99).”

I have a different copy of Heart of Darkness than most of you probably do, but this passage is extracted from the second chapter as Marlow describes the cannibals reaction to the lack of food available to them while on board the steamboat. Conrad introduces the theme of restraint into his story to juxtapose the negative views presented in the novel of the native people.

Generally, the natives are shown as uncivilized. Marlow’s observation of the cannibals resistance to eating the other shipmen allows for a positive interpretation of the native culture. Conrad assures the reader that the cannibals are not absolute barbarians and have the capacity to refrain from relying on their primitive concepts that have been embedded into their bloodstream. Their way of life differs from the others on the ship, which could have created tension for everyone, but the cannibals have enough discipline to understand the lines that can’t be crossed. Although as readers we don’t understand cannibalism, we can comprehend that the cannibals are respected for their ability to distance themselves from the other men.

Marlow cannot grasp that the cannibals have enough discipline to abstain from eating the shipmen because he doesn’t understand how anyone can place anything above the raw physical necessity for food. We see Marlow admitting to struggling with reverting to savage hostile feelings of pure survival. As he travels farther down the river, Marlow is exposed to more and more unrefined people and places. His view of the native culture is beginning to change as he himself experiences the heavy tugs of dealing with being stripped of societal privileges.

Switching roles for a moment with the cannibals, Marlow represents those who return to uncivilized manners, and the cannibals are revered for their strength and civility. Marlow observes the cannibals discipline, but cannot comprehend it, so then does this make him less civilized in the sense of controlling hunger? He gives the cannibals the upper hand, and identifies himself with those below who cannot control their primal desires. Conrad introduces this passage to help the reader understand that the cannibals are not the only uncivilized people. At times, Marlow and the other seamen revert to savage thoughts.