s and protocol. He did not tame the native. Another reoccurring term was the symbol of the "pilgrim". A pilgrim was a native worker or a low life European who sailed on the African rivers. "as the pilgrims were unloading the cargo, Marlow watched the river…(128)." The name Kurtz has symbolic meaning in the German language as meaning non restrictive. Symbolism was the main aspect of the underlying meaning of the novel. Conrad motivation came from his personal experience of being a boat captain in Africa and seeing the horrors of it. But as he stayed they longer he realized the savage beast was present all over the so called "civilized" world. Theme: The darkness, the mysterious unknown, and opposing all progress were the major themes in the novel. According to Conrad, the will to give into the uncivilized man does not reside in Kurtz alone. Every man has inside himself a heart of darkness, but is drowned in a bath of light shed by the advent of civilization. ...
