Conrad makes Africa seem mysterious to symbolize the uncivilized and barbaric nature of man. the jungle is a dark and dangerous place and the natives are seen as just barely human by the Europeans. In contrast Europe is seen as a utopian society, there are the cultured people .

When Marlow talks of London being a dark place, the theme of civilisation versus savagery comes into play. Marlow’s aunt believes he is an emissary of light, being sent into the darkness. Marlow sees this darkness through the placing of heads on poles, for a man named Kurtz. All of this makes Marlow change his inner feelings of himself, which relates to the theme of the journey of the inner self. Marlow talks of when the Romans first came to Britain, and how they had actually brought some light into the sombreness of London, and how one day that light may disappear. This relates to the theme of dark and light. As Marlow tells of his voyage deeper into the unknown, his capacity for self-control is tested. Kurtz seems to inhabit

He does not understand that without the Roman invasion, Britain may have remained a dark country for all eternity. It would probably be not a shadow of what it is today. Although Marlow’s journey is to rescue Kurtz, there is a sense that his journey to the Congo is itself a recreation of the colonialist expedition. On his way out to Africa, he notices that the only settlements seen from the coast are “trading” places. Before Marlow actually meets him, Kurtz seems to be a very different kind of colonialist since even the people around him acknowledge that he is an idealist and that he has come out “equipped with moral ideas”. He remains a self-deceived idealist to the very end. Instead of creating a society where people can live in freedom, and peace, he has created an environment where people must live for him, kill for him and do all he asks of them. The perfect colony was what he had in mind when he first came to the Congo, but his mind became distorted and the savagery that lay deep within his heart had no light to hide it.  

Marlow’s aunt believes he is an emissary of light, being sent into the darkness. Marlow sees the darkness through the placing of heads on poles, for a man named Kurtz. All of this makes Marlow change his inner feelings about himself, which relates to the theme of the journey of the inner self. Through Marlow, the book recreates a voyage of self-discovery. All of Marlow’s experie

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