Reviews tagging 'Racial slurs'

Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad

121 reviews

hjb_128's review

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Racial slurs, Racism, and Colonisation

Moderate: Genocide, Slavery, Violence, and Grief

Minor: Misogyny and Sexism

19century_russians's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism

Moderate: Racial slurs

pbella3's review against another edition

dark informative mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Violence, Cannibalism, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Cultural appropriation, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail

randofos's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, and Violence

werewolfacct's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Racial slurs, Racism, and Colonisation

librarymouse's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I'm rating this higher than I did last time around, but not by much. It's not my favorite book by a long shot, but after learning more about Joseph Conrad and writing about textile manufacturing practices  contemporary to Conrad's writing of the book in how they relate to its content, I got a lot more out of it this time around.
It's a slow paced book, but time moves quickly for the characters.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Genocide, Gore, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Religious bigotry

Minor: Cannibalism

claudiahsa's review against another edition

challenging slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs

cinderellalovesbooks's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Genocide, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Violence, Xenophobia, Cannibalism, Gaslighting, Colonisation, and Classism

karhunkallo's review against another edition

adventurous reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Racial slurs and Racism

saraaaa's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark reflective fast-paced

• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

A very mild read, whose status as a classic is surely upheld by its relevance as a historical document. Conrad harshly criticizes colonialism, but does so from within the racist framework of his times.
I liked that the reader is constantly reminded that the story is being told by a specific character with specific views on life, and therefore is only one of many different perspectives on the narrated events.
Conrad paints the colonial environment and the Congolese forest as engulfed in a haunting, menacing spell that gives an air of magic realism to the novella – when it did not have the tones of exoticism, it painted a beautiful picture.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Terminal illness, Grief, and Colonisation

Moderate: Gun violence and Blood

Minor: Animal cruelty, Genocide, Mental illness, Misogyny, Cannibalism, and Alcohol