Starting at the beginning of the seventeenth century, European countries began exploring and colonizing many different areas of the world. The last half of the nineteenth century saw the height of European colonial power around the globe. France, Belgium, Germany, and especially Great Britain, controlled over half the world. Along with this achievement came a notable sense of pride and confident belief that European civilization was the best on earth and that the natives of the lands Europeans controlled would only benefit from colonial influence. However, not everybody saw colonization as positive for all those involved. Some of the most notable writers of the time produced works criticizing the process of colonization. Two of the most significant works in this area are Joseph Conrad's "Heart of Darkness" and Jonathan Swift's "A Modest Proposal." Although these pieces of literature both criticize colonization, they have different themes. The theme of "A Modest Proposal" could be described as the negative effects of colonization on the colonized,

Phiddian, Robert. "Have you eaten yet? The Reader in A Modest Proposal."

Joseph Conrad details a narrative of oppression emphasizing the horrible treatment of African natives during the colonization of the Congo. The Europeans claimed that they were trying to civilize the natives, and that each colonized station should be for "humanizing, improving and instructing," (NA 2228) as if colonization was to the advantage of the natives. In the same voice, it was said that the natives were "brutes" (NA 2242) and "savages" (NA 2218) and that they should all be "exterminated" (NA 2242). "Heart of Darkness" described African blacks as being "criminals" (NA 2216) and "enemies" (NA 2214) and they were treated as such. The natives were forced to do intense heavy labor for the colonizers. They dug holes, tunneled through mountains, moved soil from one place to another in baskets balanced on their heads. When there was no meaningful work needed to be done, the blacks were forced to do heavy labor just for the sake of doing heavy labor. They did "objectless blasting" (NA 2215) and other pointless work in the whites "philanthropic desire of giving the criminals something to do" (NA 2216). They were treated like working animals. They were forced to carry 60lb loads 200 miles in scorching heat with inadequate nourishment. A number of them died on that trip. In the stations they worked in chain gangs where, "each had an iron collar on his neck, and all were connected with a chain" (NA 2215). They were supervised by other gun wielding natives who had apparently joined the colonizers in the oppression of their people. When the overworked natives could work no more they would simply crawl under a tree in the shade and die. If the blacks stopped working, made a mistake, or were suspected of making a mistake, they were beaten savagely. Beatings are very common in "Heart of Darkness." The European pilgrims are constantly in the possession of staves, just in case they should have to discipline a native. A black man was beaten nearly to death as the result of a dispute over two hens. Then later in the story, a black man was beaten so badly that after a few days he just wandered off into the forest and died. It becomes increasingly clear as the plot develops that the colonizing Europeans treated the land and the people they were colonizing with no respect at all.

Watt, Ian. "Ideological Perspectives: Kurtz and the Fate of Victorian Progress." Joseph Conrad. Ed. Elaine Jordan. London: Macmillan Press. 1996. 32-47.

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1879
Approximate Pages = 8 (250 words per page double spaced)