Conrad's Heart of Darkness and Secret Sharer (Cliffs Notes)

By Norma Youngbirg and M.A. (Editor); James L. Roberts Ph.D.(Consulting Editory) Norma Youngbirg (Author); Garey Carey

Book Overview

Each of these stories deals with the dark side of the human character. Heart of Darkness is a journey up a Congo river to where an ivory agent, Kurtz, mentally disintegrates into a grotesque creature. Secret Sharer is about a murderous captain who is tragically alienated from other people.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0822005875
• ISBN13: 9780822005872
• Release Date: January 1965
• Publisher: Cliff Notes, Inc.
• Length: 74 Pages
• Weight: 0.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.2" x 0.2" x 5.6"

Customer Reviews

We are reviewing the "notes", not the book or movie.

I could not stand reading or watching anything about Vietnam for about 10 years. I eventually watched the movie "Apocalypse Now." I found it interesting, but it did not relate to anything in the central highlands. Later, I saw "Pork Lips Now" (the movie parody) and could relate this to the movie. Finally, someone told me that the whole thing was based on "Heart of Darkness". So, I decided to read the book. I found it fascinating and much better than the movie. However, I could not see the forest for the trees and needed some help in showing me what I was looking at. Because I was not in a school class, I turned to the "Cliffs Notes." Of course, my views don't match the notes exactly, but they gave me some questions to ask and showed me the forest. The notes include: * Life of the Author * Introductions to the Novel * Lists of Characters * Brief Plot Synopses * Summaries & Critical Commentaries * Critical Essay * Suggested Essay Topics * Selected Bibliography Later, I found a movie that was much closer to the original story, "Cannibal Women in the Avocado Jungle of Death" (1988).

Incredibly Complex and well written

Wow! This is all I have to day about Heart of Darkness. My three friends and I are all reading it right now and we have to present an English Seminar on it. We are examining the connections between this and Apocalypse Now, Francis Coppola. Once again, if you consider yourself to be intellectual, read this book.

Powerful ideas and meaning

This book will not be exciting the first time you read it. Expect to be bored and maybe confused but read it again to see the meaning. If you understand the ideas expressed in this book you will change your way of thinking. Hopefully you will not get it and will throw this book away, "When you have to attend to things of that sort, to the mere incidents of the surface, the reality-the reality, I tell you-fades. The inner truth is hidden-luckily, luckily".Ryan a mere high school student

Great the second time around!

I had to read Heart of Darkness and write a research paper on it, and you know when a teacher assigns you and book to read you never enjoy it unless you read it on your own. While writing the research paper I hated it and everything about it, then about two years later I read it again, and this time found out everything I missed with my bad attitude. The depths that Conrad explores are unbelievable! This is were the evil nature of man egsists. After reading it a second time, I realized that the research paper that I wrote SUCKED big time.

Great!

This book was terrible when I read it the first time. It seemed to drag on and on. I had to rush through it for a class I was taking. Later, I found the time to read it at my own pace and I found it quite enjoyable. Give this book another chance! Expect to be bored the first time you read it, then read it again for meaning.

very good

good, but lacks some detail