In HEART OF DARKNESS, wat is the theme of nature vs nurture?

Answer 1

I will give you half and you work on the rest OK? Kurtz had the support of the natives because he nurtured them in a way that they respected him and did his bidding. He made himself Godlike in their eyes through his nurturing. His nurturing also included a very harsh pattern of discipline to keep them in line also. Watch the last scenes of Apocolypse Now. To Kurtz, they were his children - until they stepped out of line. Then they became heads to stick on poles in his front yard.

Answer 2

Mostly, it's nature and that is how Kurtz keeps them in line. When the British decided to take over Africa, they told the rest of the world that they would "civilize" them. That pretty much meant religion. The British were going to get rich. Unfortunately, the Africans already had a culture, religion, and all the other things to make a culture and didn't particularly want the Britisher's ideas. Much of "Heart" is each side tries to frighten the other, but the Brits stayed and they had weapons while the natives had only bows and arrows. Kurtz was NCM or psychologically mixed up. He was now the ruler and didn't want any intrusion from either side. All of these people at one time lived normal lives until the people tried to change the other people. We all have to be the same. A lot like illegal aliens. Doesn't work and by the time we get to the book, it was every man for himself.

Answer 3

Nature vs Nurture means, in modern terms, Genetics vs Environment.
Kurtz had a civilized upbringing and was considered a very good man. But when he got into the jungle and was exposed to the untamed natives, he became the most barbaric of them all. So, his early Nurture was overcome by his later Nurture in the jungle? Or did his civilized Nurture make him more clever at doing evil than the uncivilized natives?
Or, did his civilized Nurture fall away once he was away from civilization? Was his Nature wild all along, only kept in check by his Environment? Are we all like that?
Did Conrad consider the Nurture (upbringing) of the natives to be significant, or did he consider them as having no Nurture to speak of, but only Nature? The book seems to imply that Kurtz, finding no civilization but only chaos in the jungle, imposed his will on the natives, forming (or Nurturing) them as well as he could to do learn new ways.
Early in the book, somebody says that England was once the Heart of Darkness, and the civilized Romans had to impose order there.
Africa was the "dark continent," but Conrad seems to see darkness in England too.
These are some Nature/Nurture questions that come to my mind regarding "Heart of Darkness," but I can't really answer them because it's been a while since I read it.

Answer 4

Another way to phrase this question is to consider whether Kurtz was always a despot, even if hiding that tyrranical side of himself during his years as a young adult. Ever hear someone in authority scream at you, "Because I said so, that's why!" If so, then you have witnessed the dark side of human nature. Frustration, anger, loss for words to explain better, pain, all this adds up to a weakening of the resolve to remain kind, compassionate, patient with other human beings. Unless of course, you don't think that those other humans (natives in the jungle) are equals. Nature --- dictatorship, prejudice, nastiness. Nurture --- giving in to the dark side when overwhelmed by circumstances that make one frustrated.