While both clueless to Kurtz’s true intentions, Kurtz’s mistress and his Intended vary and contrast in many different ways. An obvious contrast between the two would be their skin color. His Intended is a woman he would plan to marry and that society would approve of while the “wild and gorgeous apparition of a woman,” the mistress, haunts Kurtz, and symbolizes the trap that he fell into while trying to control the natives as a god. Even though the feminism of both females being less than their male counterparts throughout this book, it seems as if the mistress plays a more influential role in the control she has in affecting Kurtz. His intended however, appears desperate and delicate to how she reacts to Marlow’s visit. One symbolizes the predominantly white, imperialistic society, while the other represented the unexposed natives. Both parted from Kurtz in different ways as well. His Intended remained “heart-broken” and begging for someone to talk of her lost loved one, in contrast to the mistress who watched as the ship floated away before returning to the society that escaped Kurtz’s plans.
ReplyDeleteI agree with this comment and wrote something quite similar to it as well. The biggest difference I see is that his intended and mistress is that his intended seems to want to please him, she wants to wait on him hand and foot, and is devastated by his death. On the other hand, his mistress is a much stronger, powerful woman, who is very much in control of Kurtz and his actions. She watches the ship sail away but does not make a move to chase it or go after him. It seems, in my opinion, that she is perfectly fine with him leaving.
Would you say in a way that the mistress was kind of a slave? Hear me out,the difference puts out that the mistress was intended to please the man for a short period of time also like a family member in a family that really close. Making sense why she was so devastated by his death. However being control of Kurtz and his actions leads her to become a slave again nevertheless she doesn't willingly waits him hand to foot like how she did Marlow. As like a some what hatred towards Kurtz making sense she was perfectly fine with him leaving.
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