"How have the composers of these texts used the river motif in different ways to show how rivers can influence the imagination or govern the lives of people? Consider issues of culture and context."

Essay by junebugskippingHigh School, 11th grade June 2004

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Texts discussed: Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad, A River Sutra by Gita Mehta and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain.

A 'river' in everyday usage is seen as little more than a flow of water. The composers of my chosen texts, however, have taken the motif of rivers in a different perspective, and have used this motif in their works to show how rivers can influence the imagination or govern the lives of the people around them. The different ways this motif has been used reflects the composers' individual perspective on the rivers, derived from the influence of his or her culture, the literary techniques used and the context in which they were written.

The texts I have chosen are Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad, A River Sutra by Gita Mehta and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain. In all three texts, the featured rivers are predominant in the structure and storyline.

The rivers are depicted as having a significant influence on the people around them. In the opening paragraphs of Heart of Darkness, we are introduced to the Thames River, the first river featured in this text, which is resting, as Conrad depicts, 'at the decline of day after ages of good service done to the race that peopled its banks'. Conrad goes on to describe the river as 'venerable', suggesting his respect and gratitude towards the river and its means of transport and trade. The river providing a 'service' reinforces the idea of it influencing and governing the lives of the people around it. However, the actual story takes place on the River Congo, the very antithesis of the Thames. The river motif is important as it presents the degradation of culture, as we are taken deeper into the heart of Africa...