"Racism is an ism to which everyone in the world today is exposed; for or against, we must take sides. And the history of the future will differ according to the decision, which we make" (Bolander 264). Ruth Benedict, a noted twentieth century anthropologist, feels that every member of humanity regardless of race must take a stand against racism in order to make it come to an end. Racism, the prejudice or the degradation of a race, any race, has existed throughout the ages. Though many believe themselves and their race to be superior, superiority only exists in the self-seeking insecure mind.
In "An Image of Africa", Chinua Achebe condemns Conrad as a "bloody racist," depicting the African natives as inferior and savage (17). Joseph Conrad's novella Heart of Darkness represents its time period by conveying racist ideas. However, the humanity seen by Conrad contains a flaw at the primordial level and this imperfection exists in mankind in its entirety and not just a single race.
Joseph Conrad's European background dictated his style of writing, his subject matter, and also his attitude toward his subjects. The European explorers traveled to Africa as early as the thirteenth century, discovering a continent of deserts, prairies, and dense jungle. Traveling inland, these explorers encountered tribes of natives, who looked, spoke, and behaved in a foreign manner. These explorers labeled the natives "savages" and benefited from the dehumanization of the African continent. The explorers and traders relayed their ideas of racism to Europe. The people of Western civilization swiftly accepted these ideas as truths and labeled the Africans as sub-human, falling slightly above the apes on the evolutionary scale. During the Victorian era in which Conrad lived, racism was commonplace and widely accepted. A person was more likely to be ostracized for not being prejudiced against the Africans.