- “But there was in it one river especially, a mighty big river, that you could see on the map, resembling an immense snake uncoiled, with its head in the sea, its body at rest curving afar over a vast country, and its tail lost in the depths of the land … The snake had charmed me.” (p. 43)
Marlow is describing his fascination of maps and particularly one river that strikes his interest. This river, the Congo, is described as shaped like a snake. The last sentence of the paragraph is slightly ironic, considering that shake charming is the act of hypnotizing a snake merely by playing an instrument. However, in Conrad's case, the “snake” (the river) is the object which is hypnotizing or mesmerizing Marlow. The mystery and adventure which awaits on the river has captivated Marlow to explore it.
(Works Cited)
"Snake Charming."
Wikipedia. Web. 20 Aug. 2009. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snake_charmer.
(Photo Credit)
Charmeur de serpents a Jaipur. Photograph.
Wikipedia. Web. 13 Sept. 2009. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Charmeur_de_serpents_%C3%A0_Jaipur_(2).JPG.
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