AP World History – Summer Reading Guide
Book Assignment: Joseph Conrad, Heart of Darkness, 1899
-EBook available at: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/219/219-h/219-h.htm
Additional Reading
Adam Hochschild, “Leopold’s Congo: A Holocaust We Have Yet to Comprehend,” Chronicle of Higher
Education, 12 May 2000. (Article is on portal; pp. 36-39)
Assignment
Due Date: All of these questions are due in class during the first day of school.
Collaboration Policy: Do not collaborate. This is an independent assignment. This means that you may
not work with another student on the assignment. The work must be entirely your own.
Outside Sources: Do not consult outside sources such as Spark Notes or Cliff’s Notes. If I suspect you
have used Spark Notes or any other such outside source, I will consider it a disciplinary issue. However,
you should be actively searching for pertinent background information on Google or Wikipedia to better
understand the historical context/setting of the text. Key terms worth searching: Joseph Conrad, Congo
Free State, Atrocities in the Congo Free State, Leopold II, Berlin Conference, European Imperialism,
Scramble for Africa.
Grade: Your grade on your summer reading assignment is very important. Remember to not put this off
to the last minute.
Format: Each question should be answered in approximately 250 words. Pick any 4 to answer. You
need to reference specific examples from the text in your answer to validate your analysis. Please
provide a word count for each answer. All responses need to be typed, double-spaced, and in 12 point,
Times New Roman font. PROOFREAD YOUR WORK. There is nothing I despise more than poorly written
papers. AP World History is all writing, so do not expect any reprieve from grammar and style.
Questions:
When and how does Marlow’s “world of straightforward facts” break down?
How does Marlow think of the jungle? What part does the African “wilderness” play in this novel?
What, for you, seemed to be the meaning(s) of Heart of Darkness?
What is so distinctive about Conrad’s views on imperialism and the modern human condition?
How does an “idea” justify conquering and oppressing other cultures?
Are all men capable of atrocities?
Why is it significant that all of Europe contributed to the making of Kurtz?
Why did Kurtz let the natives worship him as a God? What does this say about the duty and
responsibility of more civilized societies and their power to do good or ill?
What is “the horror,” and why does Kurtz say it? Compare the horror to his intentions, his Intended.
Why are no proper names ever given to people: Manager, Agency, Harlequin, Intended, Accountant?
