The point of view from which a story is told positions the reader to perceive experiences in the novel from a certain perspective. This is particularly true for Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness. Conrad uses two first person narrators within the text, one within the other; the nameless frame narrator who describes the happenings on board the 'Nellie', and Marlow - an interior character who narrates his adventures in the Congo. These differentiating points of view help to convey the symbolic significance of the impact the exterior landscape has on the 'interior landscape', or the development of the inner self.
             Firstly, the use of the two point of views provides the reader with two versions of reality. At the beginning of the novel, the frame narrator views England's past as one of distinction presenting an idealistic view of imperialism and therefore endorsing the European ideology. While anchored in the Thames, he declares that the river carries with it "the dreams of men, the seed of commonwealths [and] the germs of empires." Marlow, on the other hand, challenges this affirmation, suggesting that England "has been one of the dark places of the earth." This contradiction shows how complex and multifaceted the 'truth' really is. The focus here shifts from one point of view to another and with this, the readings constructed by the text become altered.
             Heart of Darkness projects the image of Africa as a place of darkness - the anti-thesis to Europe, which was considered to be the centre of the civilised world. Europeans viewed colonisation as a process of progress and enlightenment. This was essentially the Eurocentric vision of imperialism at that time. Marlow criticises this justification by ridiculing this 'civilising mission' through the use of sarcasm in statements where colonialism is described as "high and just proceedings."
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