“The approach to this Kurtz grubbing for ivory in the wretched bush was best by as many dangers as though he had been an enchanted princess sleeping in a fabulous castle.” (pg. 52)
The latter part of this quote clearly alludes to the famous fairy tale, Sleeping Beauty. Conrad uses this metaphor to describe Kurtz because the treacherous hunt that Marlow undergoes to find him is much like the Prince’s treacherous trek to rescue the slumbering princess. In addition to this, this description foreshadows Kurtz’s deathbed at the close of the story.
Photo Credit: Sleeping Beauty. Digital image. Web. 12 Aug. 2009. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/a7/Sleeping_beauty_by_Edward_Burne-Jones.jpg
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