This essay reviews Joseph Conrad's "Heart of Darkness". The paper discusses how Conrad explores the theme that true evil does not necessarily reside in human institutions, but in the human heart. Through Marlow and Kurtz, we learn that there is evil at the center of all human experience. Marlow's journey leads to the self-revelation that social and cultural restraints are important. This means that ethics and morals are very necessary for a society. Kurtz, after all, finds evil and goes crazy precisely because he abandons all restraint. 5 pgs. Bibliography lists 1 source.