An Outpost Of Progress Analysis

The way of Colonialism Worked in An Outpost of Progress and After the Race An Outpost of Progress was written by Joseph Conrad, and After the Race is one short story of James Joyce's Dubliners. Although these two short stories are about Colonialism in different vision that means different setting, the writers all choose representative characters to become a small point in the colony to reflect the way that Colonialism worked under the whole age background. At the same time, through plot unfolds, which can let people have a further understand about the way that colonialism worked. Setting is the context in which the story takes place, which includes the time, the place, and the social environment (Abrams 363). Characters can be defined as

The short story An Outpost of Progress is set on an outpost in Congo. On this outpost two new white men agents who are Kayerts and Carlier, are sent to Congo by their company to supervise the outpost. In order words, they arrived here aim to works on trading about natural resources, such as ivories, and slaves. The outside environment for them is "the wilderness" and strangeness. However, they live in "one large building in the cleared ground of the station" (88) and "It was built neatly of reeds, with a verandah on all the four sides. There were three rooms in it. The one in the middle was the living-room, and had two rough tables and a few stools in it. The other two were the bedrooms for the white men. Each had a bedstead and a mosquito net for all furniture. The plank floor was littered with the belongings of the white men; open half-empty boxes, torn wearing apparel, old boots" (88). All life supplies and news are brought by the stream from Europe. On the other hand, Makola who is black man live with his wife and three children in a hut. These detailed descriptions give people a preliminary understand about the aim of the Colonialism worked and the colonists' life in Congo. Another short story After the Race takes place in Dublin, Ireland, when it is under the control of colonialism. Jimmy who is a wealthy Irishman and play with

Kayerts, Carlier, and Makola are important characters in An Outpost of Progress. Kayerts is chief of the Outpost and Carlier is an assistant of Kayerts. Makola is well-educated, "He spoke English and French with a warbling accent, wrote a beautiful hand, understood bookkeeping… (88)" and he is criminal slave-trader, bookkeeper, and supervisor. Kayerts and Carlier are lazy and they ask Makola to find ivories. Makola is like a middleman to connect white men and black man in order to execute trading. However, Kayerts and Carlier seemingly approve that they are colleagues but they consider he just is slave. For Kayerts and Carlier, their Colonialism worked is stupendous and have a deep significance. "That print discussed what it was pleased to call 'Our Colonial Expansion' in high-flown language. It spoke much of the rights and duties of civilization, of the sacredness of the civilizing work, and extolled the merits of those who went about bringing light, and faith and commerce to the dark places of the earth." and " 'In a hundred years, there will be perhaps a town here…Civilization, my boy, and virtue--and all.' (91)" The characters in An Outpost of Progress show white men have leadership in colony and their thought are controlled by Colonialism, which give them motivation to continue the Colonialism worked. Furthermore, Makola works hard but