Gaming the Heart of Darkness
The history of Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness has been one of adaptation and change. The enduring story is based upon Conrad’s experiences in the Congo in the 1890s and was published as a novella in 1902. Since then, the story has been criticised for racism by Nigerian writer...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2018-09-01
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| Series: | Arts |
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| Online Access: | http://www.mdpi.com/2076-0752/7/3/46 |
| _version_ | 1817984191879446528 |
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| author | Fruzsina Pittner Iain Donald |
| author_facet | Fruzsina Pittner Iain Donald |
| author_sort | Fruzsina Pittner |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The history of Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness has been one of adaptation and change. The enduring story is based upon Conrad’s experiences in the Congo in the 1890s and was published as a novella in 1902. Since then, the story has been criticised for racism by Nigerian writer Chinua Achebe and relocated to Vietnam by Francis Ford Coppola as Apocalypse Now, influencing computer games such as Far Cry 2 and Spec Ops: The Line. In examining the adaptations of Heart of Darkness, we can consider how the story evolves from the passive reading of post-colonial narratives through to the active participation in morally ambiguous decisions and virtual war crimes through digital games: examining Conrad’s story as it has been adapted for other mediums provides a unique lens in which to view storytelling and retelling within the context of how we interpret the world. This paper compares the source material to its adaptations, considering the blending of historical fact and original fiction, the distortion of the original story for the purpose of creating new meaning, and reflects on whether interactivity impacts upon the feeling of immersion and sense of responsibility in audiences of different narratives. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-13T23:42:27Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-427f862606734935be66aec376c33178 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-0752 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-13T23:42:27Z |
| publishDate | 2018-09-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Arts |
| spelling | doaj.art-427f862606734935be66aec376c331782022-12-22T02:24:27ZengMDPI AGArts2076-07522018-09-01734610.3390/arts7030046arts7030046Gaming the Heart of DarknessFruzsina Pittner0Iain Donald1School of Humanities, University of Dundee, Dundee DD1 4HN, UKDivision of Games and Arts, School of Design and Informatics, Abertay University, Dundee DD1 1HG, UKThe history of Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness has been one of adaptation and change. The enduring story is based upon Conrad’s experiences in the Congo in the 1890s and was published as a novella in 1902. Since then, the story has been criticised for racism by Nigerian writer Chinua Achebe and relocated to Vietnam by Francis Ford Coppola as Apocalypse Now, influencing computer games such as Far Cry 2 and Spec Ops: The Line. In examining the adaptations of Heart of Darkness, we can consider how the story evolves from the passive reading of post-colonial narratives through to the active participation in morally ambiguous decisions and virtual war crimes through digital games: examining Conrad’s story as it has been adapted for other mediums provides a unique lens in which to view storytelling and retelling within the context of how we interpret the world. This paper compares the source material to its adaptations, considering the blending of historical fact and original fiction, the distortion of the original story for the purpose of creating new meaning, and reflects on whether interactivity impacts upon the feeling of immersion and sense of responsibility in audiences of different narratives.http://www.mdpi.com/2076-0752/7/3/46storytellingdigital gamestransmedialiterary adaptation |
| spellingShingle | Fruzsina Pittner Iain Donald Gaming the Heart of Darkness Arts storytelling digital games transmedia literary adaptation |
| title | Gaming the Heart of Darkness |
| title_full | Gaming the Heart of Darkness |
| title_fullStr | Gaming the Heart of Darkness |
| title_full_unstemmed | Gaming the Heart of Darkness |
| title_short | Gaming the Heart of Darkness |
| title_sort | gaming the heart of darkness |
| topic | storytelling digital games transmedia literary adaptation |
| url | http://www.mdpi.com/2076-0752/7/3/46 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT fruzsinapittner gamingtheheartofdarkness AT iaindonald gamingtheheartofdarkness |