Reply To: Rashi Biography and the Heart of Darkness

I know my idea sounds odd but consider the following:

1. The character in the Rashi biography is Curt and in Conrad it’s Kurtz.

2. The Rashi character, Curt, has a plan to bring benefit to the Jewish People and improve their situation, just as Kurtz did in Heart of Darkness.

3. The Rashi character, Curt, writes a pamphlet in which he outlines his plans to save the Jewish People, in a clear, well-written script, but at then end, writes something about death in a scrawl. The Conrad character, Kurtz, writes a pamphlet outlining how he will bring civilization and “light” to the people of Africa, in a neat handwriting, but ends it in a scrawl where he writes “exterminate all the brutes”.

4. Rashi’s character Curt is tall and gaunt, almost skeletal-like and so is Kurtz in Heart of Darkness.

5. THe person telling the story in the Rashi book is met, on his way to see Curt, by a Russian dressed in a wild outfit who tells him how great Curt is. Conrads character, Marlow, is also met by a Russian who tells him about how great Kurtz is.

These things jumped out at me when I read the Rashi book. I don’t think this is co-incidence.