Colonialism and slavery in Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness and Toni Morrison's A Mercy

The goal of this research is to examine Colonialism and Slavery in Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness (1899) and Toni Morrison's A Mercy (2008). Colonialism is the act of a culture or state that governs and exploits other communities and states by overt or covert means. The concepts colonialism and imperialism are frequently used interchangeably; imperialism refers to European powers' expansionist efforts since the mid-19th century. Heart of Darkness is a voyage to the dark depths of Africa as well as the mysterious heart of man. The novel is as current and global as the day it was written. Throughout the novel, Conrad raises a question about the meaning of existence. Slavery is the unpaid employment and socio-economic exploitation of people outside of western civilization by others. Throughout history, people in generally undeveloped countries have been used as slaves by powerful countries for certain purposes. In Toni Morrison's A Mercy, many topics such as slavery, racism, the differences between white and black people, the troubles of women and children, and farm life are mentioned. In the work, it is mentioned that Africans were brought to America as slaves and sold there as commercial objects in exchange for money. In this context, this study, which analyzes Colonialism and Slavery in Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness, which deals with the problems Africans are exposed to, and Toni Morrison's A Mercy, which deals with the lives of slaves in America, reveals that colonialism and slavery are cruel, violent and difficult to resist. In our study, the socio-economic comparison method of two similar novels was used as a method. Our aim is to determine the similarities and differences of the novels that deal with different periods with their socio-economic and historical dimensions. In the novels that deal with these different places and different periods, it is seen that the adornment of colonialism and slavery is the same, but there are differences in practices. Keywords: Joseph Conrad, Heart of Darkness, Toni Morrison, A Mercy, Colonialism, Slavery.