Answer:
Joseph Conrad's interpretation of the British Empire is not necessarily a good one.
Backstory: Heart of Darkness is about the main protagonist (named Marlow) trying to navigate the world of riches, fame, and morality and how to balance them all in the midst of the end of the Gilded Age in 1890. Set primarily in the Congo, Marlow, an Englishman, is introduced to the world of imperialism as he sees slavery and other various unjust acts firsthand while trying to find profit in ivory trading. He goes from being positively neutral to strongly against imperialism by the end of the book.
Marlow, in this passage, is representative of the mindset of most Englishmen in this time period - that imperialism is perfectly just, and that other countries and nationalities do not hold priority over what they (the English) need for their particular exploits. This can be seen in the protagonists' interaction with a sickly-looking black man by the river. It also shows the elitist thinking openly portrayed at this time.
The fact that Conrad was willing to show with such transparency such negative outlooks against a world superpower, with such open thinking in the year of publication, 1899, strongly shows that Conrad was in fact against the imperialistic thinking of the British Empire at that time.
Step-by-step explanation: