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Topic: Joseph Conrad & Dr. Christiaan Barnard

Not only is today the sesquicentennial of the birth of writer Joseph Conrad, but December third also marks the 40th anniversary of the first human-to-human heart transplant. We don't have the heart to resist linking together the 150th birth anniversary of the author of Heart of Darkness with that pioneering medical event, so we'll dive right in to the heart of the matter.

We'll begin by admitting the coincidence of the events is more superficial than deep. Doctor Christiaan Barnard, who gave a dying man the chance to live with the heart of a young woman, had a fundamentally optimistic view of heart; his surgery was oriented toward helping the essential or most vital part of something—the hollow muscular organ of vertebrate animals that acts as a force pump—flourish.

Joseph Conrad, in contrast, titled his novel heart of darkness after the idea that at the very heart or core of man lies a dark depravity. "The belief in a supernatural source of evil is not necessary," wrote Conrad; "men alone are quite capable of every wickedness."

But the deeply tormented writer—who died of a heart attack—did retain some hope. He wrote, "Woe to the man whose heart has not learned while young, to hope, to love – and to put its trust in life."

Questions or comments? Write us at wftw@aol.com Production and research support for Word for the Wise comes from Merriam-Webster, publisher of language reference books and Web sites including Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, Eleventh Edition.

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