This essay will deal with a comparative study of the representation of colonialism as a positive or negative force. The texts used are my main text "Heart of Darkness" by Joseph Conrad and "Collected Poems" by Rudyard Kipling. The partner text will be RK Narayan's 'Swami and Friends'. 'Heart of Darkness' by Joseph Conrad was written in 1902 at the turn of the century. It is a novella and published in 3 parts in Blackwood's Magazine. It is considered a significant work of English literature and is part of the Western Cannon. The work was well received by a rather bewildered Victorian public. Joseph Conrad, born Józef Teodor Konrad Korzeniowski, was of Polish descent. Conrad had become a naturalized British citizen, although he could not speak fluent English until he was twenty. Conrad had served in the British Marines for over 10 years and had traveled in Africa, which meant he had experience of what he was writing about. Conrad was actually sent down the Congo River to an inland station to rescue an agent, as Marlow did in "The Dark World." The novella is somewhat representative of Conrad's experiences. "Collection of Poems by Rudyard Kipling". Kipling born 30 December 1865 and died 18 January 1936 was a British author and poet. Born in Bombay, British India, he is well known for his works of fiction The Jungle Book (1894) and his poems, including Mandalay (1890), Gunga Din (1890), and If (1910). Kipling was recognized by George Orwell as a "prophet of British imperialism". (1) Orwell's statements show Kipling as a literary genius. The poems that will be discussed in this essay are from a selection of Rudyard Kipling's poems: "Mandalay", "This is England", "Gunga Din" and "The White Man's Bur... in the center of the paper... .. .the title connotes that other races (most likely Indians) are a "burden" to the "white man" (probably the English), from the title it is discernible that there may be a hint of racism The speaker of the poem refers to the natives as "half devil and half child", this phrase is derogatory towards the natives and shows Kipling as racist At the time Kipling was writing racism was not uncommon, so it may not be a racist attack, but the poem could have been misinterpreted in today's society. The poem is unlikely to be intended as racist but as anti-imperialist as Kipling wrote many anti-racism poems such as "Gunga Din Works Cited(1) http://www.george-". orwell.org/Rudyard_Kipling/0.html(2) http://www.enotes.com/contemporary-literary-criticism/narayan-rk(3) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_White_Man's_Burden( 4) http://en. wikipedia.org/wiki/Image_of_Africa