Conrad and Masculinity

146 Conrad and Masculinity
has, prior to the crisis with Haldin, only appeared in Razumov’s life
once, and then as a fragmented and somewhat feminized set of body
parts and sensations: ‘a white shapely hand’ which is ‘soft and
passive’, ‘a distinct pressure of the white shapely hand just before it
was withdrawn’ (12) and (reasserting his role as the father) ‘grey silky
side-whiskers’ (13). When Razumov comes to know Natalia, it seems
as if her brother serves as a token of exchange between them; that the
other man, the man who was there first (the object of Natalia’s sisterly
devotion and of Razumov’s supposed friendship) is the conduit or
detour in a heterosexual relationship, rather than the women serving
as the detour in any denied homosexual bond. The case then seems to
support the possibility of the symmetry which Girard assumes.
Whereas the Intended in ‘Heart of Darkness’ is treated as a sort of
cipher, lacking name or personality, a mere object in the psychological
exchange of Marlow and Kurtz, Natalia, although a somewhat
simplified and idealized figure, has some access to subjecthood and
agency. Furthermore, she does not remain permanently in ignorance:
the moment of disclosure arrives.
Masculinity, and a masculine homosocial economy, are culturally
variable, and Under Western Eyes benefits from a more subtle treatment
of cultural difference than ‘Heart of Darkness’, where the
Africans are so strongly identified as primitive Other that the possibility
of a different, African form of masculinity arises only in the
form of colonialist exoticizing fantasy of the ‘natural’ man. 13 The
language-teacher’s generalizations about the Russian temperament
have of course an element of obtuse stereotyping about them, but
they are clearly presented as a product of his imaginative and intellectual
limitations, even if they also reflect aspects of Conrad’s own
views. 14 The language-teacher and Razumov have certain affinities
with two different ideals of masculinity: the language-teacher with
the ideal of a restrained, chivalrous, protective, self-abnegating
gentleman, and Razumov with the ideal of the strong, taciturn, seemingly
imperturbable man of action. One difference of course is that
the former ideal represents the language-teacher’s self-image, whereas
the latter is thrust quite inappropriately onto Razumov by the perceptions
of others. Both ideals, however, are ironized. Even if we do not
share Richard Ruppel’s reading of the language-teacher as a closet
homosexual, we strongly suspect some self-deception and denial of
his real feelings. 15 In the case of Razumov we are privy to his
tormented mental state and unfulfilled need to express his feelings.
Thus, as often in Conrad’s work, certain rather stereotypical ideas of