Soon after Marlow discovers Kurtz's activities in the jungle, he immediately places the blame on his loss of connection to society. Marlow believes that the darkness and peculiar forces of the jungle are responsible for Kurtz's activities. At this point in the story, Marlow sees the savages as a weakness for having escaped nature. “Never, never before, has this land, this river, this jungle, the very arch of this flaming sky, appeared to me so hopeless and so dark, so impenetrable to human thought, so merciless to human weakness” ( Conrad). Eventually, Marlow comes to his senses and realizes that there was nothing to blame for Kurtz's madness other than Kurtz himself. Contrary to what was stated previously, “all of Europe contributed to the formation of Kurtz” (Conrad). Kurtz is engaged, but the engagement has been forbidden by the ladies' family because Kurtz's pockets are not fat enough, so to speak. Slowly enough, Marlow begins to see that Kurtz's madness and madness are simply a reflection of the evil present in the humanity around him. Staying in Africa provides Kurtz with a twisted sense of freedom, freeing him from what is and is not socially acceptable. Speaking of Kurtz, Marlow states: “For the wild had patted him on the head, and, behold, he was like a ball, an ivory ball; she had caressed him and he had withered; she had taken him, she had loved him, she had embraced him, it had entered his veins, she had consumed him