Heart of Darkness prompt 10

In Heart of Darkness, racism is inherently a major theme.  The question of whether Conrad has racist views that transcend into his novel, I feel, depends on the reader.  It is obvious that Conrad takes time to illustrate the line between the Europeans and the Natives.  By calling the natives "savages", Conrad explicitly implies that the natives are different from the Europeans and other civilized people (and even inferior).  However, I do wonder whether or not Conrad would have used any other vocabulary to describe the natives if they happened to be of white race.  I believe that the intentions of Conrad were to highlight the difference between civilized people and uncivilized people.  The fact that he made the natives African is (of course) because the setting is in the middle of Africa.  The racism may come into play when he conveys the idea that this place of savagery and uncivilized people is the literal "heart of darkness" of the world.  He seems to believe that this area and the Inner Station are the catacombs for all the world's darkness and evil, but is that the native's fault?  If Marlow is a reflection of Conrad, then it would be logical to assume that Conrad's views may be prejudice.  However, there is no real evidence that Marlow is supposed to embody his creator, so an assumption to that degree could be seriously flawed.