Kurtz becoming the pioneer of the savages was indeed the reason Marlow ended up in the Congo anyway. Marlow needed to meet "Mr. Kurtz" (Conrad 23), which led him to embark to an obscure region. By the time the two finally meet, Marlow discovers that Kurtz is a very different character than how he is portrayed. The savages, or the people of the Congo, treat him as their deity, which leads Kurtz into a spiral of madness and savage behavior, which has nothing to do with Marlow or his efforts. Because Kurtz is not what they say, Marlow despises him, but still hopes to bring him to Europe, as he was led to do. Before he can return, Kurtz develops a terminal illness and lacks the vitality to survive the return trip and dies before leaving the Congo. His last words were: “The horror! The horror! (Conrad 96), in which he depicts the severity inflicted on the Congo by the organization, as well as by himself. On his return to Europe, Marlow visits Kurtz's wife to tell her of the death of her husband. In the middle of their discussion, Mrs. Kurtz asks Marlow what his partner's last words were, and he thinks for a moment before reacting. Deciding to relieve Mrs. Kurtz of the fear with which her husband had done so, he misled her and said that Kurtz's last words were his name. By doing