Throughout the book Heart of Darkness, we see one group holding power over another looking through a postcolonial lens. The white men throughout the story remain dominant and powerful over the black men. The way that Conrad words the text and the way he uses imagery and symbolism helps portray these power roles. “I’ve seen the devil of violence, and the devil of greed, and the devil of hot desire; but, by all the stars! these were strong, lusty, red-eyed devils, that swayed and drove men- men, I tell you.” (Conrad, 82) In the previous quote, Conrad refers to the slaves as ‘the devil’. Along with this, he uses the color red as a symbol. Red is a color commonly associated with bad or evil. By using this color throughout the text it helps Conrad to portray the slaves as weak and savages. He uses the words ‘greed’ and ‘violence’ to describe them. These words make them seem like animals, hungry for anything they can get ahold of and ready to attack. As Conrad portrays the slaves as animals, it helps to show that the white men are superior and hold power. The white men own and treat the slaves as animals. The slaves are taught to fear the white men, hence why the slaves seem so violent. This portrayal of the slaves as aggressive animals helps the reader to see that the white men hold dominance throughout the story and that everyone should fear them.