All 4 Uses of
pretense
in
Heart of Darkness
- An idea at the back of it; not a sentimental pretense but an idea; and an unselfish belief in the idea—something you can set up, and bow down before, and offer a sacrifice to....†
Chpt 1pretense = a false appearance or action to help one pretend
- It was as unreal as everything else—as the philanthropic pretense of the whole concern, as their talk, as their government, as their show of work.†
Chpt 1
- I became in an instant as much of a pretense as the rest of the bewitched pilgrims.
Chpt 1 *
- They were intruders whose knowledge of life was to me an irritating pretense, because I felt so sure they could not possibly know the things I knew.†
Chpt 3
Definition:
a false appearance or action to help one pretend
This is sometimes seen in the expression "false pretense" or "false pretenses" which is just emphasizing that behavior or actions do not reflect the true situation.