DANIEL DEFOE – ROBINSON CRUSOEContext

Daniel Defoe was born in 1660, in London, and was originally christenedDaniel Foe, changing his name around the age of thirty-five to soundmore aristocratic. As a boy, Daniel witnessed two of the greatest disastersof the seventeenth century: a recurrence of the plague and the Great Fireof London in 1666. These events may have shaped his fascination withcatastrophes and survival in his writing.Robinson Crusoe contains many reflections about the value of money.Defoe began to write, partly as a moneymaking venture. One of hisfirst creations was a poem written in 1701, entitled “

The True-Born Englishman

”. He also wrote political pamphlets. Defoe worked as a publicist, political journalist, and pamphleteer. He also worked as a spy,reflecting his own variable identity as merchant, poet, journalist, and prisoner. This theme of changeable identity would later be expressed inthe life of Robinson Crusoe, who becomes merchant, slave, plantationowner, and even unofficial king. In his writing, Defoe often used a pseudonym simply because he enjoyed the effect. He was incredibly productive as a writer, turning out over 500 books and pamphlets duringhis life.Defoe began writing fiction late in life, around the age of sixty. He published his first novel,

Robinson Crusoe

, in 1719. He followed in 1722with

Moll Flanders

, the story of a tough heroine whose fortunes rise andfall dramatically. Robinson Crusoe was based on the true story of ashipwrecked seaman named Alexander Selkirk and was passed off ashistory, while

Moll Flanders

included dark prison scenes drawn fromDefoe’s experiences in Newgate and interviews with prisoners. His focuson the actual conditions of everyday life and avoidance of the courtly andthe heroic made Defoe a revolutionary in English literature and helpeddefine the new genre of the novel.Stylistically, Defoe was a great innovator. Dispensing with theornate style associated with the upper classes, Defoe used the simple,direct, fact-based style of the middle classes, which became the newstandard for the English novel. The theme on the book is a man’s life onan island. Robinson Crusoe has been called a romance of solitude. Thestory of a lonely man building up an existence out of nothing isessentially romantic, but the author treats it in a matter-of-fact way. With

Robinson Crusoe

’s theme of solitary human existence, Defoe paved theway for the central modern theme of alienation and isolation.

Characteristics:Convincing realism

through which Defoe succeeds in bringing awild flight of fantasy down to the plane of ordinariness, concreteness. Itmakes fiction sound like fact.

An unheroic hero

of middle-class origin, with nothing uncommonabout him. Compare Robinson with the heroes of Shakespeare, foexample, all of them men who in some way or another are out of theordinary.It is not only

a novel of adventure

but also

a novel of character

, because the action follows logically from the hero’s character. Defoemakes it acceptable that an independent and energetic man like Crusoeshould be able to cope with the difficult situations in which he findshimself.

Autobiographical elements.

In a way

it is the story of Defoe’sown life. The qualities that helped Crusoe build up an economic systemon the island werw the qualities that brought material success to Defoe.They both did not appreciate human company and lived on the brink of ruin, which in Defoe’s case came from his imprisonment, his bankruptcyand his working as a secret agent.

A children’s book?

It is paradoxical that

Robinson Crusoe,

whichhas grown into one of the great myths of our time, almost ranking with

Faust

and

Don Juan

, should at the same time have become a children’sclassic. The reason of its success with children is probably that they feelthe urge to grow up and build an independent existence and try to achievethe unlimited freedom enjoyed by Robinson on his island.

Construction:

The book may be divided into three parts: Part I covers Robinson’s life before his arrival on the island. Part II deals with the adventures on theisland. Part III is taken up by his return to England, his marriage and anannouncement of further adventures, described under the title

“The Farther Adventures of Robinson Crusoe”

Robinson Crusoe

The Swiss philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau applauded Crusoe’s do-it-yourself independence, and in his book on education,

Emile

, herecommends that children be taught to imitate Crusoe’s hands-onapproach to life. Crusoe’s business instincts are just as considerable as hissurvival instincts: he manages to make a fortune in Brazil despite atwenty-eight-year absence and even leaves his island with a nicecollection of gold. Crusoe is never interested in portraying himself as a

hero in his own narration. He is always ready to admit unheroic feelingsof fear or panic, as when he finds the footprint on the beach. Crusoe prefers to depict himself as an ordinary sensible man, never as anexceptional hero.Crusoe seems incapable of deep feelings, as shown by his cold account of leaving his family—he worries about the religious consequences of disobeying his father, but never displays any emotion about leaving.Though he is generous toward people, Crusoe reveals very little tender or sincere affection in his dealings with them. As an individual personality,Crusoe is rather dull. While not boasting of heroism, Crusoe isnonetheless very interested in possessions, power, and prestige. Histeaching Friday to call him “Master,” even before teaching him the wordsfor “yes” or “no,” seems obnoxious even under the racist standards of theday, as if Crusoe needs to hear the ego-boosting word spoken as soon as possible.

Friday

Probably the first non-white character to be given a realistic,individualized, and humane portrayal in the English novel, Friday has ahuge literary and cultural importance. If Crusoe represents the firstcolonial mind in fiction, then Friday represents not just a Caribbeantribesman, but all the natives of America, Asia, and Africa who wouldlater be oppressed in the age of European imperialism.In many ways he is the most vibrant character in Robinson Crusoe,much more charismatic and colourful than his master. Whereas Crusoenever mentions missing his family or dreams about the happiness of seeing them again, Friday jumps and sings for joy when he meets hisfather, and this emotional display makes us see what is missing fromCrusoe’s stodgy heart. Friday’s expression of loyalty in asking Crusoe tokill him rather than leave him is more heartfelt than anything Crusoe ever says or does. In short, Friday’s exuberance and emotional directness often point out the wooden conventionality of Crusoe’s personality. Theidealized master-servant relationship Defoe depicts between Crusoe andFriday can also be seen in terms of cultural imperialism.Crusoe’s experiences constitute not simply an adventure story inwhich thrilling things happen, but also a moral tale illustrating the rightand wrong ways to live one’s life. Robinson is not a hero, but aneveryman. He begins as a wanderer, aimless on a sea he does notunderstand, and ends as a pilgrim, crossing a final mountain to enter the