Daniel Defoe e Robinson Crusoe
Daniel Defoe was born in London around 1660 into a middle-class Puritan family.
He was educated at a dissenting academy, as he could not attend Oxford or
Cambridge due to his religion. Despite his political work, Defoe is best
remembered as a pioneering novelist. In 1719, he published Robinson Crusoe.
The novel became an immediate success and is often seen as the beginning of
realistic fiction in English literature. Daniel Defoe died in London in 1731, possibly
from a stroke.
Plot Robinson Crusoe
Robinson Crusoe is an English adventure novel by Daniel Defoe, first published in
1719. Inspired by the story of Alexander Selkrik, a Scottish sailor who managed
on the island of Juan Fernandez for five years. The novel follows Robinson
Crusoe, born in York in 1632, who leaves home to seek adventure. After being
captured by pirates and later rescued, he becomes a plantation owner in Brazil.
He is shipwrecked on a deserted island, where he lives for 28 years, keeps a
diary, and struggles with isolation. He encounters cannibals, saves a prisoner he
names Friday, and later rescues Friday’s father. Crusoe finally returns to
England, discovering he has become wealthy thanks to his plantation.
Setting
The setting of most of the story is the desert island. Robinson organises his own
form of a primitive empire on the island, thus becoming the prototype of the
English coloniser.
The Hero
Robinson belongs to the middle class.
Style
The novel is narrated in the first person and provides a realistic description of
everyday life through clear and precise details. The language is simple, direct
and concrete, to reinforce the impression of reality conveyed by the first person
narration.
Themes
Pragmatism, individualism and a spiritual autobiography. There are a lot of
religious references to God. Robinson read the Bible to find comfort and
guidance.
The Journal
The Journal is a diary that the protagonist Robinson keeps during his time on the
deserted island.
September 30: Robinson Crusoe is shipwrecked during a violent storm and finds
himself alone on a barren, deserted island, which he names the Island of Despair.
His only option for safety is to sleep in a tree, terrified of wild animals that might
attack at night.
October 1: Crusoe discovers that the wrecked ship has drifted closer to shore
with the high tide and remains largely intact. He swims to the ship and starts
salvaging items.
October 1–24: Crusoe dedicates these days to making several trips between the
ship and the shore, constructing rafts to carry as many supplies as possible. He
manages to bring ashore food, tools, and materials, which are crucial for his
survival. Despite heavy and frequent rains, he works tirelessly, aware that these
resources are vital.
October 20: While transporting goods on a raft, Crusoe's raft overturns, and he
loses many items into the shallow water.
October 25: A powerful storm breaks the wrecked ship into pieces, leaving only
fragments visible at low tide. Crusoe spends the entire day working to secure and
cover his salvaged goods to protect them from the constant rain, ensuring
nothing essential is ruined.
October 26: Realizing he needs a secure and defensible place to live, Crusoe
explores the coastline. He finds a suitable spot under a large rock and begins
planning a fortification to protect himself from possible attacks by wild animals or
hostile humans.
October 26–30: Crusoe works hard, transporting all his salvaged goods to his new
chosen site.
October 31: Equipped with his gun, Crusoe ventures inland for the first time to
hunt and explore the island. He successfully kills a she-goat for food.
Interestingly, her kid follows him back to his camp, but Crusoe eventually kills it
too, as it refuses to eat and survive.
November 1: Crusoe sets up his tent under the rock, making it as large and sturdy
as possible. He places stakes in the ground to support his hammock, preparing
for his first proper night's sleep in his new shelter.
November 2: Crusoe builds a protective fence around home.
The Industrial Revolution
Economic change
At the end of the 18th century, Britain experienced significant economic
transformations that shifted the country from a mainly agricultural society to an
industrialised one. These changes had their roots in earlier periods, starting after
the final outbreak of the Black Death, when improved living standards and a
growing population led to more intensive farming. The 18th century saw a true
agricultural revolution: new methods of soil management increased land fertility
and boosted cereal production, while scientific breeding of animals improved
meat output.
Technological innovation
Thomas Newcomen invented the steam engine in 1712, which made pumping
water out of coal mines possibile. James Hargreaves’s spinning jenny increased
spinning efficiency. Heavy investment in technological development increased
and innovation became linked to energy generated from coal.
The workers life
Many working-class families needed additional income, so their children also had
to work. First, they could pay children less than adults for doing the same work.
Second, children were easier to control and were generally more obedient than
adults. The third reason for employing children rather than adults was because
of their size.
Britain and America
When George III ascended to the throne in 1760, Britain was a dominant naval
power, enjoying internal stability and economic growth. However, his reign is
most remembered for the significant loss of the American colonies. To manage
public debt, Britain imposed taxes on goods like corn, paper, and tea and
expected the American colonies to contribute to their own defense. These new
taxes sparked outrage in the colonies, leading to widespread protests. Although
some taxes were repealed, a tax on tea remained, fueling continued anger.
The famous "Boston Tea Party" of 1773 became a symbol of rebellion, where
American patriots, disguised as Native Americans, dumped a shipment of British
tea into Boston Harbour. Their rallying cry was "No taxation without
representation," emphasizing their lack of political voice in the British
Parliament.
On July 4, 1776, the Declaration of Independence, drafted mainly by Thomas
Jefferson, articulated not just the break from Britain but also universal principles
of human rights and governance based on the "consent of the governed." The
war ended with the Treaty of Paris in 1783, officially recognizing American
independence.
In 1787, a federal constitution was established, and in 1789, George Washington
was inaugurated as the first President.
Gothic fiction
Gothic fiction emerged in the late 18th century as a literary genre that blended
horror and terror. The adjective “Gothic” was first applied to architecture long
before it was used to describe literature. Horace Walpole’s The Castle of Otranto
(1764) is considered the first Gothic novel, setting many conventions of the
genre, including haunted castles, ancestral curses, and tragic heroines.
In Gothic fiction, critics often distinguish between terror and horror:
● Terror is internal and psychological. It involves suspense, anticipation, and
fear of the unknown. Terror creates a sense of dread and anxiety before
anything actually happens. It plays with the imagination and keeps the
reader in a state of nervous expectation.
● Horror is external and physical. It shocks the reader with explicit scenes of
violence, death, or supernatural events. Horror provokes immediate
reactions of disgust or fear through graphic details.
Gothic fiction is set in isolated places such as castles, abbeys, and convents,
often far from civilization, which enhances the feeling of mystery and fear. The
events typically occur at night, a time associated with darkness and danger. The
plot is usually complex and full of suspense, often made even more intricate by
stories within stories. The characters include supernatural beings like monsters,
ghosts, wanderers, or outcasts who bring an element of the uncanny. The typical
Gothic hero is portrayed as sensitive and honourable, often struggling with inner
or external conflicts. The heroine is usually a young woman who is innocent and
virtuous but becomes the victim of persecution by a cruel villain, highlighting
themes of vulnerability and evil.
Mary Shelley and Frankenstein
Mary Shelley was born in 1797, the daughter of two famous radicals: Mary
Wollstonecraft, a pioneer of women’s rights, and William Godwin, a political
philosopher. She is most famous for writing the novel “Frankenstein”, which she
published in 1818 when she was just 20 years old.
Plot of Frankenstein
The novel Frankenstein tells the story of Robert Walton, an explorer who, on an
Arctic expedition, rescues Victor Frankenstein. Frankenstein recounts how, as a
scientist fascinated by natural philosophy and science, he created a living being
from parts of dead bodies. However, horrified by his creation, he abandoned it.
The creature, feeling rejected and vengeful, destroys Frankenstein’s life, killing his
loved ones, including his wife Elizabeth. In the end, Frankenstein dies aboard
Walton’s ship, regretting his failure to destroy the monster. The creature, full of
remorse, disappears into the Arctic, vowing to end his own life.
Levels of Narration
Frankenstein is not told chronologically. It is written as an epistolary novel. It is
composed of three narratives, with three different narrators and three different
points of view:
Robert Walton tells the story of his expedition to the Arctic to his sister
Victor Frankenstein tells his life story to Walton
The creature tells his story to Frankenstein.
Literary Influences
The monster can be considered Rousseau's' Natural man', that is, a man in a
primitive state, not influenced by civilization.
The myth of Prometheus is also important. In Greek mythology, Prometheus was a
giant who stole fire from the Gods in order to give it to men. In doing so, he
challenged divine authority and freed men from the Gods' power.
The role of science
Percy and Mary Shelley were particularly fascinated by the experiments with
electricity. The monster is the first literary embodiment of the theme of science
and its moral responsibilities and potentially dangerous consequences.
Themes
Frankenstein explores the limits of life and death, the danger of forbidden
knowledge, and the overreacher figure in Walton and Frankenstein. It also shows
the usurpation of the female role through artificial creation of life. The monster
symbolizes social prejudice and the pain of rejection.
