Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe - Part 9

08/24/06 • -1 min

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Let's get on with our story, shall we? It's a good story and reading it is a lot of fun. Difficult, but fun. Defoe's language is up and down and backward and forward. It makes you think fast. Try picking up the book and reading any part of it out loud and fast. It's tricky. But it's a very good way to learn more about how Defoe's mind worked. Amazing. Are you starting to wonder why Crusoe constantly reminds us of things and says things like: 'As I told you before,' or 'As I said earlier?'
He almost insists that you follow the correct sequence of events, but he skips ahead in order to achieve a much more important goal. He wants you to follow along with his state of mind. That's why his story-telling language is so twisty and folds back on itself so often. This is certainly one of the most fantastic things about Defoe's novel. Its obsessive focus on the man's state of mind sets a precedent that influences almost all of literature following Defoe. It is really this that makes the book so modern.
This story holds surprises for us. Stay tuned until next week...

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Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe - Part 7

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Crusoe details how he learns to grow crops that will help sustain him when his ammunition runs out. He journeys to the far side of the island, finding better land and more plentiful game there. He describes the difficulties overcome in learning to weave baskets and cut lumber from a tree. He also writes about his religious thinking and how he begins to come to terms with his solitary condition.

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Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe - Part 10

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Our lone character, Robinson Crusoe, succeeds in raising his herd of goats and learns to use them for meat, milk and cheese. But his shocking discovery on a beach shakes his foundation and fills him with dread.