Robinson Crusoe, is one of the most popular novels in English language that has captivated the young and the old alike, though for different reasons. It is at once, simple and complex, and the events and experiences described in the book, contains and conveys diverse meanings as diverse as the readership. But that is if you choose to read the book and who you indeed, are.
But the book marked a permanent place in literary history because it is regarded as the first English novel. Published on 25th of April, 1719, Robinson Crusoe, a story about a ship wrecked boy who spends 28 years on a lonely island all by himself, is even today the most widely read books in English language. He is considered one of the earliest proponents of a form of fictional writing, christened ‘novel’ and helped to popularise this form in Britain.
With such pearls of wisdom like ‘It is never too late to be wise’ and ‘Expect nothing and you’ll be always surprised’, that abound in his works, he was prolific and versatile; and also bold and different. He wrote more than 500 books, pamphlets and journals on a variety of subjects. While his books got him recognition and acceptance of his genius, he also invited the wrath of many, particularly those in establishment. In 1703, when he was 43, he was placed in a pillory for the crime of seditious libel after publishing a politically satirical pamphlet. It speaks much about the man that he was pelted with flowers by the people gathered around him, instead of stone and rotten eggs, the customary missiles on such occasions.
Robinson Crusoe
Robinson Crusoe is a travelogue, an account of the protagonist’s voyages but the most riveting aspect of the narrative is his survival on a lonely island where he is shipwrecked. Alone with no survivors, and completely isolated he manages to survive on that deserted island leading to a spiritual awakening. Inspired by the life of a Scottish seaman Alexander Selkirk, who was marooned on the Pacific island of Juan Fernandez for four years and four months, the story offers a wide range of messages apart from a captivating narrative.
His life’s account on that island affirms a certain morality, that despite all odd, one can still survive and even succeed with the resolute combination of hard work, planning, thrift, resourcefulness and religious faith. Many believe that the novel was well received because it strove to establish core middle class values so strongly emerging in the then British society. The journeys so graphically portrayed in the novel reflects the sense of adventure and daring associated with the expansionary imperialism and colonising policies of then Britain as also the perceived notion of superiority of Christian faith and its nobly construed duty to civilise the savages and natives. Robinson’s account of the native ‘Friday’ and his association forcefully underline this sentiment, so prevalent in those times. On the whole, the narrative caught the fancy and attention of people, few other books could. If the tale was gripping, the underlying reflection on a wide ranging issues, was sober and revealing. And, Defoe was credited with creating the first novel of the English language.
Incarceration
Because of his convictions, political and otherwise (he was a Presbyterian), he was often at odds with the authorities. He was arrested on charges of seditious libel and found guilty by a notoriously sadistic judge Salanthiel Lovell, who sentenced him to a punitive fine of 200 marks (336 British Pounds then, 58,182 in 2022), to public humiliation in a pillory, and to an undefined prison term which could end only when he paid the fine. It is widely believed that the spectators who assembled around the pillory instead of pelting him with the customary noxious objects and stones, and drink to his death, showered him with flowers. Daniel spent three days on pillory and subsequently spent some days in jail before his release was secured by someone who appreciated his support of a rival political position which brought him the wrath and retribution of the ruling dispensation.
The Great Storm of London
If he suffered because of the many pamphlets that he wrote and published, he was also the author of a report regarded as world’s first example of modern journalism. Within a week of Daniel’s release from the prison, The Great Storm of 1703 hit London in the night of 26/27 November. The tempest ravaged London and Bristol, uprooting millions of trees and killing more than 8,000 people mostly at sea. Daniel’s report The Storm, incorporating thousands of witness accounts, is still considered one of the finest example of reporting of an extraordinary catastrophe.
His Legacy
He died on 24 April, 1731, a pauper and in debt, perhaps in hiding from creditors. He had spent many a day in debtor’s prison. A man whose convictions carried him to lengths that brought him debt, ignominy, misery even incarceration but did not deter him from what he believed was politically and ethically in consonance with his faith of head and heart.
Like Robinson, the character so famously created by him, his was a life of planning and perseverance, of thrift and tenacity and above all an unshakable if radical, Christian faith.
‘ The soul is placed in the body like a rough diamond, and must be polished, or the luster of it will never appear.’, he wrote. He cannot be faulted for not practising what he preached, for, in substance, his account of life, objectively evaluated, seems an exercise in burnishing his soul and articulating its resonance.
It is not for nothing that Robinson Crusoe is the most extensively translated book in history second only to Bible.
scribo ad LX 