Robinson Crusoe Essay, Research Paper

Robinson Crusoe tells the story of a young explorer who becomes marooned on a deserted island. His experiences on the island change his outlook on life. Daniel Defoe was prolific short story writer and political essaysist. Defoe lived in poverty for most of his life and made his living as a butcher and a writer Robinson Crusoe was a combination of two short stories. Defoe as he did in other writings used Robinson Crusoe to portray himself in a certain ways. The description was almost identical to his own life and after his wife left him, he felt as if he was marooned in life. The story takes place in the 1700s on a deserted island somewhere off the coast of Brazil. The island is fairly large in size and has a small shore. The interior of the island has many trees, wild pigs and other small animals and a small cave in which Crusoe stores food. I walked about the shore lifting up my hands. Look around, I see nothing but water, a forest, and the remains of myship. At first, I was afraid of wild animals but after someexploration of the land, the only animals I had seen werewild pigs, squirrels, and some small birds. The only possessions that Crusoe retrieved from the remains of his ship were a small knife, a box of tabacco, a pipe, and a small book that would later become his journal. Robinson Crusoe was a young and stubborn explorer. He was extremelytall and strong. His stay on the island changed him from a mean, stubborn man to an open-minded protestant. Standing at six feet, two inches and having my long, thick brown hair back in a ponytail, I felt as if I was eight feettall. Without the permission of my parents, I was still sailing away from the misery. I held the cargo box is mystrong arms, waiting to board my beautiful ship. Crusoe became a skilled craftsman and was an extremely religious man due to his stay on the island. Being the only man on the entire island, he established a faith in God. He also became more articulate from writing in a journal daily. Overall, his stay on the island changed Crusoe s life greatly.As the story begins, Robinson Crusoe defies his parents and sets out tosea. Crusoe encounters a series of violent storms at sea and ends up in Africa. He sets out on another voyage and is captured by the Sallee, a group of pirates. Luckily, he manages to escape and board a Portuguese ship and sail to Brazil. While in Brazil, Crusoe purchases a large sugar plantation. After leaving Brazil, he encounters another storm in which his ship is destroyed and he is marooned on an island as the only survivor.

On the island, Crusoe gathers food and builds a small shelter. He writes in a journal to keep account of his stay. Crusoe becomes a skilled craftsman and begins to feel a spiritual connection with God. He also builds a small boat that he uses to sail around the island.After living on the island for fifteen years, Crusoe discovers that savages had landed on the island and that they perform human sacrifices. Crusoe helps a prisoner escape from these savages. He names the prisoner Friday and teaches him english. Together, they build a new boat and attempt to leave the island. However, Friday learns his father is a prisoner of the savages. Crusoe and Friday return and rescue his father and a Spaniard. The four men board a passing boat and gain control of it. Crusoe sails back to his native land to learn his sugar plantation has made him rich. He sells the plantation and marries. Asthe novel closes, Crusoe is persuaded to take a final voyage, back to the island. Robinson Crusoe is written using an English dialect. The narration of the novel is simple, informal and extremely easy to understand. However, Defoe uses verbose descriptions for characters.He was a comely, handsome fellow, perfectly well made, with strong limbs, not too large, tall and well-shaped, andI reckon he was about twenty years of age. The colorof his skin was not quite black, but very tawny; and yet not of an ugly, yellow, nauseous tawny, as the Braziliansand Virginians, and other natives are; but of a bright kindof a dun olive color that had in it something agreeable, though not very easy to describe This is a description of Friday. Defoe does an excellent job of introducing the character. This paragraph makes a clear picture of Friday to the reader. The theme of the novel is that nature can change the way a man thinks and his outlook on life. Crusoe was a nasty young man who hated his family and his life as the story began. After being stranded on an island for over fifteen years, nature changed his outlook on life. Crusoe became grateful for what he did have and wanted to make the best out of it. He developed a stronger will power and became more opened minded. He also thought more about the betteraspects of his life and had faith in God. .