Daniel Defoe

Novels

 1719 the first novel 1719-1724 a number of novels The change from the style of journalism and essayism was not that abrupt Even before writing Robinson Crusoe, Defoe wrote longer pieces of prose Longer prose: not novelistic & not of some great artistic value

Before Robinson Crusoe

1705 a short story, believed to be his first encounter with the form and content of fiction A True Relation of the Apparition of one Mrs Veal, the next day after her Death, to one Mrs Bargrave at Canterbury, the 8th of September, 1705 an account of a ghost story popular at the time in Canterbury (not original)

 importance: introduces the narrative technique that is to be developed subsequently in his novels - journalistic style - great number of details - moralising tendency - clear, simple, objective presentation of the chosen material

 Other longer prose works written prior to his novels - of lesser artistic value, but illustrative of his approach to the subject matter 1708-1709 History of the Union (union of England and Scotland) 1715 The Family Instructor 1722 The Journal of the Plague Year 1724-26 A Tour thro the Whole Island of Great Britain 1725-27 The Complete English Tradesman

Robinson Crusoe
Literary forerunners: travelogues, works of seafarers and geographers (Francis Drake, Walter Raleigh), various journals Alexander Selkirk, a Scottish mariner, 4 years on a desert island (1705-1709) Literary sources: 1. The Island of Pines, sir Henry Neville (1668) 2. Pilgrims Progress, John Bunyan (1678) 3. Oroonoko, Aphra Behn (1688)

 Original work Genre: travelogue, pseudo-autobiography, adventurous novel, educational novel, political and economical study, allegory for the development of civilization 1719 The Life and Strange Surprizing Adventures of Robinson Crusoe of York, Mariner 1719 The Farther Adventures of Robinson Crusoe 1720 Serious Reflections During the Life and Surprizing Adventures of Robinson Crusoe Popularity of the first novel unmatched by its sequels

 Robinson: a mythical figure, a symbol of bourgeois success, a hero of colonialism 3 favourite ideas of the European civilization (Rousseau): 1. Return to nature (the noble savage) 2. Glorification of work 3. Economic individualism

 1st person narration, pseudo-autobiography nonselective inclusion of details, journalistic realism, illusion of authenticity Inspired a new genre Robinson(n)ades

Moll Flanders
The Fortunes and Misfortunes of Moll Flanders, 1720 In Robinson Crusoe, the emphasis put on the situation (the protagonist - a symbol of a class) In Moll Flanders, the importance of the protagonist Plot resembles that of a picaresque novel Protagonist not a typical picaro

 Main focus: the protagonist & social setting Technique: objective, journalistic, details, episodic structure, chronological order Legacy: realistic portrayal of a character

 Common features: 1st person narration (illusion of truthfulness but also a limited perspective) Structual pattern: the protagonist as a link between various chronologically ordered episodes

Other novels
1720 Captain Singleton 1722 Colonel Jack / Jacque 1724 Lady Roxana, or the Fortunate Mistress