Robinson Crusoe: Study Questions
1. At the opening of the novel, Robinson spends considerable time on the various components of his "sin" of going to sea. To what extent is this sin religious (disobedience to a father), to what extent economic (failure to follow his father's good advice)? As Robinson comes to reflect on his "sin" at various points of the novel, what conclusions does he come to, and how does his attitude towards it change?2. Robinson seems to regard the shipwreck partly as a divine punishment, partly as a divine warning, and partly as a sign of God's favor ("I alone was saved"). What is the relationship between these three views? How does Robinson regard Providence and his own relationship to it? What framework does the idea of Providence provide for him as he seeks to interpret his situation?
3. One can look at Robinson Crusoe as a spiritual pilgrimage. If it is, what are the stages in that pilgrimage? Where is Robinson coming from? Where is he going to, and how does he know when he has gotten there? Are there secular, non-religious explanations for Robinson's progress? If so, what is their relation to the religious explanation?
4. Robinson Crusoe is an almost mythic example of the lonely man, cut off from human society and the help of others. What is the psychological condition of that loneliness? What are the various ways in which it is influenced by and manifested in the details of Robinson's life on the island (the details of his "fort," for example)? What changes take place in the loneliness of Robinson's situation and the way he looks at it?
5. If I were to write a paper on Robinson Crusoe, I would be tempted to call it "the ecology of salvation." What is there to be said about ecology in Robinson Crusoe? What, practically and symbolically, is Robinson's relationship to nature? What diverse aspects of nature become engaged in this relationship?
6. Robinson writes things down in considerable (sometimes trying) detail. He certainly wants to take account of things, often literally, so that the novel sometimes seems like a ledger. What do you make of this "budgetary" approach to autobiography? What does it imply (or, for that matter, conceal) about Robinson's character and about the meaning of the novel?
7. Robinson's relation to Friday is complex and dramatic. How do you evaluate it and account for its complexities? How does it compare to the various other relations we see in the novel (e.g., Robinson and his father, Robinson and Xury, Robinson and the several ship captains, Robinson and his plantation partner)? To what degree is the Robinson-Friday relationship based on "authority" (the bonding of unequals) and on "friendship" (the bonding of equals), and what is the nature of this bond?
8. As Robinson's island accumulates a population, it begins to have a government (at least in a loose sense) with Robinson at its head. What are the politics of the island? What are the nature and source of Robinson's authority? What is the significance of the "mutiny" scene at the end?
9. To what degree does Defoe and do we identify with Robinson as both the narrator and the central figure of the story? To what degree are we able to look at Robinson objectively, at a distance? Why is this an important question (if it is)?
10. One can look at Robinson Crusoe as having what critics have come to call a "concentric" structure: (A) Robinson's experiences before the island (leaving Europe); (B) Robinson's difficult and lonely experiences in making the island habitable and survivable (culminating, perhaps, in his religious conversion); (C) a natural "idyll"--the island as earthly paradise; (B) Robinson's difficult but social encounters with human evil--cannibalism and mutiny; (A) Robinson's experiences after the island (the return to Europe). Is this account of the novel's structure convincing and useful? If useful, what is its use? How does it help in perceiving or explaining the significance of Defoe's novel? Or are structures like this "concentric" one merely artificial views of literary critics?
11. Both religion and economics seem to be dynamic shaping forces in Robinson Crusoe. How are they related to each other? How do they join in giving this novel its particular form, character, and meaning? Beyond their functions here, what further speculations can you suggest about the roles of religion and economics in influencing the development of the novel as an emergent literary form? (You certainly need not venture upon this last, ambitious topic if you want to write a paper on this question.)