Ready Reference Treatise: Robinson Crusoe

By Raja Sharma

It is a fictional autobiography of Robinson Crusoe, who happens to be a castaway. Crusoe is compelled to spend twenty eight years on a remote island near Trinidad, the West Indies.

He lives alone, facing all sorts of dangers. He encounters cannibals, captives, and mutineers. Finally, he is rescued from that island.

It is generally assumed that the story is inspired by a real life character, Alexander Selkirk who was a Scottish castaway who was forced to live for four years on the Pacific island called “Mass a Tierra”. The name of the island was changed to Robinson Crusoe Island, Chile.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Raja Sharma
• Release date: Mar 17, 2013
• ISBN: 9781301497980

Raja Sharma

Raja Sharma is a retired college lecturer.He has taught English Literature to University students for more than two decades.His students are scattered all over the world, and it is noticeable that he is in contact with more than ninety thousand of his students.

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Ready Reference Treatise: Robinson Crusoe

Raja Sharma

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Ready Reference Treatise: Robinson Crusoe

Raja Sharma

Copyright@2013 Raja Sharma

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Chapter One: Introduction to Robinson Crusoe

Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe is an epistolary novel. It was first published in the year 1719. The novel happens to be in the form of a confessional and didactic narrative.

It is a fictional autobiography of Robinson Crusoe, who happens to be a castaway. Crusoe is compelled to spend twenty eight years on a remote island near Trinidad, the West Indies.

He lives alone, facing all sorts of dangers. He encounters cannibals, captives, and mutineers. Finally, he is rescued from that island.

It is generally assumed that the story is inspired by a real life character, Alexander Selkirk who was a Scottish castaway who was forced to live for four years on the Pacific island called Mass a Tierra. The name of the island was changed to Robinson Crusoe Island, Chile.

The island where Crusoe spent his time was probably the Caribbean island of Tobago. It is also probable that Defoe was inspired by the Latin or English translations of Hayy ibn Yaqdhan, a novel, written by Tufail. It was also set on a desert island.

It is quite noticeable that Robinson Crusoe was the first novel which was absolutely free from mythology, history, legends, or previous literature. It is considered to be first work of literature which was inspired by a real life event, but was free from any associations to the writings of the past.

Chapter Two: About the Title

The original and complete title of the novel is The Life and Strange Surprizing Adventures of Robinson Crusoe of York, Mariner: Who lived Eight and Twenty Years.

The title character had spent twenty eight years all alone in an uninhabited Island on the Coast of America, near the Mouth of the Great River of Oroonoque. He happens to have been cast on shore by Shipwreck. Except for him, all other drowned in the shipwreck.

Robinson Crusoe is one