Moll Flanders

By Daniel Dafoe

One of the earliest picaresque novels in English, Moll Flanders has both captivated and shocked countless readers since it was first published in 1722. A masterpiece of fiction, written in the form of an autobiographical memoir, the novel describes Moll on the original title page as having been "Born in Newgate … Twelve Year a Whore, Five times a Wife (whereof once to her own Brother), Twelve Year a Thief, Eight Year a Transported Felon in Virginia, at last grew Rich, liv'd Honest, and died a Penitent."
Daniel Defoe's roguish heroine tells the scandalous facts of her adventurous life with such simple and straightforward sincerity and with such a wealth of intimate detail that the reader is soon convinced that Moll must, indeed, be an authentic person.
Having been imprisoned for political offenses and having experienced severe economic losses in his own life, Defoe demonstrates early on in this novel how circumstances and a fear of poverty can drive one into a life of crime. He writes with authority when Moll speaks of poverty as a "frightful spectre."
An excellent candidate for classroom use, this classic of 18th-century fiction will entertain and enlighten general readers as well.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Dover Publications
• Release date: Aug 8, 2012
• ISBN: 9780486113821

Daniel Dafoe

Daniel Defoe (1660-1731) was an English author, journalist, merchant and secret agent. His career in business was varied, with substantial success countered by enough debt to warrant his arrest. Political pamphleteering also landed Defoe in prison but, in a novelistic turn of events, an Earl helped free him on the condition that he become an intelligence agent. The author wrote widely on many topics, including politics, travel, and proper manners, but his novels, especially Robinson Crusoe, remain his best remembered work.

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DOVER THRIFT EDITIONS

GENERAL EDITOR: STANLEY APPELBAUM

EDITOR OF THIS VOLUME: PHILIP SMITH

Copyright

Copyright © 1996 by Dover Publications, Inc.

All rights reserved under Pan American and International Copyright Conventions.

Bibliographical Note

This Dover edition, first published in 1996, is an unabridged, slightly corrected republication of the work first published by W. Chetwood and T. Edling, London, 1722. A new introductory Note has been specially prepared for the present edition.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Defoe, Daniel, 1661?–1731.

[Fortunes and misfortunes of the famous Moll Flanders]

Moll Flanders / Daniel Defoe.

p. cm.—(Dover thrift editions)

Unabridged, slightly corrected republication of the work first published by W. Chetwood and T. Edling, London, 1722. A new introductory note has been specially prepared for the present edition—T.p. verso.

9780486113821

I. Title. II. Series.

PR3404.F65 1996

823’.5—dc20

95–46417

CIP

Manufactured in the United States of America

Dover Publications, Inc., 31 East 2nd Street, Mineola, N.Y. 11501

Table of Contents

Title Page

Copyright Page

NOTE

THE PREFACE

THE HISTORY AND MISFORTUNES OF THE FAMOUS - Moll Flanders, &C.

NOTE

WIDELY REGARDED as the father of the English novel, Daniel Defoe (ca. 1660–1731) was nearly 60 when he published his first extended narrative, The Life and Strange Surprizing Adventures of Robinson Crusoe, of York, Mariner, in 1719. Prior to that he had labored for decades as a journalist and pamphleteer, and had become well known in London as an outspoken political and religious satirist. Defoe’s journalistic experience undoubtedly contributed to the excellence and popularity of Robinson Crusoe, which remains his greatest achievement, and one of world literature’s most universally acclaimed works. Defoe capitalized upon Robinson Crusoe’s success with characteristic alacrity, producing in rapid succession a sequel, The Farther Adventures of Robinson Crusoe (1719); Captain Singleton (1720); Moll Flanders (1722); A Journal of the Plague Year (1722); Colonel Jack (1722); and The Fortunate Mistress (a.k.a. Roxana, 1724), as well as a host of lesser-known works in a variety of forms.

Of Robinson Crusoe’s successors, Moll Flanders has enjoyed the greatest popularity among contemporary readers, and has been highly valued by academics for its depiction of shadowy regions of the society of its day. Like its predecessor, Moll Flanders is written in the guise of an autobiography, and was likely based upon the experiences of an actual individual or individuals—although efforts to identify the original of its protagonist have yielded conflicting results.

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[ORIGINAL TITLE PAGE.]

THE PREFACE

THE WORLD is so taken up of late with Novels and Romances, that it will be hard for a private History to be taken for Genuine, where the Names and other Circumstances of the Person are concealed, and on this Account we must be content to leave the Reader to pass his own Opinion upon the ensuing Sheets, and take it just as he pleases.

THE Author is here suppos’d to be writing her own History, and in the very beginning of her Account, she gives the Reasons why she thinks fit to conceal her true Name, after which there is no Occasion to say any more about that.

IT is true, that the original of this Story is put into new Words, and the Stile of the famous Lady we here speak of is a little alter’d, particularly she is made to tell her own Tale in modester Words than she told it at first; the Copy which came first to Hand, having been written in Language, more like one still in Newgate, than one grown Penitent and Humble, as she afterwards pretends to be.

THE Pen employ’d in finishing her Story, and making it what you now see it to be, has had no little difficulty to put it into a Dress fit to be seen, and to make it speak Language fit to be read: When a Woman debauch’ d from her Youth, nay, even being the Off-spring of Debauchery and Vice, comes to give an Account of all her vicious Practises, and even to descend to the particular Occasions and Circumstances, by which she first became wicked, and of all the progression of Crime which she run through in threescore Year, an Author must be hard put to it to wrap it up so clean, as not to give room, especially for vitious Readers to turn it to his Disadvantage.

ALL possible Care however has been taken to give no leud Ideas, no immodest Turns in the new dressing up this Story, no not to the worst parts of her Expressions; to this Purpose some of the vicious part of her Life, which cou’d not be modestly told, is quite left out, and several other Parts, are very much shortn’d; what is left ‘tis hop’d will not offend the chastest Reader, or the modestest Hearer; and as the best use is made even of the worst Story, the Moral ’tis hop’d will keep the Reader serious, even where the Story might incline him to be otherwise: To give the History of a wicked Life repented of, necessarily requires that the wicked Part should be made as wicked, as the real History of it will bear; to illustrate and give a Beauty to the Penitent part, which is certainly the best and brightest, if related with equal Spirit and Life.

IT is suggested there cannot be the same Life, the same Brightness and Beauty, in relating the penitent Part, as is in the criminal Part: If there is any Truth in that Suggestion, I must be allow’d to say, ’tis because there is not the same taste and relish in the Reading, and indeed it is too true that the difference lyes not in the real worth of the Subject so much as in the Gust and Palate of the Reader.

BUT as this Work is chiefly recommended to those who know how to Read it, and how to make the good Uses of it, which the Story all along recommends to them; so it is to be hop’d that such Readers will be much more pleas’d with the Moral, than the Fable; with the Application, than with the Relation, and with the End of the Writer, than with the Life of the Person written of.

THERE is in this Story abundance of delightful Incidents, and all of them usefully apply’d. There is an agreeable turn Artfully given them in the relating, that naturally Instructs the Reader, either one way, or other. The first part of her leud Life with the young Gentleman at Colchester, has so many happy Turns given it to expose the Crime, and warn all whose Circumstances are adapted to it, of the ruinous End of such things, and the foolish Thoughtless and abhorr’d Conduct of both the Parties, that it abundantly attones for all the lively Discription she gives of her Folly and Wickedness.

THE Repentance of her Lover at the Bath, and how brought by the just alarm of his fit of Sickness to abandon her; the just Caution given there against even the lawful Intimacies of the dearest Friends, and how unable they are to preserve the most solemn Resolutions of Vertue without divine Assistance; these are Parts, which to a just Discernment will appear to have more real Beauty in them, than all the amorous Chain of Story, which introduces it.

IN a Word, as the whole Relation is carefully garbl’d of all the Levity, and Looseness that was in it: So it is all applied, and with the utmost care to vertuous and religious Uses. None can without being guilty of manifest Injustice, cast any Reproach upon it, or upon our Design in publishing it.

THE Advocates for the Stage, have in all Ages made this the great Argument to persuade People that their Plays are useful, and that they ought to be allow’d in the most clvlliz’d, and in the most religious Government; Namely, That they are applyed to vertuous Purposes, and that by the most lively Representations, they fail not to recommend Vertue, and generous Principles, and to discourage and expose all sorts of Vice and Corruption of Manners; and were it true that they did so, and that they constantly adhered to that Rule, as the Test of their acting on the Theatre, much might be said in their Favour.

THROUGHOUT the infinite variety of this Book, this Fundamental is most strictly adhered to; there is not a wicked Action in any Part of it, but is first or last rendered Unhappy and Unfortunate: There is not a superlative Villain brought upon the Stage, but either he is brought to an unhappy End, or brought to be a Penitent: There is not an ill thing mention’d, but it is condemn’d, even in the Relation, nor a vertuous just Thing, but it carries its Praise along with it: What can more exactly answer the Rule laid down, to recommend, even those Representations of things which have so many other just Objections lying against them? Namely, of Example, of bad Company, obscene Language, and the like.

UPON this Foundation this Book is recommended to the Reader, as a Work from every part of which something may be learned, and some just and religious Inference is drawn, by which the Reader will have something of Instruction, if he pleases to make use of it.

ALL the Exploits of this Lady of Fame, in her Depredations upon Mankind stand as so many warnings to honest People to beware of them, intimating to them by what Methods innocent People are drawn in, plunder’d and robb’d, and by Consequence how to avoid them. Her robbing a little innocent Child, dress’d fine by the vanity of the Mother, to go to the Dancing-School, is a good Memento to such People hereafter; as in likewise her picking the Gold-Watch from the young Ladies side in the Park.

HER getting a parcel from a hair-brained Wench at the Coaches in St. John-street; her Booty made at the Fire, and again at Harwich; all give us excellent Warnings in such Cases to be more present to ourselves in sudden Surprizes of every Sort.

HER application to a sober Life, and industrious Management at last in Virginia, with her Transported Spouse, is a Story fruitful of Instruction, to all the unfortunate Creatures who are oblig’d to seek their Reestablishment abroad; whether by the Misery of Transportation, or other Disaster; letting them know, that Diligence and Application have their due Encouragement, even in the remotest Parts of the World, and that no Case can be so low, so despicable, or so empty of Prospect, but that an unwearied Industry will go a great way to deliver us from it, will in time raise the meanest Creature to appear again in the World, and give him a new Cast for his Life.

THESE are a few of the serious Inferences which we are led by the Hand to in this Book, and these are fully sufficient to Justifie any Man in recommending it to the World, and much more to Justifie the Publication of it.

THERE are two of the most beautiful Parts still behind, which this Story gives some idea of, and lets us into the Parts of them, but they are either of them too long to be brought into the same Volume; and indeed are, as I may call them whole Volumes of themselves, (viz.) I. The Life of Her Governess, as she calls her, who had run thro’, it seems in a few Years all the eminent degrees of a Gentlewoman, a Whore, and a Bawd; a Midwife, and a Midwife-keeper, as they are call’d, a Pawn-broker, a Child-taker, a Receiver of Thieves, and of Thieves purchase, that is to say, of stolen Goods; and in a Word, her self a Thief, a Breeder up of Thieves, and the like, and yet at last a Penitent.

THE second is the Life of her Transported Husband, a Highway-man; who it seems liv’d a twelve Years Life of successful Villany upon the Road, and even at last came off so well, as to be a Voluntier Transport, not a Convict; and in whose Life there is an incredible Variety.

BUT as I have said, these are things too long to bring in here, so neither can I make a Promise of their coming out by themselves.

WE cannot say indeed, that this History is carried on quite to the End of the Life of this famous Moll Flanders, as she calls her self, for no Body can write their own Life to the full End of it, unless they can write it after they are dead; but her Husband’s Life being written by a third Hand, gives a full Account of them both, how long they liv’d together in that Country, and how they came both to England again, after about eight Year, in which time they were grown very Rich, and where she liv’d it seems, to be very old; but was not so extraordinary a Penitent, as she was at first; it seems only that indeed she always spoke with abhorence of her former Life, and of every Part of it.

IN her last Scene at Maryland, and Virginia, many pleasant things happen’d, which makes that part of her Life very agreeable, but they are not told with the same Elegancy as those accounted for by herself; so it is still to the more Advantage that we break off here.

THE HISTORY AND MISFORTUNES OF THE FAMOUS

Moll Flanders, &C.

MY True Name is so well known in the Records, or Registers at Newgate, and in the Old-Baily, and there are some things of such Consequence still depending there, relating to my particular Conduct, that it is not to be expected I should set my Name, or the Account of my Family to this Work; perhaps, after my Death it may be better known, at present it would not be proper, no, not tho’ a general Pardon should be issued, even without Exceptions and reserve of Persons or Crimes.

IT is enough to tell you, that as some of my worst Comrades, who are out of the Way of doing me Harm, having gone out of the World by the Steps and the String, as I often expected to go, knew me by the Name of Moll Fenders; so you may give me leave to speak of myself, under that Name till I dare own who I have been, as well as who I am.

I HAVE been told, that in one of our Neighbour Nations, whether it be in France, or where else, I know not; they have an Order from the King, that when any Criminal is condemn’d, either to Die, or to the Gallies, or to be Transported, if they leave any Children, as such are generally unprovided for, by the Poverty or Forfeiture of their Parents; so they are immediately taken into the Care of the Government, and put into an Hospital call’d the House of Orphans, where they are Bred up, Cloath’d, Fed, Taught, and when fit to go out, are plac’d out to Trades, or to Services, so as to be well able to provide for themselves by an honest industrious Behaviour.

HAD this been the Custom in our Country, I had not been left a poor desolate Girl without Friends, without Cloaths, without Help or Helper in the World, as was my Fate; and by which, I was not only expos’d to very great Distresses, even before I was capable, either of Understanding my Case, or how to Amend it, nor brought into a Course of Life, which was not only scandalous in itself, but which in its ordinary Course, tended to the swift Destruction both of Soul and Body.

BUT the Case was otherwise here, my Mother was convicted of Felony for a certain petty Theft, scarce worth naming, (viz.) Having an opportunity of borrowing three Pieces of fine Holland, of a certain Draper in Cheapside: The Circumstances are too long to repeat, and I have heard them related so many Ways, that I can scarce be certain, which is the right Account.

HOWEVER it was, this they all agree in, that my Mother pleaded her Belly, and being found quick with Child, she was respited for about seven Months, in which time having brought me into the World, and being about again, she was call’d Down, as they term it, to her former Judgment, but obtain’d the Favour of being Transported to the Plantations, and left me about Half a Year old; and in bad Hands you may be sure.

THIS is too near the first Hours of my Life, for me to relate any thing of myself, but by hear say, ’tis enough to mention, that as I was born in such an unhappy Place, I had no Parish to have Recourse to for my Nourishment in my Infancy, nor can I give the least Account how I was kept alive; other, than that as I have been told, some Relation of my Mothers took me away for a while as a Nurse, but at whose Expence, or by whose Direction I know nothing at all of it.

THE first account that I can Recollect, or could ever learn of myself, was, that I had wandred among a Crew of those People they call Gypsies, or Egyptians; but I believe it was but a very little while that I had been among them, for I had not had my Skin discolour’d, or blacken’d, as they do very young to all the Children they carry about with them, nor can I tell how I came among them, or how I got from them.

IT was at Colchester in Essex, that those People left me; and I have a Notion in my Head, that I left them there, (that is, that I hid myself and wou’d not go any farther with them) but I am not able to be particular in that Account; only this I remember, that being taken up by some of the Parish Officers of Colchester, I gave an Account, that I came into the Town with the Gypsies, but that I would not go any farther with them, and that so they had left me, but whither they were gone that I knew not, nor could they expect it of me; for tho’ they sent round the Country to enquire after them, it seems they could not be found.

I WAS now in a Way to be provided for; for tho’ I was not a Parish Charge upon this, or that part of the Town by Law; yet as my Case came to be known, and that I was too young to do any Work, being not above three Years old, Compassion mov’d the Magistrates of the Town to order some Care to be taken of me, and I became one of their own, as much as if I had been born in the Place.

IN the Provision they made for me, it was my good hap to be put to Nurse, as they call it, to a Woman who was indeed Poor, but had been in better Circumstances, and who got a little Livelihood by taking such as I was suppos’d to be; and keeping them with all Necessaries, till they were at a certain Age, in which it might be suppos’d they might go to Service, or get their own Bread.

THIS Woman had also a little School, which she kept to teach Children to Read and to Work; and having, as I have said, liv’d before that in good Fashion, she bred up the Children she took with a great deal of Art, as well as with a great deal of Care.

BUT that which was worth all the rest, she bred them up very Religiously, being herself a very sober pious Woman. (2.) Very Housewifly and Clean, and, (3.) Very Mannerly, and with good Behaviour: So that in a Word, excepting a plain Diet, course Lodging, and mean Cloths, we were brought up as Mannerly and as Genteely, as if we had been at the Dancing School.

I WAS continu’d here till I was eight years Old, when I was terrified with News, that the Magistrates, as I think they call’d them, had order’d that I should go to Service; I was able to do but very little Service where ever I was to go, except it was to run of Errands, and be a Druge to some Cook-Maid, and this they told me of often, which put me into a great Fright; for I had a thorough Aversion to going to Service, as they call’d it, that is to be a Servant, tho’ I was so young; and I told my Nurse, as we call’d her, that I believ’d I could get my Living without going to Service if she pleas’d to let me; for she had Taught me to Work with my Needle, and Spin Worsted, which is the chief Trade of that City, and I told her that if she wou’d keep me, I wou’d Work for her, and I would Work very hard.

I talk’d to her almost every Day of Working hard; And in short, I did nothing but Work and Cry all Day, which griev’d the good kind Woman so much, that at last she began to be concern’d for me, for she lov’d me very well.

ONE Day after this, as she came into the Room, where all we poor Children were at Work, she sat down just over against me, not in her usual Place as Mistress, but as if she set herself on purpose to observe me, and see me Work: I was doing something she had set me to, as I remember, it was Marking some Shirts, which she had taken to Make, and after a while she began to Talk to me: Thou foolish Child, says she, thou art always Crying; (for I was Crying then) prethee, What doest Cry for? because they will take me away, says I, and put me to Service, and I can’t Work House-Work; well Child, says she, but tho’ you can’t Work House-Work, as you call it, you will learn it in time, and they won’t put you to hard Things at first; yes they will, says I, and if I can’t do it, they will Beat me, and the Maids will Beat me to make me do great Work, and I am but a little Girl, and I can’t do it, and then I cry’d again, till I could not speak any more to her.

THIS mov’d my good Motherly Nurse, so that she from that time resolv’d I should not go to Service yet, so she bid me not Cry, and she wou’d speak to Mr. Mayor, and I should not go to Service till I was bigger.

WELL, this did not Satisfie me, for to think of going to Service, was such a frightful Thing to me, that if she had assur’d me I should not have gone till I was 20 years old, it wou’d have been the same to me, I shou’d have cry’d, I believe all the time, with the very Apprehension of its being to be so at last.

WHEN she saw that I was not pacify’d yet, she began to be angry with me, and what wou’d you have? says she, don’t I tell you that you shall not go to Service till you are bigger? Ay, says I, but then I must go at last, why, what? said she, is the Girl mad? what, would you be a Gentlewoman? Yes says I, and cry’d heartily, till I roar’d out again.

THIS set the old Gentlewoman a Laughing at me, as you may be sure it would: Well, Madam forsooth, says she, Gibing at me, you would be a Gentlewoman, and pray how will you come to be a Gentlewoman? what, will you do it by your Fingers Ends?

YES, says I again, very innocently.

WHY, what can you Earn, says she, what can you get at your Work?

THREE-Pence, said I, when I Spin, and 4d. when I Work plain Work.

ALAS! poor Gentlewoman, said she again, Laughing, what will that do for thee?

IT will keep me, says I, if you will let me live with you; and this I said, in such a poor petitioning Tone, that it made the poor Womans Heart yearn to me, as she told me afterwards.

BUT, says she, that will not keep you, and buy you Cloths too; and who must buy the little Gentlewoman Cloths, says she, and smil’d all the while at me.

I will Work Harder then, says I, and you shall have it all.

POOR Child! it won’t keep you, says she, it will hardly keep you in Victuals.

THEN I will have no Victuals, says I, again very Innocently, let me but live with you.

WHY, can you live without Victuals? says she, yes, again says I, very much like a Child, you may be sure, and still I cry’d heartily.

I HAD no Policy in all this, you may easily see it was all Nature, but it was joyn’d with so much Innocence, and so much Passion, That in short, it set the good Motherly Creature a weeping too, and she cry’d at last as fast as I did, and then took me, and led me out of the teaching Room; come says she, you shan’t go to Service, you shall live with me, and this pacify’d me for the present.

SOMETIME after this, she going to wait on the Mayor, and talking of such things as belong’d to her Business, at last my Story came up, and my good Nurse told Mr. Mayor the whole Tale: He was so pleas’d with it, that he would call his Lady, and his two Daughters to hear it, and it made Mirth enough among them, you may be sure.

HOWEVER, not a Week had pass’d over, but on a suddain comes Mrs. Mayoress, and her two Daughters to the House to see my old Nurse, and to see her School and the Children: When they had look’d about them a little: Well, Mrs. says the Mayoress to my Nurse; and pray which is the little Lass that intends to be a Gentlewoman? I heard her, and I was terrible frighted at first, tho’ I did not know why neither; but Mrs. Mayoress comes up to me, Well Miss says she, And what are you at Work upon? The Word Miss was a Language that had hardly been heard of in our School, and I wondred what sad Name it was she call’d me; However, I stood up, made a Curtsy, and she took my Work out of my Hand, look’d on it, and said it was very well; then she took up one of my Hands, nay, says she, the Child may come to be a Gentlewoman for ought any body knows, she has a Gentlewoman’s Hand, says she; this pleas’d me mightily you may be sure, but Mrs. Mayoress did not stop there, but giving me my Work again, she put her Hand in her Pocket, gave me a Shilling, and bid me mind my Work, and learn to Work well, and I might be a Gentlewoman for ought she knew.

Now all this while, my good old Nurse, Mrs. Mayoress, and all the rest of them did not understand me at all, for they meant one Sort of thing, by the Word Gentlewoman, and I meant quite another; for alas, all I understood by being a Gentlewoman, was to be able to Work for myself, and get enough to keep me without that terrible Bug-bear going to Service, whereas they meant to live Great, Rich, and High, and I know not what.

WELL, after Mrs. Mayoress was gone, her two Daughters came in, and they call’d for the Gentlewoman too, and they talk’d a long while to me, and I answer’d them in my Innocent way; but always if they ask’d me whether I resolv’d to be a Gentlewoman, I answer’d YES: At last one of them ask’d me, what a Gentlewoman was? that puzzel’d me much; but however, I explain’d myself negatively, that it was one that did not go to Service, to do House-Work; they were pleas’d to be familiar with me, and lik’d my little Prattle to them, which it seems was agreeable enough to them, and they gave me Money too.

As for my Money I gave it all to my Mistress Nurse, as I call’d her, and told her she should have all I got for myself when I was a Gentlewoman, as well as now; by this and some other of my talk, my old Tutress began to understand me, about what I meant by being a Gentlewoman; and that I understood by it no more, than to be able to get my Bread by my own Work, and at last, she ask’d me whether it was not so.

I told her yes, and insisted on it, that to do so, was to be a Gentlewoman; for says I, there is such a one, naming a Woman that mended Lace, and wash’d the Ladies Lac’d-heads, she, says I, is a Gentlewoman, and they call her Madam.

POOR Child, says my good old Nurse, you may soon be such a Gentlewoman as that, for she is a Person of ill Fame, and has had two or three Bastards.

I DID not understand any thing of that; but I answer’d, I am sure they call her Madam, and she does not go to Service, nor do House-Work, and therefore I insisted that she was a Gentlewoman, and I would be such a Gentlewoman as that.

THE Ladies were told all this again to be sure, and they made themselves Merry with it, and every now and then the young Ladies, Mr. Mayor’s Daughters would come and see me, and ask where the little Gentlewoman was, which made me not a little Proud of myself.

THIS held a great while, and I was often visited by these young Ladies, and sometimes they brought others with them; so that I was known by it, almost all over the Town.

I WAS now about ten Years old, and began to look a little Womanish, for I was mighty Grave and Humble; very Mannerly, and as I had often heard the Ladies say I was Pretty, and would be a very handsome Woman, so you may be sure, that hearing them say so, made me not a little Proud; however, that Pride had no ill effect upon me yet, only as they often gave me Money, and I gave it my old Nurse, she honest Woman, was so just to me, as to lay it all out again for me, and gave me Head-Dresses, and Linnen, and Gloves and Ribbons, and I went very Neat, and always Clean; for that I would do, and if I had Rags on, I would always be Clean, or else I would dabble them in Water myself; but I say, my good Nurse, when I had Money given me, very honestly laid it out for me, and would always tell the Ladies, this, or that, was brought with their Money; and this made them oftentimes give me more; Till at last, I was indeed call’d upon by the Magistrates as I understood it, to go out to Service; but then I was come to be so good a Workwoman myself, and the Ladies were so kind to me, that it was plain I could maintain myself, that is to say, I could Earn as much for my Nurse as she was able by it to keep me; so she told them, that if they would give her leave, she would keep the Gentlewoman as she call’d me, to be her Assistant, and teach the Children, which I was very well able to do; for I was very nimble at my Work, and had a good Hand with my Needle, though I was yet very young.

BUT the kindness of the Ladies of the Town did not End here, for when they came to understand that I was no more maintain’d by the publick Allowance, as before, they gave me Money oftner than formerly; and as I grew up, they brought me Work to do for them; such as Linnen to Make, and Laces to Mend, and Heads to Dress up, and not only paid me for doing them, but even taught me how to do them; so that now I was a Gentlewoman indeed, as I understood that Word, and as I desir’d to be, for by that time, I was twelve Years old, I not only found myself Cloaths, and paid my Nurse for my keeping, but got Money in my Pocket too before-hand.

THE Ladies also gave me Cloaths frequently of their own, or their Childrens, some Stockings, some Petticoats, some Gowns, some one thing, some another, and these my old Woman Managed for me like a meer Mother, and kept them for me, oblig’d me to Mend them, and turn them and twist them to the best Advantage, for she was a rare House-Wife.

AT last one of the Ladies took so much Fancy to me, that she would have me Home to her House, for a Month she said, to be among her Daughters.

Now tho’ this was exceeding kind in her, yet as my old good Woman said to her, unless she resolv’d to keep me for good and all, she would do the little Gentlewoman more harm than good: Well, says the Lady, that’s true, and therefore I’ll only take her Home for a Week then, that I may see how my Daughters and she agree together, and how I like her Temper, and then I’ll tell you more; and in the mean time, if any Body comes to see her as they us’d to do, you may only tell them, you have sent her out to my House.

THIS was prudently manag’d enough, and I went to the Ladies House, but I was so pleas’d there with the young Ladies, and they so pleas’d with me, that I had enough to do to come away, and they were as unwilling to part with me.

HOWEVER, I did come away, and liv’d almost a Year more with my honest old Woman, and began now to be very helpful to her; for I was almost fourteen Years old, was tall of my Age, and look’d a little Womanish; but I had such a Tast of Genteel living at the Ladies House, that I was not so easie in my old Quarters as I us’d to be, and I thought it was fine to be a Gentlewoman indeed, for I had quite other Notions of a Gentlewoman now, than I had before; and as I thought, I say, that it was fine to be a Gentlewoman, so I lov’d to be among Gentlewomen, and therefore I long’d to be there again.

ABOUT the Time that I was fourteen Years and a quarter Old, my good old Nurse, Mother I ought rather to call her, fell Sick and Dyed; I was then in a sad Condition indeed, for as there is no great Bustle in putting an end to a Poor bodies Family, when once they are carried to the Grave; so the poor good Woman being Buried, the Parish Children she kept were immediately remov’d by the Church-Wardens; the School was at an End, and the Children of it had no more to do but just stay at Home, till they were sent some where else; and as for what she left, her Daughter a married Woman with six or seven Children, came and swept it all away at once, and removing the Goods, they had no more to say to me, then to Jest with me, and tell me, that the little Gentlewoman might set up for her self if she pleas’d.

I was frighted out of my Wits almost, and knew not what to do, for I was, as it were, turn’d out of Doors to the wide World, and that which was still worse, the old honest Woman had two and twenty Shillings of mine in her Hand, which was all the Estate the little Gentlewoman had in the World; and when I ask’d the Daughter for it, she huft me and laught at me, and told me, she had nothing to do with it.

IT was true, the good poor Woman had told her Daughter of it, and that it lay in such a Place, that it was the Child’s Money, and had call’d once or twice for me, to give it me, but I was unhappily out of the way, some where or other; and when I came back she was past being in a Condition to speak of it: However, the Daughter was so Honest afterward as to give it me, tho’ at first she us’d me Cruelly about it.

Now was I a poor Gentlewoman indeed, and I was just that very Night to be turn’d into the wide World; for the Daughter remov’d all the Goods, and I had not so much as a Lodging to go to, or a bit of Bread to Eat: But it seems some of the Neighbours who had known my Circumstances, took so much Compassion of me, as to acquaint the Lady in whose Family I had been a Week, as I mention’d above; and immediately she sent her Maid to fetch me away, and two of her Daughters came with the Maid tho’ unsent; so I went with them Bag and Baggage, and with a glad Heart you may be sure: The fright of my Condition had made such an Impression upon me, that I did not want now to be a Gentlewoman, but was very willing to be a Servant, and that any kind of Servant they thought fit to have me be.

BUT my new generous Mistress, for she exceeded the good Woman I was with before, in every Thing, as well as in the matter of Estate; I say in every Thing except Honesty; and for that, tho’ this was a Lady most exactly Just, yet I must not forget to say on all Occasions, that the First tho’ Poor, was as uprightly Honest as it was possible for any One to be.

I was no sooner carried away as I have said by this good Gentlewoman, but the first Lady, that is to say, the Mayoress that was, sent her two Daughters to take Care of me; and another Family which had taken Notice of me, when I was the little Gentlewoman, and had given me Work to do, sent for me after her, so that I was mightily made of, as we say; nay, and they were not a little Angry, especially, Madam the Mayoress , that her Friend had taken me away from her as she call’d it; for as she said, I was Hers by Right, she having been the first that took any Notice of me; but they that had me, wou’d not part with me; and as for me, tho’ I shou’d have been very well Treated with any of the other, yet I could not be better than where I was.

HERE I continu’d till I was between 17 and 18 Years old, and here I had all the Advantages for my Education that could be imagin’d; the Lady had Masters home to the House to teach her Daughters to Dance, and to speak French, and to Write, and others to teach them Musick; and as I was always with them, I learn’d as fast as they; and tho’ the Masters were not appointed to teach me, yet I learn’d by Imitation and enquiry, all that they learn’d by Instruction and Direction. So that in short, I learn’d to Dance, and speak French as well as any of them, and to Sing much better, for I had a better Voice than any of them; I could not so readily come at playing on the Harpsicord or Spinnet, because I had no Instrument of my own to Practice on, and could only come at theirs in the intervals, when they left it, which was uncertain, but yet I learn’d tollerably well too, and the young Ladies at length got two Instruments, that is to say, a Harpsicord, and a Spinnet too, and then they Taught me themselves; But as to Dancing they could hardly help my learning Country Dances, because they always wanted me to make up even Number; and on the other Hand, they were as heartily willing to learn me every thing that they had been Taught themselves, as I could be to take the Learning.

By this Means I had, as I have said above, all the Advantages of Education that I could have had, if I had been as much a Gentlewoman as they were, with whom I liv’d, and in some things, I had the Advantage of my Ladies, tho’ they were my Superiors; but they were all the Gifts of Nature, and which all their Fortunes could not furnish. First, I was apparently Handsomer than any of them. Secondly, I was

Reviews for Moll Flanders

[xicanti_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I first read MOLL FLANDERS in 2001, in the midst of an “I’ll Read Classic Lit So's I Can Be Cultured And Stuff” phase. So far as I was concerned, classic novels were Good For You, but they weren’t necessarily enjoyable. I read them to give myself a sense of the wider literary tradition, not for entertainment.Imagine my surprise when I devoured MOLL FLANDERS in three sittings, one of which took me through nearly a hundred and fifty pages.The book is almost indecently fun. Moll schemes her way through the England of the 1600s, rising and falling at irregular intervals as her illegal undertakings bear fruit or go awry. She marries often, bears a multitude of children, turns to robbery whenever the need arises (or the opportunity presents itself), and deceives very nearly everyone she encounters. Her wild life must have seemed the height of debauchery to eighteenth century readers, many of whom I'm sure gloried in it anyway.I suppose it’s possible to read MOLL FLANDERS as the chronicle of a woman forced into an indecent life of which she repents most ardently, but I find that a terribly boring take on the situation. I much prefer to view Moll as someone who’s ever in charge of her own destiny. She’s born into fairly low circumstances which she contrives to improve upon by any means necessary. Whether she's talking her way into a rich man’s bed or persuading an elderly fence to help her become London’s most successful pickpocket, she’s always in charge. She caters her lies to each individual, playing on their peculiar vanities in such a way that they can’t help but give in to her whims. Poor luck may set her back a step or two, but she never lets it keep her down for long. As soon as one scheme grows stale, she turns her hand to another. No matter what life throws at her, she finds a way to turn it to her advantage and come out on top.The narrative conventions of the time dictate that she must deny receiving any satisfaction from her actions, but it’s obvious she enjoys herself immensely. The novel is full of moments where she vows to lead a somber and discreet life... right after she’s finished committing such-and-such a sin, and maybe one more for good measure. And hey, she’s never been involved in that line of illegal work, so she might as well give it a go before she throws in the towel. If it leads to another opportunity of a similar nature... well, so much the better.Oh, Moll. I frickin’ love you.Of course, I’m not an eighteenth century reader. It’s entirely possible that the original target audience would’ve been so scandalized by Moll’s doings that they took her cautions and lamentations at face value. Hell, maybe Defoe even intends them that way.Me, I remain unconvinced of her penitence. She's an adept liar, after all; it's difficult to believe she'd restrain herself from practicing this skill upon the reader. I like to hope she keeps on scheming after the novel’s end, albeit in a wealthier sphere than was previously possible and with a willing partner in her final (or maybe just latest?) husband.Godspeed to you, Moll, and good luck.(This review originally appeared on my blog, Stella Matutina.)

[bookworm12_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

 Moll Flanders is a strange book. It's a cautionary tale, but it also feels like a sermon on promiscuity and greed. The book follows the life of Moll Flanders from her infancy, being born to a criminal in prison, all the way through her life which also ends in crime. She grows into a beautiful woman and ends up marrying one man after another. Her horrible circumstances move her from one bad situation to another. One husband dies, another ditches her, and another turns out to be her half-brother! I enjoyed the first half much more than the second. The story’s moralistic tone echoes that in the author’s other famous work, Robinson Crusoe.

[pilgrimjess · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

“If a young women once thinks herself handsome, she never doubts the truth of any man that tells her he is in love with her; for if she believes herself charming charming enough to captive him, 'tis natural to expect the effects of it.”The full title of this classic novel is 'The Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Famous Moll Flanders' and this in many respects an apt summary of this book. It tells the life story of the titular character.Moll Flanders was born in Newgate Prison, London, the daughter of a convicted felon who is subsequently transported to America shortly after Moll's birth. Moll is initially brought up by the state and later taken by benefactors. She grows up to be a beautiful woman determined to be someone other than a servant. This she attempts to do by marrying a variety of wealthy man, one of whom she later learns to her horror after bearing him several children, is actually her half-brother. As various marriages fail for various reasons, her fear of poverty leads her to commit many forms of theft. This way of life she later finds impossible to give up so that even when she became relatively wealthy, she continued stealing.Through a variety of guises and some quick thinking Moll manages to evade prison for many years, unlike a number of her accomplices who are caught then hung or transported to the colonies, until she became the richest thief in London. Perhaps inevitably, she was finally arrested and taken to Newgate Prison whereupon she is sentenced to transportation to the American colonies. In prison Moll chances upon her most recent living husband, himself a highwayman awaiting sentencing. Whereupon both are transported to Virginia before moving on to Maryland where they become successful plantation owners in their own right.At the age of almost seventy, Moll returned to London with her husband, where they planned to live out their lives in repentance for their past crimes.There are several themes that run through this book but perhaps the most prominent one is Greed. The author seems to take great efforts to paint Moll as covetous. Moll sees people in particular her husbands as commodities — they appear little more than business transactions. Then when here first husband dies she seems happy to abandon her children to the care of their paternal grandparents. Then later in life even when she becomes relatively wealthy as a thief she is unable to forsake her criminal ways despite the main initial driving force, notably poverty, no longer applies. She continually raises the financial target where she states she will go on the straight and narrow. After her arrest repentance then becomes a major theme but even here Defoe seems to aim to paint Moll in a poor light. She repents about not giving up her criminal ways earlier rather than than the actual crimes themselves. She never seems to feel sorry for the people that she wronged.Now initially I must admit that I found the early years of Moll's life rather tedious and I was tempted on more than one occasion to throw in the towel. However, I persevered and as she re-counted her criminal career I found it much more entertaining. On the whole I found this a little laborious but ultimately am pleased that I managed to finish it but may leave it a while before I challenge another classic.

[m.belljackson · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Story has sad, but honest beginning which moves into Moll's willing seduction by the elder son of her kind and generous patrons. Character has little to recommend and plot quickly becomes repetitive, tedious, and too boring to continue...

[karl6steel · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Better than John Bunyan's Grace abounding to the Chief of Sinners; more detailed a portrait than the Wife of Bath, who also, remember, had 5 wives (EDIT: by which of course I mean five HUSBANDS); hell, it's probably the best book of its kind. But how in god's name am I going to teach it?

This edition interesting for its Virginia Woolf introduction, which is mainly about Robinson Crusoe, about which she has more interesting things to say than she does Moll Flanders. The Woolf is also a nice record of a particular kind of criticism that discovered the value of a work of art in its tranhistorical truths about Human Nature. I can see easily how this same period--Woolf's that is--produced The Waste Land and Finnegans Wake, all of which also make the same profoundly ahistorical, profoundly appropriative, profoundly unethical mistake.

[alcracka · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I was certainly not happy to hear Defoe insist at length, in the preface, that he'd taken all the dirty parts out.

Defoe was many things as a writer, but "fun" isn't high up the list.

Also, check out this sentence: "She asked him if he thought she was so at her last shift that she could or ought to bear such treatment, and if he did not see that she did not want those who thought it worth their while to come farther to her than he did, meaning the gentleman she had brought to visit her by way of sham." I actually can't figure out if that sentence means anything or not. Is she saying she doesn't want the dude who was willing to travel to hit on her? Why not? Sure, he's actually like her cousin or whatever, but the dude she's talking to isn't supposed to know that...

Dude writes some over complicated sentences, is what I'm saying. I don't remember Crusoe being this convoluted.

Ah! I've been trying to figure out how Defoe writes a book with no women in it, and then a book from a woman's point of view; the similarity is that they both work from desperate places. Places of necessity.

I still need a while to process this book. Around halfway through I thought that not only did I not like it, but it made me like Robinson Crusoe less too. Now having finished it, I feel like it's a five-star book. I might bump it down to four. Defoe is sortof a humorless bastard, and he doesn't particularly get inside his characters' heads. But Moll Flanders, particularly, feels like a very subversive book to me. Moll insists on taking control of her life. Men certainly come off as insignificant at best.

I didn't love the Signet Classic edition I read; it was sorta...little. I like my books to be weightier and more important looking. (And, incidentally, the used copy I ordered came with random passages underlined, which drives me nuts.) Did have a fairly good afterword, though. Although it threatened to spoil like six other 18-century books I'm about to read, so I had to skip whole paragraphs.

[benuathanasia · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I adore Moll. She's a fascinating, dynamic character: full of depth, verve, and joi de vivre. She's as flawed as characters come (an amoral whore that frequently uses people to suit her own ends, while placing all her love and trust (and fortune) in people who inevitably abandon her or let her down). And yet, she's completely aware of her flaws and acknowledges that they are flaws. The change and growth in Moll is progressive, logical, and exceedingly realistic.

[davidgnp · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I continued my current re-reading of the classics with this one, first read 40 years ago, and I was pleased to have my fond memories of it refreshed. One of the earliest British novels, this masquerades as a memoir, with Defoe handling the female perspective of the eponymous heroine just as well as he did Robinson Crusoe. I call her 'heroine' though Moll's adventures as sometime prostitute and recidivist thief would seem to disqualify her from such a status but for her late redemption and reform. In any case, we never think of her as a real villain, rather one who is forced by circumstances to make her way in life the best she can. She does admit to being an easy prey to temptation, and she is her own best apologist. As Moll says herself, her 'wicked' life is a lot more interesting to read than her return to virtue and prosperity. We learn a good deal along the way about the harsh conditions of living in late 17th Century England, and of the brutal treatment wrong-doers might expect, both from the courts and, if they catch you, from the mob. Humour and romance help to alleviate the gloom which, along with Moll's winning narrative, always keep us on her side even while she commits her more outrageous sins.

[evanroskos_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

kinda ridiculous, but also kinda funny. It's interesting to see Defoe's stance on religion basically undermine the entire story at the end. or does it?

[shanaqui_1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Moll Flanders (by Daniel Defoe) was the first book I've had to read for class now I'm at university. This is for my "introduction to the novel" module, and it's considered to be one of the earliest English novels, and is part of the canon as my university sees it. In my opinion, it's not quite there -- Defoe "marketed" it as a true story, and in terms of style or plotting like a novel, there's little. It's just the straight, stream-of-consciousness tale of a woman in the seventeenth century who has loose morals. There are no chapters, the story is entirely linear, and it doesn't follow the same conventions as what we'd now consider a novel.

Which is not to say I don't see where it comes into the canon: it's clearly fictional, and reminds me quite a lot of books like Go Ask Alice, only for the seventeenth century! It's interesting to observe how different things were then: the weird punctuation, random capitalisation and italicisation, the lack of chapter breaks, the lack of speech marks. Very strange to think how much the novel has evolved.

In terms of plot, it's not as shocking as I was expecting it to be given the blurb: "Moll Flanders follows the life of its eponymous heroine through its many vicissitudes which include her early seduction, careers in crime and prostitution, conviction for theft and transportation to the plantations of Virginia", etc. There's not honestly much prostitution, although she has lots of husbands, and the sex stuff is all skipped over quickly. One of the stories within the story is quite weird: the story of how she marries her brother. The theft part doesn't show up until later on, although that isn't half-hearted and a lot of her clever heists are described.

As a character, Moll gets quite a lot of depth; but at the same time, you expect that from a novel of this length that is written entirely in her head! I didn't really feel any emotional connection to her, though, and she didn't feel 'real' to me, really. I found the whole book quite boring and difficult to read. Worth a look, though, if you're interested in early novels. I could probably do a better, fuller review of this after my lecture next week -- heck, I might come back and edit some more interesting stuff in. Right now, though, I need to go off and make notes on the portrayal of women in it, before I forget!

[bale_5 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A masterpiece, I thoroughly enjoyed Defoe's, Moll Flander's. It would be interesting to do a comparative study of the various heroines in classic fiction; Nana, Lady Chatterley, Madame Bovary, and Anna Karenina, to name a few. I look forward to reading Samuel Richardson's Clarissa/The History of a Young Life (which is an 18th century creation, like Moll Flanders’) this summer to add to my increasing repertoire of fascinating female heroines.

[ctpress_1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

With the novel's title you know what's going to happen: The Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Famous Moll Flanders who was Twelve Year a Whore, five times a Wife (whereof once to her own Brother), Twelve Year a Thief, Eight Year a Transported Felon in Virginia, at last grew Rich, liv'd Honest, and died a Penitent. Written from her own Memorandums.Sounds all very exciting, but to me it was a tedious account by a very annoying person. I didn't like her at all, and it goes on forever describing various husbands, lovers and money-worries - the latter is preeminent - the children she have we hear little or nothing about - as if they were just some play dolls. From a historic point of view of course it's interesting to read as a precursor to the modern novel.

[spounds_3 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Moll Flanders led a scandalous life back when that was a bad thing. In this book she relates her life from her inauspicious birth in the Newgate prison, to her industrious rise in society as a young woman, and through her years as a thief and whore. Her words, not mine. OK, maybe mine, too.I found the first part of the book entertaining as Moll always seems to find herself associated with the wrong type of men. About halfway through the book she is forced into thievery and at that point I thought the book really slowed. There seemed to be a non-stop catalog of all the things she stole and how. The final part of the book, which Moll herself will be less interesting to the reader, was indeed less interesting, but Defoe does a nice job of tying up all the loose ends before the end. There are better classics, but I'm glad I read this one.Used Whispersync to both read and listen to this book via Audible. The technology worked better for me this time than last, but there were still a view glitches.

[rainpebble_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Moll Flanders by Daniel DefoeConsidered one of the great classic novels, Defoe's book follows Moll Flanders as she struggles to avoid the deadly poverty of 17th-century England. From a prison birth to final prosperity Moll considers love, theft and prostitution in terms of profit and loss. She emerges as an extraordinary character.This is the vivid saga of an irresistible and notorious heroine. Her high misdemeanors and delinquencies, her varied careers as a prostitute, a charming and faithful wife, a thief, and a convict endures today as one of the liveliest and most candid records of a woman's progress through the hypercritical walks of society ever recorded.Moll isn't the most proper of women. She isn't the cleanest. She isn't the most trust worthy. She isn't a lot of things. But what Moll Flanders is; is an exceptional character of literature. I loved Moll! I can't wait to give this one a reread.

[hebephrene · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

It's delightful when a book you have been hearing about your whole life lives up to expectation. Dear Moll, or whatever your real name was, what a pleasure it was to sit by your side. What is remarkable is that a book told to us entirely in summary could be so rich and deep and satisfying. Moll has the mic, everything we learn is filtered through her unreliable filter and yet because she is so utterly human you are charmed. I loved how Moll would advise us that she couldn't possibly tell someone something just before she does. Apparently the lives of criminals in her day and age were very popular and that Defoe was working in a popular genre, maybe even basing Moll on an actual woman. The tragedy of the book occurs when Moll announces that she hopes to be a gentlewoman and is laughed at. What she means is independent, self sufficient, what they mean is aristocratic. But however much Defoe based it on a person his hand is there. Whenever something good happens to Moll, like she married an upright decent guy, he's killed off quickly. Most frightening at least from the sociological standpoint is Moll's relationship to her many children. With one exception - the child born of incest in Virginia - there is none. They don't even receive names. So we are very much looking at the world during a period in which one didn't become too attached because of the frequency with which they died.

[wrk1-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Two things stood out for me:
It's a first-hand look at the underside of early 18th-century life in England and the American colonies, particularly the economic constraints on women.
Defoe was a skillful writer: compare Robinson Crusoe, Journal of the Plague Year, and Moll Flanders. Each differs from the others in the handling of how Defoe presents himself as the author, how he creates a supposed narrator, and how the characters speak (or not) about themselves.

[diefledermaus · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This book seemed a lot longer than it actually was. It's not exactly boring - a lot happens. However, Defoe tends to simply list events so it's a little like reading someone's flat and colorless diary. The novel follows Moll Flanders as she moves from poor orphan to wife, mistress, thief, convict and penitent. She's involved in multiple melodramas but generally extracts herself and is on to the next adventure. Moll marries several times, but a lot of her husbands don't even rate a name. In one case, she appears to care about one of her children, then forgets it a few pages later and it is never mentioned again. When Defoe does choose to focus on a subject, however, the book is quite interesting.He spends a lot of time describing Moll's initial fall from grace, why women should be choosy in picking a partner and Moll's exploits as a thief. Throughout all of Moll's adventures, her main goal is simply to make a living. While married, she was generally a good wife but her husbands keep dying or going on the run. Desperation drives her to steal or become someone's mistress. Wouldn't say it wasn't worth reading, but you have to pick through a lot of all-plot-no-development to get to the good parts.

[stillatim · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I've been trying to read early English 'novels' (and related things), and this is a distant fourth so far, behind Robinson Crusoe, Gulliver's Travels and Joseph Andrews. On the upside, there are some memorable scenes and characters. But it doesn't really cohere too well, and there's a little hint of paid-per-word about the whole criminal activities section. Supposedly most people are really into Moll's thieving, but frankly I found her whoring and intra-familial reproduction much more gripping.

[andreablythe · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Moll Flanders describes how she fell into whoring (her words) and thievery. Basically it's a long rambling tale of her life as she moves from one husband to the next, sometimes marrying one husband while still "technically" married to the last, and leaving a litany of children in her wake (whom she seems to have little interest in at all, despite assurances otherwise).The point of the story is that this is supposed to be a tale of the misfortunate, as tales about thieves, murders, and other miscreants were very popular at the time period. It had enough to it that I was able to keep trudging through it, as she fell into one misfortune after another (kind of like watching a train wreck). But I have to admit that I was severely disappointed in the book, because I so loved the movie. True, the movie had been Hollywood-zed big time, but in my opinion this is one of the very rare cases where this was a good thing. Moll was more naive in the movie, not so much trying to con her way through live but falling into the necessity so as to survive, which is part of what appealed to me. The book's Moll lacked that innocence, and was openly deceptive and conned many men (from fear of poverty, true), and there was very little to redeem her. Tar and feather me, if you like, but in my opinion the movie was more enjoyable than the book.

[dgrayson_16 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

like having a conversation with someone who never lets you get a word in

[kidsilkhaze · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

What if there were a drunken Chatty Cathy sitting next to you at a dinner party and wanted to tell you her life story? That's what Moll Flanders reads like. In the end, it became the same thing over and over again. I would have liked it a lot more if it had been about half as long.

[ffortsa · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I am sometimes afraid that we will have nothing to say to each other at our reader discussion groups. Hah! We talked for over an hour and a half about this picaresque classic. How much was to be considered 'true', considering that it was supposedly a memoir of a repentant woman? How could she say so little about her children? Did she exploit her sexuality or just make the best of the society? She confessed to liking the thrill of theft even after she no longer needed more money, trimmed her stories to her circumstances and her audience, barely mentioned the hardships of crossing the Atlantic (I wonder if Defoe ever did?), learned to make and manage money, and in general navigated a society that was not kind to women without status and means. Was Defoe as tuned in to the hardships of women as this book suggests? Or was he more interested in writing a sly, picaresque adventure with the allure of a female protagonist? Did we believe the 'woman's voice'?Defoe shows us the society of the time, the narrow path between servant and master class in the late 17th century in an urbanizing country as well as a new world. The book is filled with incident - in fact, when Moll has achieved, however temporarily, a quiet life, we hear nothing about it except how it ends. Moll ('not my real name') tells us at the beginning that she ends up in London, secure, married, content, mature, repentant of her sinful life. So the traditional suspense is absent - it was all about how it happened. But it was fun to read, watching her journey and learning about the times.

[kayla3marie · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Moll Flanders was a surprisingly good read considering it was written in the 17th century and thought to be one of the first novels ever written. It wouldn't make my favorites list, but the story definitely never got boring. All of Moll's story is pretty much summed up in the paragraph-long title. She gets married five times (once to her brother! Unknowingly, of course), becomes an infamous criminal, and then settles down for a quiet life in rural Carolina where she inherits a fortune from her mother. I admit, the fact that my copy had no chapter breaks whatsoever, had every noun capitalized, and had no quotation marks for the dialogue made this book a little tedious to read at times, but otherwise it was an entertaining story. If Moll Flanders was ever rewritten as a contemporary novel, I believe that it could be a favorite.

[weikelm · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Great novel about how rough it was to be a woman alone in the world. Moll is pious when she can afford to be, lawless and wicked when she can't. A great book if you enjoy dramatic irony, and I do.

[nordie_2 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Audiobook on CD. Book written detailing the adventures of Moll Flanders who lives by her wits and her body. Her fortune is made several times by herself, but is lost again, mostly due to her poor choice in men (drunks, womanisers, already married etc). Narrative is bawdy, jolly etc. It is both a serious (about a world where a woman can rarely survive on her own and with few rights to even her own money) and not-serious tale (she goes through husbands with almost every chapter). As a result of these dalliances, she has plenty of children, of which little is heard off once they are packed off somewhere else, to ensure that Moll isn’t hindered by a flock of children following her. I dont know if a woman would really do this, or whether this is Defoe's "wishful thinking" of fertile women not actually having children in tow. Overall an enjoyable lighthearted 18th century romp

[misswoodhouse1816 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

 This is traditionally considered the first English novel. Moll Flanders presents an interesting picture of a deeply flawed woman. Though the story is fictitious, the reader is encouraged to think of it and read it as one would a memoir. Defoe allows his main character to give herself a pseudonym, since ostensibly her reputation is so horrible as to taint those who would admit to knowing her. Indeed, the crimes and follies to which Moll stoops through the course of the narrative justify her use of an assumed name. Her life is incredibly flawed- yet she does little to improve her situations and reputation.Through various revelations and circumstances, Moll's life falls into ruin and decay. She marries several times, but no marriage provides financial security. Any children of hers that survive she pawns off on relatives to have no added responsibility. Chiefly, she thinks nothing about stealing and the life of theft she is living. Through the narrative, she mentions her shady acquisitions with a careless offhandedness that is morally disturbing. When forced to think about the course her life is now taking, Moll denies any wrongdoing on her part. Even when her recklessness in thievery lands her in jail, Moll has no regrets for the life she is living.Despite the lack of chapters, Moll Flanders is an interesting read for many reasons- character development, social commentary, and the maturing of a new writing style being a few.

[dkmoore · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The lack of chapters (a later development in English novel writing) poses a bit of a challenge, and there are spots where the book gets a bit tedious in recounting minutia of relationships. However, this book rewards readers with an interesting view on the rising middle class (dare I say bourgeoisie) and the intersection of raising capital to secure one's class position, gender relations, and the impacts on the human character. To what would you stoop if put in the situation of Moll or her many husbands, suitors, and friends? What do we inherit from a society structured in the manner we encounter in this novel? In what ways does our society mold our character as Moll's molds hers, and what do we make of this? This novel provoked quite a few questions like this, which in the end seems to me to be one of the main reasons we still read classics. I just wish that it had been a slightly more enjoyable read to go along with the provocation.

[deedee10_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

What can I say about Moll Flanders? This book really makes you look at the life of women in the past. Moll does a lot of things that will make you go what!? I enjoyed it because it is a book that can be analyzed and interpreted in so many ways. Moll becomes a survivor in a world that she was made to fail in.

[joririchardson · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

"Moll Flanders" is the tale of an innovative woman who will stoop to the lowest of trades in order to be a "lady." Married five times, Moll is at varying times a thief, a whore, a convict, and a prisoner. This book was interesting, though not exactly a page turner. Defoe, as is to be expected, is quite fond of rambling on about every little detail, which is accentuated due to a lack of chapters or page breaks.Few characters are given a name, which can also make the book a bit confusing. Even Moll never reveals her true name, always insisting to the reader that Moll Flanders is just a nick name she is given later in life. I got more than a few of Moll's many husbands confused at different points, because they were all "him." Eventually everyone just became "that guy" in my mind.I liked the character of Moll, because she was different, and certainly unique for a book written in Defoe's time. She seems shameless and unscrupulous from the very beginning, which she seems to justify in her mind as a way of survival.When her friends and comrades in crime are hung, Moll voices no sorrow over their deaths, only fear that she may soon share the same fate.There is no doubt that Moll is not exactly a blameless character. She uses her beauty to snare potentially rich husbands, and she mentions a few times having children and then they are never mentioned again. In fact, I remember her saying that she had "gotten rid of" her children, or some similar phrasing, by giving them to a friend or family member. She has a few very low moments, such as when she steals a piece of jewelry from a young child, or when she steals a family's things while their house is burning down. However, there is something likable to Moll, and I would never classify her as one of those hero-villain types. Perhaps it is how clever and innovative she is, just trying her best to make her way in the world the best that she knows how.Her schemes becoming increasingly creative as the book progresses, and I loved when she began her disguises - a man, a lady, a begger, a widow, a foreigner. Though Moll is always calling herself "wicked" or "sinful," she seems unwilling to fully acknowledge it. Such as, just after she has stolen something, she says: "I confess the inhumanity of this action moved me very much, and made me relent exceedingly, and tears stood in my eyes..., but I could never find in my heart to make any restitution."When Moll is at least caught in her schemes and locked in Newgate Prison, I felt that I knew her for the first time in the story. Defoe's writing style doesn't exactly allow you to become all that close to Moll through out the story, but we feel that we have seen her entire life leading up to this point when at last she is thrown into the jail.She seems to fear Newgate more than anything, perhaps because it forces her to think of herself as not a great lady, like she always strove to be - but a common criminal. I loved how even after thrown in jail and sentenced to death, Moll never ceased her scheming, and rather than sink into despair over the verdict, she immediately begins planning a way out of it.*Mild spoilers in the next paragraph*The ending surprised me a little, as I had honestly expected Moll to meet as unfortunate an end as the rest of her life reflected. But the ending was, instead, a happy one, and I closed the book smiling."Moll Flanders" is a good character study about a very interesting, notorious woman.

[enemyanniemae · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I did not love this book but I was fascinated by it. Defoe paints a clear picture of what life was like for a female without means in the17th century. Written as autobiography, the narrator never reveals her true name, taking several names and becoming known as Moll Flanders. She is born of a convicted criminal in Newgate Prison, who was spared execution because of her pregnancy. Mother's sentence is commuted and she is "transported" to America, while her baby is sent to be raised by a foster mother. She tells her foster mother that she wishes to be a gentlewoman, having no idea what the term actually means. She believes that a gentlewoman is one who has the means and abilities to care for herself without being attached to anyone as a servant. (she calls a seamstress by that term becuase she is able to earn her own keep and have her own place) Our narrator is eventually sent to live with a family as their servant. She becomes a target for the affections of the two sons in the home. The first cajoles her into believing that he will marry her and coaxes her into an affair. The second tells her that he is in love with her and does not care that she is of low station. She does what is necessary to survive. She marries the younger son, at the request of the elder. He gets drunk and passes out on their wedding night and never knows that his bride was not pure. He does not live long and she is thrust into a world that values only those of means. She faces many obstacles and more than one moral dilemma. And she survives... using any and all means she possesses. Although I did not particularly like Moll, I am struck by her tenacious will to live. I am glad that I read it.