'Robinson Crusoe' as a moral tale

Name:  Nargis I. Saiyad

Paper: The Neo-classical Literature

Topic: 'Robinson Crusoe' as a moral tale

Class: M.A.II, Sem.: I

Year: 2012/13

Submitted To,

 Heenaba Zala,
Dept.of English,

Maharaja Krishnakumarsinhji Bhavnagar University.
Bhavnagar.

'Robinson Crusoe' as a moral tale

Novel :- Robinson Cruse

Novelist :- Daniel Defoe

Introduction :-

The novel 'Robinson Crusoe' more than just an adventurous story.  The novel includes the themes like the ambivalence of mastery, the necessity of repentance, the importance of self-awareness, individuality, morality etc.

Philip Sidney's views :-

Philip Sidney looks at the writer as a moral teacher and instruction becomes the chief function of literature and the novel 'Robinson Crusoe' fulfills all his demands.

'Robinson Crusoe' as a moral tale :-

The novel contains a lot of moral values. Throughout the novel, we can see the examples of morality in the novel.

Helpful nature is one of the moral values.  In London, Robinson becomes friend with the captain of a trading ship, he invited Robinson to go with him which would cost him nothing.

Honesty is one of the moral values, the captain's widow was the friend of Robinson.  She kept his money for some years.  So he writes,

" I left two hundred of my three hundred pounds' profit in the safe hands of the captain's widow.”

Once he said the Moor to get something for them to eat  but he also said,

" I said that it was not good that we should eat the food which our master had sent for his guests.”

Even if the guests were not arrived.  This also shows honesty.

Once he found the opportunity to escape.  He succeed  in it by making the Moor to go out.  He could shoot at him, but didn't shoot him.  He also saved Xury and said to him like this.

"Xury, if you are Faithful, to me I will make you a great man, I promise."

When Robinson lands on his island, he had nothing to eat.  He had to live upon goat's flesh.  The first goat that he had shot was a she goat who had a little goat home on his shoulders and tried to tame it.  This shows his Compassionate nature.

He shows his pity on the men, who were killed and eaten by the savages.

One day Robinson saw the chance of saving one poor fellow's life.  He saved him.  He gave him a name-Friday, gave him clothes, food, fresh water.  He also prevented him to eat his language and made him tame man.  When Friday  wanted him to go with him to his own island. He says,

" You teach wild man to be tame man,  he said. ' You tell them know God.  Pray God.  You teach me good.  You will teach them good.

When one English ship arrives, he then also dries to save three prisoners.

He asks the prisoners,

" If I save you, are you willing to agree to my conditions ? I have only two.  The first is that while you stay on this island you will obey any orders that I give you.  If I give you a gun, you will return it to me and do no harm either to me or to my possessions.  The second condition is that if you recover your ship you will take me and my Servant, Friday, to England."

In the island, he makes pot, baskets, learns to for build good and secure home which can be protected him from enemies.  This all shows his hard-working nature.  He also learns to sow grain and something about grapes.

Gratitude and helpful nature, and honesty are also moral values, Friday is grateful to Crusoe for saving his life.  Even the second English Captain and his loyal Crew are grateful to Crusoe for saving them.

Crusoe had faith  in God.  Even he teacher Friday morality, makes him Christian.  He teaches him the difference between good and evil.

Crusoe lives with Friday who was different from the look and act.  Even the Spaniard and English learn to live with one another.  This shows tolerance and harmony between races.

The Biblical reference given here also suggests Crusoe's exile from civilization that represents Adam and Eve's expulsion from Eden garden.  This gives lesson to be obedient to elders.

He compares himself with Job, who also regained divine favour.

Conclusion :-

We learn the lesson from the novel because it contains many moral values.  We learn that we must work hard to get success, we should have determined nature to achieve the goal and we should not give up effort when facing any hardships.  Besides this, We also learn think positively.  Despite our differences in cultures, we should respect different races.  We should by to be obedient to our elders.  

So, we can easily say that the novel Robinson Crusoe is a moral tale.