Tiểu luận Robinson Crusoe – A Representative of the English Bourgeoisie in the early 18th century

oi open university Faculty of English and Modern Languages ˜«™ Assignment on English and AmericanLiterature Title: “Robinson Crusoe – A Representative of the English Bourgeoisie in the early 18th century” Hanoi, 2009 PART A: INTRODUCTION The 18th century saw Great Britain rapidly growing into a capitalist country. While in France the bourgeoisie was just beginning its struggle against feudalism, the English bourgeoisie had already become one of the ruling classes. In reality, the phenomena” land hedging and soil plundering” occurred. Farmers were driven out of their own lands and fields were turned into pastures for sheep-raising and wood-making industries. They had to join the force of cheap labor and working in such factories. England became a typical example of initial accumulation of capitalism. Holding power in economics, the English bourgeoisie further encroached on the politic field. They became the driving force in the English society. After actually overthrowing the feudalism and establishing the Institutional Monarch system, they led the country to the capitalist path and at that time, compromised with the feudal class. Together with the dragging state in terms of politics, economic growth took tremendously prospective changes on the capitalist way of developement. It can be said that the 18th century in England was an age of intensively industrial development. The industrial revolution began: new machinery was invented that turned Britain into the first capitalist power of the world. The capitalist path paved the way for heavier exploitation relations. The rocketing growth of industries required the need to trade with foreign countries and to search for new sources of raw material, labour and market. Thus, mostly under the pressure of the bourgeoisie, England waged many wars for colonial expansions. By the middle of the 18th century, England gained many colonies. It was a common saying that ” The sun never sets in the Great Britain”. The 18th century is known in the history of European culture as the period of Enlightenment. In England the period of Enlightenment followed the bourgeois revolution.” Enlightenment” indicates the historical role of the bourgeoisie in the age of the Bourgeois Revolution in comparison with the corrupt feudalism by recalling the contrast between dark and light. It also implies the progress of the Ideological movement and of literature in the 18th century. The Enlightenment was a powerful intellectual movement to the Enlighteners. The central problem of the Enlightenment ideology was that of man and his nature. The Enlighteners thought it was their duty to enlighten people and insisted on a systematic education for all. However, the English Enlighteners had little revolutionary aims in their views and actions. The Enlightenment epoch in English literature may be divided into three periods: Early Enlightenment, Mature Enlightenment, and Late Enlightenment . However, in the study, the English literature in the early 18th century or in the early Enlightenment will mostly be concentrated. This period saw the flourishing of journalism. Numerous journals and newspapers not only acquainted their readers with the situation at home and abroad, but also helped to shape the views of people. Most popular were the satirical moralizing journals. The Tatler , The Spectator, The Englishman edited by Joseph Addison and Richard Steele. In their essays, these two writers touched on various problems of political, social and family life. The essays paved the way for the realistic novels brought into English literature by Daniel Defoe and Jonathan Swift. Furthermore, at that time, there appeared numerous works about voyages and all kind of adventures that became popular. People who liked to reach and explore remote land like Robinson Crusoe in the same-named novel by Daniel Defoe became typical form of people at that time. Daniel Defoe was born in London in 1660. His father , whose name was Foe, wanted him to become a priest, but he decided to engage in bussiness.His father was wealthy enough to give Defoe a good education and future. It was Defoe’s cherished desire to become a rich merchant , but his bussiness was not unsuccessful and he went bankrupt more than once. As a result, he was always in debt. The only branch of business that he proved quite successfully is literature. His first literary works were satirical poems dealing with the urgent problems of the time. Daniel Defoe is also rightly considered the father of the English and the European novel. His first and most popular novel “ The Life and Strange Surprising Adventures of Robinson Crusoe” or “ Robinson Crusoe” in short was written in 1719 when Defoe was about 60. It was followed by Captain Singleton, Moll Flanders, Roxana and some other novels of adventure. Defoe’s strength as novelist lies in his realism. Every novel written by him could make readers feel the air of verisimilitude. In fact, he was so successful in writing ” Robinson Crusoe”. Through this realistic novel, the characteristics and features of the English bourgeoisie in the early 18th century were best reflected. Robinson Crusoe, the hero of the novel, became the typical representative of the English bourgeoisie at the time. PART B: DEVELOPMENT The English bourgeoisie in the 18th century, especially in the earlier decades of the century had some typical features. At that time, England was experiencing the atmosphere of the Enlightenment. Men of the epoch were men of reason, discovery and have independent attitudes toward nature. The bourgeois citizens were considered new form of people of the time. Obviously, the bourgeoisie was the driving force of the English society at that time. They thought they had rights to be proud of their status in society and in the superiority of their race. They wanted other countries to give way to English men. Therefore, they implemented many brutal and unjust wars. In fact, the English colonization and slave trades rose rapidly in the 18th century. The rapid industrial development of Britain in the 18th century went hand in hand with the process colonization of other countries and with an intensive growth of colonial trade. British merchant ships could be seen in different parts of the worlds. The British bourgeoisie was always sensible to make and accumulate money as well as property. This would somehow lead them to have quite poor spiritual lives because they were only concerned making money. However, the English bourgeoisie in the early 18th century had such good qualities as optimism, industriousness, human strength, courage, and so on. In conclusion, the English bourgeoisie in the 18th century was profoundly influenced by the socio-political background of the time.This class was indeed a complicated entity characterized by progressive and regressive features mixing and confining to one another as well. These features were vividly reflected in “ Robinson Crusoe”written by Daniel Defoe. In this novel, Robinson Cruso became a typical character of the English bourgeoisie in the early 18th century. Firstly, Robinson Crusoe was a typical figure of adventurous and enterprising nature. In fact, he wanted to discover everything, especially his longing to the sea. It is understandable because at that time, going to the sea was considered the only way to discover and visit new land as well as the world outside. Therfore, his dream of going to the sea coincided with his dream of discovery and adventure. Robinson liked traveling so much with no regard to possible dangers and challenges he might cope with. Right at the begining of the novel, some of his confessions can be seen: “ my head began to be filled very early with rambling thought” (1- p.1). He once said to his mother: “ my thoughts were so entirely bent on up seeing the world” (1- p.6). He dared to abondon everything to pursue his longing to discoveries and adventure. He also ventured to enter a new stage of his life. Robinson Crusoe did not only travel as in case of a normal tourist or an enthusiastic adventurer with his scientific discovery. His later voyages were especially attached with the comercial calculation on the trade ships. Robinson got acquainted with this business quickly. He once confessed that he truly became a trader. He wanted to challenge himself with his own decision. He even stated: “ But I that was born be my own destroyer could no more resist the offer than I could restrain my first rambling design, etc. In a word, I would go with all my heart”.(1- p.32). For the first time, Robinson boarded on a trade ship and later he was so cheerful to see the shared profits. He said: “I took delight to learn, this voyage made me both a sailor and amerchant; for I brought home 5 pounds, 9 ounces of gold dust for my adventure, which yielded me in London at my return almost 300 l, and this filled me with those aspiring thoughts.” (1- p.13). As a merchant, he traded in many places such as Guinea, Sallie and African Shore.He used his money to buy nmany articles to load on the ship. The fact that Robinson did engage in slave trades for the first time as he sold Xury, a small Negro boy to the captain of a ship. A genuine merchant, a man of the bourgeoisie was all the more plainly emerging. Robinson Crusoe could not give up this nature even after undergoing such a horible misfortune as a castawy on a desert island for more than 28 years. To the end of the novel, Defoe repainted a true merchant Robinson. The hero started a new trading voyage. He had now a vast capital of “ 4 or 5,000 pieces of eight”. He continued telling about his business” the ship being then returned, he sent me account that they had accepted for the offer and had remitted 33,000 pieces of eight to a correspondent of theirs at Lisbon” (1- p.256).At the same time, his plantation in Brazil mad him a good fortune made from his capital rather than from his labour. For this reason, he indirectly lived on the surplus being created by the other people’s labor. To sum up, the adventurous and enterprising nature of Robinson can be seen clearly. Through this point, he reflects naturally and clearly the image of the English bourgeoisie in the early 18th century. Secondly, Robinson Crusoe was a man of labor and strength, which was said to be a positive feature of the English bourageoisie. In fact, he managed to stabilize his living and built up his own assets by his own hands. Defoe succeeded in giving a magic reincarnation to Robinson. Robinson Crusoe was no more inexperienced youth, but now on the desert island, a strong, capable man who could withstand all the difficulties thanks to labor. He firmly stated: “ It was in vain to sit still and wish for what not to be had.” (1- p.40). He “ went on, and working everyday, as [his] strength and time allowed” (1- p.68). In that direction of his will, he went to work immediately. He spent 13 days sailing to the ship to take everything there ashore. These joourneys required him to “ labor very hard all day” (1- p.42). With a few tools rescued from the ship, he built a hut and made a boat. When Robinson Crusoe arrived at the island, the only provision that he had was tobaco. He also found a river of freshwater to drink from. He salvaged more food from the remains of his ship blown to the island, but he knew that it would not last. He went exploring and found out that there were many goats on the island, and delicious fruits. Later he discovered that the empty husks of corn he had thrown on the ground grew and became stalks of barley. From this experience, he cultivated a field of corn. To make sure that he had enough food to last him, he tamed goats and put them into pens to make sure that he would always have goats to eat if nothing else. Throughout his stay on the island, he succeeded in growing cornfields, rice fields, and having pens for goats. Although food was a major conflict in the begining of his isolation on the island, Robinson Crusoe was able to overcome it and maintain a very successful way of obtaining food. Among such hardships emerged his will and admirable effort. He always believed: “labor and patience carried me through” (1- p.87). He also spent two months more to make something for containing food and five other months to launch the boat into the seawater. He did a great deal of toils to accomplish his plan for “ [he] learnt not to despair any work, etc.” (1- p.70). When seeing anything possible to do, he attempted to finish it all. His motivation urged him all the time to get ahead in his life. Every effort Robinson made met both his present demand and his future concerning. He always had objectives to attain and to better his actual life: a fine place to live in, good and delicious food to eat and to drink, etc. Most notable, he made a candle by saving the tallow of goats and making the wick of some oaken. His creativity through labor was exposed in time. According to him: “all this would answer [his] end, etc.”(1- p.72). For him, labor was never separated from creativity. Thanks to labor, Robinson gradually obtained many things. He could escape from despair and fear by working wholeheartedly at any time possible with the view to bettering his life. Though he sometimes had to spend a lot of time on making simplest things, he never lost heart. In fact, “ I worked hard till indeed , my strength was almost exhausted.” (1- p.80), he said. His lust for life and his inventiveness helped him overcome the hardships while his powers of deduction and observation led him to important discoveries. He was a truly heroic character, a man dominating nature. To sum up, Robinson was a man of labor, untiring and industrious. A man whose will and strength overwhelming nature appeared consistently in Robinson. That is the reason why he stood steadily on his own feet. Robinson, in the passive position at first by one way or another, attempted to win over the nature. This also truly satisfied the world outlook of the bourgeoisie at that time. Moreover, he was the assertion of a lofty and beautiful truth and of the author’s belief in noble values of laboring people. The story of his labor is like a song praising human untiring labor. One of the most important relationships that exist in Daniel Defoe’s “ Robinson Crusoe” is that between Crusoe and Friday. This relation was the best reflection of the bourgeois relations. The man, named Friday because of the day he was saved, gave thanks to Robinson for saving his life by showing a position of subservience to him. In the novel, the theme of master servant relationship is clear. After being the master of the whole island, nature and animals, Robinson Crusoe was successful to be a master over human beings too. Since the first day in which he saw Friday, he decided to make him his slave in order to help him with cultivation and other work he achieved on the island as he already felt that he was like a king or a empror. A very strong relation linked between both of Robinson Crusoe and Friday. It’s the relation of love and mutualism as Friday shared Crusoe in all the work and activities on the island. There is also a very important relation that links the two man. It is the spiritual or the religious relationship. It was Crusoe that teached Friday the rituals of the Christian doctrine, he was able to change him from cannibalism to a real Christian man who believed in God. Master servant relationship in “ Robinson Crusoe” can also be seen as a relation of capitalism as they devided labour among them with equal shares. The fact is that Robinson saved Friday from the cannibals but the motive urged him to do so was that “ [he] was call’d plainly by Providence to save this poor creature” (1- p.170). It seemed that Robinson tended to revise everything in God’s will and his Providence. He came to a philosophy that “ We are all made by some secret power” (1- p.77). Friday was a worshiper of the pagan god Benamuckee. Although Crusoe claimed freedom of religion on the island, he slowly attempted to reform Friday into a believer of God. In this novel, Crusoe described Friday as a Protestant, even before he had started his reform of the man. the fact is not because Crusoe disliked pagan religion, for he allowed the other natives to practice their pagan rites, but that Friday was the servant of Crusoe. Crusoe exerted the power he believed he had as Friday’s master to change the man as he wished. He wanted Friday to be Protestant and changed him accordingly without any thought to the wishes of Friday. Robinson, by his understanding and reasoning, tried to teach Friday a great deal of the power of God and of how he made the world all. He further taught Friday about Jesus Christ and Christianity as well as other religious doctrines. As expected, Friday was only too willing to embrace his master’s beliefs. He did so well that Crusoe even remarked on how “ The savage was now a good Christian, a much better than I...” ( Defoe, 217). He was happy for succeeded in teaching such a complicated matter. When he reflected upon this thing, he felt “ a secret ran through every part of [his] soul” ( 1- p.185- 186). Now it can be demonstrated Crusoe brought Friday to the true knowledge of religion. Crusoe is considered a religious missionary. When Robinson had companionship with Friday, he seized the chance to expose in words his best of knowledge and experience. After their first meeting, Robinson “ began to speak to him, and taught him to speak “ (1- p.173). In all his methods, he instructed Friday how to use guns, hunt animals and do other chores. He also taught Friday about such complicated topics of religion and geography by raising questions like: Who was Jesus Christ?, Where is England?, How do English people behave and live?. In short, Robinson was all the time a man of education. In the spirit of the Enlightenment, he turned out to be an Enlightener who had duty to enlighten people and resorted to education as a means of making progress and advancing forward. Thus, Robinson became typical for his contemporary English bourgeoisie because he contained in himself the features of highlighting and confirming the importance of education. Moreover, his racism can be seen in the way he treated Friday. The first English word he taught Friday, apart from Friday’s own name, was “ Master”. In the eyes of Robinson Crusoe, a man of such races as the cannibals was certainly a servant for the civilized man like him. He set himself the task of enlightening other people. Teaching Friday about everything was nothing else but the Enlightenment spirit and the expression of the racism. To Robinson, Friday was merely “ a poor creature”. Under the word of the almighty God and his Providence, Robinson was called “ to save this poor creature’s life” (1- p.170). Obviously, the picture of Friday in his mind was one of a servant, not the only friend in need. Not only was Friday a slave, but he fitted into the category of the “ Noble Savage”, the cannibal that could be taught and trained how to be acceptable in Crusoe’s world. Crusoe even presented Friday’s physical appearance in a manner acceptable to his readers: he made him seem European. Crusoe stated: “ He had a very good countenance, not a fierce and surly aspect, but seemed to have something very manly in his face; and yet he had all the sweetness and softness of a European in his countenance, too, especially when he smiled. His hair was long and black, not cruled like wool: his forehead very hight and large; and a great vivacity and sparkling sharpness in his eyes. The colour of his skin was not quite black, but very lawns. His face was round and plump; his nose small, not flat like the Negroes, a very good mouth, thin lips, and his fine teeth well set and as white as ivory” ( Defoe, 203). Crusoe altered Friday’s appearance. Yet, his hair was black, but it was not curled like wool. Have no fear, no low brow here! He was “ not quite”- he was tawny- tanned by the sun, and his facial features did not represent those of the Negroes either. Friday was a very complying man. He was given “ truths” by Crusoe which he readily accepted. A perfect example can be found in the title of the 19th chapter: “ I call him Friday”. Yes, and that is just how it is: It is not “ His name is Friday” or “ the closest that I can come to pronouncing his tribal name is Friday”. Crusoe gave the name to the man, and the man did not object. But, is this not how Crusoe dealt with every barrier in their relationship? The way that things were to be done is Crusoe’s way. He taught Friday English but did learn any of Friday’s language. Crusoe didn’t point to a goat and say: “this is a goat” and then signal to Friday to say what it was called in his language. Crusoe pointed to a goat and said ‘This is a goat”-end of discussion. He even clothed Friday in his way. Crusoe’s reason for the donning of clothes was that the sun shoned too brightly on his unprotected white skin. yet, Crusoe couldn’t let go of the social convention that one couldn’t go running around half naked-only savages did that. Friday was obviously comfortable anh “porotected” by his “tawny” skin in this environment, but Crusoe dressed him anyway in accordance with European convention. Having Friday as a servant or at least a creature of his own, Robison began discovering a new perception of life. He more or less became the master, the lord if the is land and even a religious missionary. When the island became inhabied, Crusoe was truly successful in his discovery of setting his order. He was like an almighty lord who could give his commands to the other people. He extended his influence completely over his servant Friday. Friday had to be subservient in his speech to Robinson, his actions, and had to subjugate his own religious beliefs. Crusoe’s own will was completely imposed on the native. This was mastery of a person taken to the extreme. Crusoe also showed some mastery of the others on his island as he had proclaimed himself king. the mastery of the others was a very unattractive trait that Crusoe displayed. The novel shows that mastery of one’s own life is a praiseworthy achievement, but that mastery of another’s is a deplorable one.In short, the relations between Robinson and Friday were typical reflection of the English bourgeoisie relation in the 18th century. PART C: CONCLUSION “ Robinson Crusoe” is the most famous and successful novel of Daniel Defoe. The charm of this story mainly lies in its intense reality, in the succession of thought, feelings and incidents that every reader find true to life. It is an interesting picaresque novel about an 18th –century English adventurer who is a true empire-builder, a coloniser as well as a forein trader. When he is left alone on the uninhabited island, he is realistically depicted as a man struggling against nature and a man who finally creates some civilisation in a seemingly primitive environment through his incessant efforts and toil. He resembles the rising bourgeoisie at the earliest stage of its development, has the courage and will to face hardships and adversities, and also has the ingenuity and determination to preserve himself and improve on his livelihood by fighting against nature. He is most practical and exact, always religious and at hte same time mindful of his own profit. In this novel, both physical and mental labor is glorified. the detailed description of the steps taken by the hero to provide for himselof shelter, food, clothing and the other simple comforts of life, are managed with great skill by the author- not treated with exaggeration or romantic colourings but narrated in a simple, straight- forward of the book. Through this description, robinson’s will- power and ingenuity are greatly eulogized. “ Robinson Crusoe” is the story of one man. however, in the talented pen of Daniel Defoe, he became the typical representative of the time that presented all characteristics of the English bourgeoisie in the early 18th century. REFERENCES BOOKS: 1. Alfred A. Knopt. (1996). Robinson Crusoe. New York. David Campbell Publisher. 2. A. Compton and Rickett. (1994). A history of English literature. Pearl Offset Press. 3. Daniel Defoe. (1898). The Life and Strange Surprising Adventures of Robinson Crusoe. London: Oxford Publishing House. 4. L.Cortes and O.Schonhorn. (1991). Cambridge Studies in 18th English literature. Cambridge University Press. 5. Loan, Nguyễn Kim .(1998), History of English literature. Dai hoc Ngoai Ngu HN, NXB Giao duc. 6. Thơm, Nguyễn Xuân. (1997). A history of English – American literature, NXB The gioi. 7.Trung, Nguyễn Chí. (2000). Lịch sử văn học phương tây. NXB Văn Học. 8. R.A. Billington. (1952). The making of English history. Northwestern University. Winston Inc. WEBSITE: 1. Defoe 2. literature 3. on Robinson Crus