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3.17 AVERAGE
3.17 AVERAGE
Pre-read this for homeschool. Ok, so the story is pretty grating at times in a post-colonial world. But taking that into consideration, I still enjoyed this book. It had some interesting things to ponder, such as, would anyone actually be this successful on a deserted island? Are Englishmen really that competent? Had some interesting questions about Christianity and moral relativism too. (Spoiler: the Englishman is always Right. Lol.) But in the end, I enjoyed the optimism. A fun survivalist story.
adventurous
dark
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Quote:
“Thus we never see the true state of our condition till it is illustrated to us by its contraries, nor know how to value what we enjoy, but by the want of it.”
Setting:
Robinson Crusoe starts off in England and follows the titular character on his journeys across the sea as from a young age he yearns for adventure. Due to this our story features many lands and quiet a bit of the sea.
Plot:
The plot follows Robinson Crusoe as he leaves home to find his fortune at sea, however on his first trip things don't go as planned and he is told to take it as a sign and go back home, to travel no more. He eventually decides not to head this advice and misfortune continues to follow him.
Writing:
Most of the writing in this book isn't bad for it's age, however there are some oddities it's hard to over look. Usually the book follows the same narrative pattern but then one chapter we get the main characters journey entries. When this occurs, the first few entries are repeats of what the previous chapter already told us, which I personally found very jarring as I wasn't sure if he was doing the same things again.
Characters:
The primary character is a perfect example of a flawed character. He has his issues and they continue to cause his down fall. Slowly with time he starts to overcome these issues and starts to thrive. The other characters are just side characters with not much development as the focus is entire on the main character.
Pros:
Intriguing tale
Very easy read for it's time
Cons:
Very unbelievable tale
Ending has you hating the protagonist
Recommendation:
If you want to read this story due to it's historical importance I have no notes. However if you want to read it for fun, I certainly can't recommend it at all. The story has several issues that I found hard to overlook and the ending is pretty annoying. The first half of the book I felt like I was going to like it, but as it went along I felt like I had a foul taste left in my mouth.
“Thus we never see the true state of our condition till it is illustrated to us by its contraries, nor know how to value what we enjoy, but by the want of it.”
Setting:
Robinson Crusoe starts off in England and follows the titular character on his journeys across the sea as from a young age he yearns for adventure. Due to this our story features many lands and quiet a bit of the sea.
Plot:
The plot follows Robinson Crusoe as he leaves home to find his fortune at sea, however on his first trip things don't go as planned and he is told to take it as a sign and go back home, to travel no more. He eventually decides not to head this advice and misfortune continues to follow him.
Writing:
Most of the writing in this book isn't bad for it's age, however there are some oddities it's hard to over look. Usually the book follows the same narrative pattern but then one chapter we get the main characters journey entries. When this occurs, the first few entries are repeats of what the previous chapter already told us, which I personally found very jarring as I wasn't sure if he was doing the same things again.
Characters:
The primary character is a perfect example of a flawed character. He has his issues and they continue to cause his down fall. Slowly with time he starts to overcome these issues and starts to thrive. The other characters are just side characters with not much development as the focus is entire on the main character.
Pros:
Intriguing tale
Very easy read for it's time
Cons:
Very unbelievable tale
Ending has you hating the protagonist
Recommendation:
If you want to read this story due to it's historical importance I have no notes. However if you want to read it for fun, I certainly can't recommend it at all. The story has several issues that I found hard to overlook and the ending is pretty annoying. The first half of the book I felt like I was going to like it, but as it went along I felt like I had a foul taste left in my mouth.
Review at https://pragmastery.com/2019/10/14/2019-book-overview-part1/
It's very hard to rate this book... I think the three stars come more from the amount of thought it provokes than any actual admiration for the content of the book. Robinson Crusoe is textbook racism: colonialism 101. If you don't cringe and shudder at every mention of "savages" and slaves, I worry. However, I still gave it a fair rating because it is very interesting to see the ways in which colonialism is justified and structured, the supposed "logic" behind the ideology of white supremacy, and notions of "civilization". Robinson Crusoe was a very trying read. It was long, racist and often painfully monotonous, but I would still recommend it to anyone who likes to ponder the roots of colonialism - something that still affects our world today. It's one of those books that you would love to have read without actually reading it... Until we have a way to know books without reading them, I'd suggest you give this one a try (as you imagine yourself throttling the awful protagonist of course).
2.5/3 stars.
I can't say that I really loved or hated this book. By the end I puttered out and almost gave up. The audiobook reader was fine, but there definitely is a blahblahblahblahblah going on here. I appreciate how significant Robinson Crusoe is to English literature, but not for me.
And for Pete's sake, how is this a book for children????????????
I can't say that I really loved or hated this book. By the end I puttered out and almost gave up. The audiobook reader was fine, but there definitely is a blahblahblahblahblah going on here. I appreciate how significant Robinson Crusoe is to English literature, but not for me.
And for Pete's sake, how is this a book for children????????????
adventurous
challenging
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Very very Epic story, but I mean you can tell that a white, christian man from England, born in 1660 wrote this. Also I now remember why I didn't finish the book a few years ago, the middle is dense with a capital D, but in the end still absolutely worth it. Also I am so happy it's done now, wow
Felt so tempted to just get the hell off the island and leave Robinson Crusoe talking to himself about how to properly build a fence. But you know, not dreadful.
What a slog. The one interesting part was Crusoe wrestling with the morality of killing the cannibals that visited "his" island. Otherwise the philosophy and theology are very basic. And preachy. What am I missing? Was Defoe the 18th century Kirk Cameron?