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3.17 AVERAGE
3.17 AVERAGE
I really didn't like the main character. It might be a historical context thing but I thought he was a detestable person. On the other hand, I enjoyed the end of the story, something like the last forth of it.
But overall, I'm a bit concerned they made us read this at school.
But overall, I'm a bit concerned they made us read this at school.
adventurous
funny
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
A quite splendid novel, not at all what I'd expected. Even from a book about a man stranded on a deserted island.
Ending was a bit off though, somehow.
Ending was a bit off though, somehow.
Robinson Crusoe is a young man who has exceptionally bad luck; every ship he gets on eventually sinks, and even thought he survives extraordinarily, he decides his best bet is to get on another ship because he really wants to buy slaves.
The boat he boards capsizes and he miraculously survives, and ends up in a stranded island. It is in this part where the book excels, as Defoe's description of all the crafting and careful planning Crusoe does is excellent. Some may say it is slow, but I thought it was great. This, in my opinion, is the best part of the book by far.
After some time, he gets ill, and when he recovers, he has this great calling to read the Bible, and the book starts to really show some characteristics of the time period when it was written. He turns into some kind of prophet of God, and everything he has suffered or done is due to God and his Providence, and everything up from this point is thanks to him and his work.
Afterwards, the "savages", who are just indigenous peoples that lived there, appear for the first time in the book, and the colonialism really starts to show up. He kills a lot of them and then "rescues" one, whom he calls "Friday" and teaches him English, and of course, converts to Christianity. This young man basically becomes a slave to him, and starts worshipping everything Crusoe does.
I understand the context in which the book was written and published, but I still didn't like it. I get why it is a literature classic, but the values it represents, as well as the main character, his actions and personality, made me dislike what i was reading throughout most of the book.
The second part of the book was mostly Colonialism and racism at its finest, with the white man always on top and everyone else being amazed solely by his presence.
When I first read Robinson Crusoe it was an adaptation for young readers, and it left me amazed with the storytelling and plot. But, after reading the original full version, what I thought of a wonderful story of adventure and craft, became, at least to me, a telling full of Colonialism and Christianity "greatness" that, for the most part, made me turn the page in hopes to finish the book and finally be done with it.
It was dissapointing to see how the years have turned a great classic into something that, unfortunately, is stuck on the values of its time. This is saddening, because the plot is great and really catchy, but the years have caught up to it.
Definately won't be reading it again anytime soon.
The boat he boards capsizes and he miraculously survives, and ends up in a stranded island. It is in this part where the book excels, as Defoe's description of all the crafting and careful planning Crusoe does is excellent. Some may say it is slow, but I thought it was great. This, in my opinion, is the best part of the book by far.
After some time, he gets ill, and when he recovers, he has this great calling to read the Bible, and the book starts to really show some characteristics of the time period when it was written. He turns into some kind of prophet of God, and everything he has suffered or done is due to God and his Providence, and everything up from this point is thanks to him and his work.
Afterwards, the "savages", who are just indigenous peoples that lived there, appear for the first time in the book, and the colonialism really starts to show up. He kills a lot of them and then "rescues" one, whom he calls "Friday" and teaches him English, and of course, converts to Christianity. This young man basically becomes a slave to him, and starts worshipping everything Crusoe does.
I understand the context in which the book was written and published, but I still didn't like it. I get why it is a literature classic, but the values it represents, as well as the main character, his actions and personality, made me dislike what i was reading throughout most of the book.
The second part of the book was mostly Colonialism and racism at its finest, with the white man always on top and everyone else being amazed solely by his presence.
When I first read Robinson Crusoe it was an adaptation for young readers, and it left me amazed with the storytelling and plot. But, after reading the original full version, what I thought of a wonderful story of adventure and craft, became, at least to me, a telling full of Colonialism and Christianity "greatness" that, for the most part, made me turn the page in hopes to finish the book and finally be done with it.
It was dissapointing to see how the years have turned a great classic into something that, unfortunately, is stuck on the values of its time. This is saddening, because the plot is great and really catchy, but the years have caught up to it.
Definately won't be reading it again anytime soon.
Loveable characters:
No
I much preferred the stranded solo Crusoe to the sadistic/savior-complex Crusoe.
Tan bueno como La isla del Tesoro. Cualquiera diría que la ausencia de personajes influiria negativamente pero la historia se desarrolla muy bien. No puedo creer que no la haya leído antes. Muy entretenida y fluida. La verdad una gran historia para pasar la tarde.
When reading an old (classic) novel, one must be prepared for excessive wordiness, sections of prose that, though coherent in their execution, are awkward because they are written in antiquated fashion that was common at that time and, often, portions that do nothing to move the narrative forward nor add to the enrichment of the tale. This is the character of Defoe's Robinson Crusoe. Though I found many parts of the famous story engaging, many others seemed not to fit, and still others were tedious. I'm glad I read it, but will warn the prospective reader of the aforementioned characteristics.
adventurous
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Genocide, Gun violence, Racism, Slavery, Cannibalism, Murder, Cultural appropriation, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail