Robinson Crusoe

by Daniel Defoe

I want to read the Prince. I think there are probably parallel in the way Robinson ruled his island and the wisdom in the Prince.

that the middle station of life was calculated for all kind of vertues and all kind of enjoyments;

This is why they are attacked

Had

Pirates

After

Escape From slavery

But I that was born to be my own destroyer, could no more resist the offer than I could restrain my first rambling designs, when my father’s good counsel was lost upon me.

being eleven in number,

For sudden joys, like griefs, confound at first.

that I found out the carpenter’s chest, which was indeed a very useful prize to me, and much more valuable than a ship loading of gold would have been at that time;

its flesh was carrion,

separate the powder, and keep it a little and a little in a parcel, in hope, that whatever might come, it might not all take fire at once, and to keep it so apart, that it should not be possible to make one part fire another:

three Popish prayer-books,

What is this earth and sea of which I have seen so much, whence is it produced, and what am I, and all the other creatures, wild and tame, human and brutal, whence are we? Sure we are all made by some secret power, who form’d the earth and sea, the air and sky; and who is that? Then it follow’d most naturally, It is God that has made it all: Well, but then it came on strangely, if God has made all these things, He guides and governs them all, and all things that concern them; for the power that could make all things, must certainly have power to guide and direct them.

In this journey my dog surpris’d a young kid, and seiz’d upon it, and I running in to take hold of it, caught it, and sav’d it alive from the dog: I had a great mind to bring it home if I could; for I had often been musing, whether it might not be possible to get a kid or two, and so raise a breed of tame goats, which might supply me when my powder and shot should be all spent.

The dog surprised a young kid this reminds me of the scene in Ulysses with Stephen

Then I began to think of the poor kid, which I had penn’d in within my little circle, and resolv’d to go and fetch it home, or give it some food; accordingly I went, and found it where I left it; for indeed it could not get out; but almost starv’d for want of food: I went and cut bows of trees, and branches of such shrubs as I could find, and threw it over, and having fed it, I ty’d it as I did before, to lead it away; but it was so tame with being hungry, that I had no need to have ty’d it; for it follow’d me like a dog; and as I continually fed it, the creature became so loving, so gentle, and so fond, that it became from that time one of my domesticks also; and would never leave me afterwards.

poor kid whom I had penned in and was starving

Well then, said I, if God does not forsake me, of what ill consequence can it be, or what matters it, tho’ the world should all forsake me, seeing on the other hand, if I had all the world, and should lose the favour and blessing of God, there wou’d be no comparison in the loss. From this moment I began to conclude in my mind, that it was possible for me to be more happy in this forsaken solitary condition, than it was probable I should ever have been in any other particular state in the world; and with this thought I was going to give thanks to God for bringing me to this place.

In a word, as my life was a life of sorrow one way, so it was a life of mercy, another; and I wanted nothing to make it a life of comfort, but to be able to make my sence of God’s goodness to me, and care over me in this condition, be my daily consolation; and after I did make a just improvement of these things, I went away and was no more sad.

how to tame a goat...starve it

It would have made a Stoick smile42 to have seen me and my little family sit down to dinner; there was my majesty the prince and lord of the whole island; I had the lives of all my subjects at my absolute command. I could hang, draw, give liberty, and take it away, and no rebels among all my subjects.

It happen’d one day about noon going towards my boat, I was exceedingly surpris’d with the print of a man’s naked foot on the shore, which was very plain to be seen in the sand: I stood like one thunder-struck, or as if I had seen an apparition;

When I came to my castle,

went in at the hole in the rock, which I call’d a door,

with my own frightful ideas of the thing, that I form’d nothing but dismal imaginations to myself, even tho’ I was now a great way off it. Sometimes I fancy’d it must be the Devil;

O what ridiculous resolutions men take, when possess’d with fear! It deprives them of the use of those means which reason offers for their relief.

and I had now liv’d two years under these uneasinesses, which indeed made my life much less comfortable than it was before; as may well be imagin’d by any who know what it is to live in the constant snare of the fear of man;

I was so astonish’d with the sight of these things, that I entertain’d no notions of any danger to my self from it for a long while; all my apprehensions were buried in the thoughts of such a pitch of inhuman, hellish brutality, and the horror of the degeneracy of human nature; which though I had heard of often, yet I never had so near a view of before; in short, I turn’d away my face from the horrid spectacle; my stomach grew sick, and I was just at the point of fainting, when Nature discharg’d

the disorder from my stomach; and having vomited with an uncommon violence, I was a little reliev’d, but could not bear to stay in the place a moment; so I gat me up the hill again with all the speed I could, and walk’d on towards my own habitation.

When I had consider’d this a little, it follow’d necessarily, that I was certainly in the wrong in it, that these people were not murtherers in the sense that I had before condemned them, in my thoughts; any more than those Christians were murtherers, who often put to death the prisoners taken in battle; or more frequently, upon many occasions, put whole troops of men to the sword, without giving quarter, though they threw down their arms and submitted.

I had nothing to do with them; they were national,47 and I ought to leave them to the justice of God, who is the governour of nations, and knows how by national punishments to make a just retribution for national offences; and to bring publick judgments upon those who offend in a publick manner, by such ways as best pleases him.

During all this time, I was in the murthering humour, and took up most of my hours, which should have been better employ’d,

if I was to kill the cannibals I would have to go on killing till I was no better than they

even when perhaps nothing but a brow of a hill, a great tree, or the casual approach of night, had been between me and the worst kind of destruction, viz. that of falling into the hands of cannibals, and savages, who would have seiz’d on me with the same view, as I did of a goat, or a turtle; and have thought it no more a crime to kill and devour me, than I did of a pidgeon, or a curlieu: I would unjustly slander my self, if I should say I was not sincerely thankful to my great preserver, to whose singular protection I acknowledg’d, with great humility, that all these unknown deliverances were due; and without which, I must inevitably have fallen into their merciless hands.

Pawns in the Game

eleven savages

another savage, who they were going to kill, in order to eat him; when on a sudden, the savage that they were going to kill, jumpt away, and ran for his life;

Fear is a very powerful thing

that he came running into my little thick grove, before my fortification, to hide himself;

He is trapped thinking himself saved

smiling upon him, encourag’d him;

Propaganda

he became my servant;

Salvery.

laid his head upon the ground, and taking me by the foot, set my foot upon his head; this, it seems, was in token of swearing to be my slave for ever;

made a motion to me to lend him my sword,

he runs to his enemy, and at one blow cut off his head as cleaverly, no executioner in Germany, could have done it sooner or better;

I made him know his name should be Friday,

Like Black Friday

I likewise taught him to say Master,

vomit

four prisoners

he was cloth’d for the present, tolerably well, and was mighty well pleas’d to see himself almost as well cloth’d as his master: It is true,

his very affections were ty’d to me, like those of a child to a father; and I dare say, he would have sacrific’d his life for the saving mine, upon any occasion whatsoever; the many testimonies he gave me of this, put it out of doubt, and soon convinc’d me, that I needed to use no precautions, as to my safety on his account.

and I found he was the more amaz’d, because he did not see me put anything into the gun; but thought that there must be some wonderful fund of death and destruction in that thing, able to kill man, beast, bird, or anything, near or far off; and the astonishment this created in him was such, as could not wear off for a long time; and I believe, if I would have let him, he would have worshipp’d me and my gun:

Technology

all religions have a priest craft

poor Christian,

he kill’d two of them, and wounded three more; and on my side, I kill’d one and wounded two. They

says I, in the name of God, and with that I fir’d again among the amaz’d wretches, and so did Friday; and as our pieces were now loaden with what I call’d swan shot, or small pistol bullets,