Robinson Crusoe and Its Progressive Meanings.doc

鲁滨逊漂流记及其进步意义robinson crusoe and its progressive meaningscontentsabstract.1key words.1i. introduction.1ii. literature review.22.1 general introduction of the novel22.2 the comments of the novel.3iii. the progressive meanings of the robinson crusoe.43.1 to pursue free life and realize individual value.43.2 to praise labor of human being and great creativity.63.3 to apply knowledge to create civilized life.83.4 the persevering aggressive spirit.103.5 to advance the development of society and historic progress.11 iv. conclusion13references.14robinson crusoe and its progressive meanings摘 要： 鲁滨逊漂流记是一部非常著名的而且受到人们欢迎的小说，它的作者笛福是一位被誉为“英国和欧洲小说之父”的英国作家。 本文从五个方面分析小说鲁滨逊漂流记的进步意义。它们是：追求自由生活，实现个人价值；赞美人类的劳动和伟大的创造力；运用科技知识，创造文明生活；坚忍不拔的进取精神；推动了社会的发展和历史的进步。关键词：鲁滨逊漂流记; 鲁滨逊 ; 小说 ; 进步意义abstract： the novel, robinson crusoe, is very famous and popular. the author, daniel defoe, won the title “father of english and european novels”. some people think this novel acts as a propaganda of colonialism. but the paper mainly analyses the progressive meanings which are reflected in the novel from five aspects, these are, to pursue free life and realize individual value, to praise labor of human being and great creativity, to apply knowledge to create civilized life, the persevering aggressive spirit and to push the development of society and historic progress.key words：robinson crusoe; robinson crusoe; novel ; progressive meaningsi. introductiondaniel defoe was nearly 60 years old when he turned to writing novels, his first novel was published in 1719 with the full title, the life and strange and surprising adventures of robinson crusoe and it was a great success and defoe became a well-known writer all over europe. the novel, robinson crusoe, is called the original adventure novel and the earliest modern english novel. daniel defoe has been regarded as “the discoverer of the modern novel” (guo qunying, 2003:93). defoe also produced some other novels, such as captain singleton, moll flanders and colonel jacque. his strong creative spirit in novel writing won him the title “father of english and european novels” (guo qunying, 2003:94). in the novel, robinson crusoe , defoe created the image of a true empire-builder, a colonizer and a trader, who has the courage and ability to face hardships and the determination to protect himself and improve his livelihood by struggling against nature. the story has remained popular ever since its publication and it spawned two sequels. in china, some scholars think defoe had created the image, crusoe, of the novel to represent the rising english bourgeoisie at the earlier stage of capitalism development. being a bourgeois writer, defoe glorified the hero and defended the policy of colonialism of british government. the novel shows another very important dimension related to colonialism: although the hero, robinson crusoe, is something of a colonist and this novel acts as a propaganda, the novel also revealed some progressive meanings which are not limited by the social ideology. some chinese scholars also note this. by studying the novel, robison crusoe , and the image of robinson, wang wen-hua said “the double-edge effects of its limitation and advance are just like twins gestated at the same time”(wang wenhua, 2004 ) .we shouldnt only focus on its historical limitation to deny its progressive meanings of the novel. in my paper, i want to objectively comment on the novel and to explore its progressive meanings of the novel, robinson crusoe, from five different aspects which include the following perspectives; to pursue free life and individual value, to praise labor of human being and great creativity, to apply knowledge to create civilized life, the persevering aggressive spirit and to push the development of society and historic progress. i believe an excellent novel can reflect progressive meanings and values of all social systems. i hope that my paper will be of some help for readers to appreciate some english original novels from different perspective.ii. literature review2.1 general introduction of the novel the novel, robinson crusoe, was based, in fact, upon the experiences of alexander selkirk who had run away to sea in 1704 and requested to be left on an uninhabited island to be rescued five years later. defoe himself was in his late fifties when he wrote the book, which has been considered to be the first english novel. the story was told in the first person singular narrator as if some sailor-adventurer himself told it. at the beginning of the story, we see crusoe as a sailor, a merchant, a plantation owner and a slave trader. on a voyage to africa to buy slaves he met with the most unfortunate shipwreck. then he found himself cast by the sea waves upon the shore of an uninhabited island. he had to stay there and managed the livehood for himself. facing adversity, he had to solve the problem of food, clothing, transportation and shelter; otherwise he would be starved to death. first he tried his best to make the best use of the goods on the shipwreck. f, he returned to the ship and took some food and clothes, a few guns and some ammunition. in order to protect himself he built a shelter. later he grew barley and rice, domesticated goats and fought against cannibal savages coming from the neighboring island, he even rescued one savage from death and named him friday, who became his faithful servant. in the hope of returning to europe, he built a boat. finally an english ship came by and took him to europe. thus robison crusoe ended his twenty-eight-year life on the deserted island. after his departure from the island, he sailed to lisbon, and then to brazil. he sold the plantation there to his partner. with money he returned to england and married. later his wife died. he sailed back to the deserted island again, and this time he brought women and supplies to the island to establish a colony there.2.2 the comments of the novelin the novel, robinson crusoe, the hero was an embodiment of british nations character. he loves freedom and is eager to adventure; his diligence, resourcefulness, and solitary courage make him an exemplary individual of englishman. but his limitation is of society, and his urge to subjugate others is highly objectionable. in bringing both sides together into one complex character, defoe gave us a fascinating glimpse into the successes, failures, and contradictions of modern man. while he is no flashy hero or grand epic adventurer, robinson crusoe displayed his distinctive character that has won him the approval of generations of readers. his perseverance in spending months making a canoe, and in practicing pottery making until he got it right, is praiseworthy. additionally, his resourcefulness in building a house, making dairy, grape arbor and goat stable from nothing is clearly remarkable. the swiss philosopher jean-jacques rousseau applauded crusoes do-it-yourself independence, and in his book on education, he recommended that children be taught to imitate crusoes hands-on approach to life. crusoes business instincts were just as considerable as his survival instincts. working for many years, crusoe created an ideal kingdom, he set a shining example for english bourgeois at the earlier stage of its development. crusoe was never interested in portraying himself as a hero in his own narration. he did not boast of his courage in quelling the mutiny, and he was always ready to admit his feelings of fear or panic, as when he found the footprint on the beach. crusoe preferred to depict himself as an ordinary sensible man, never as an exceptional hero.robinson crusoe was published, at that time, for the world quickly claimed a proprietary interest in the story. besides the seven editions printed by defores publisher in his lifetime, there were several translated versions and pirated editions. since that time so many editionsover seven hundredhave appeared that one critic has claimed that it has been re-issued more often than any book except the bible. the story has been translated into nearly every written language, and it has been abridged both for adults and for children. the story has remained popular ever since its publication and maintained its position as a world classic .it has been in the 21st century, however, that robinson crusoe has attracted the liveliest and most systematic critical interest. some scholars think defoe had created the image of a true empire-builder, a colonizer and a foreign trader, crusoe, the hero of the novel, represents the english bourgeoisie at the earlier stage of capitalism development. being a bourgeois writer, defoe glorified the hero and defended the policy of colonialism of british government. the novel shows another very important dimension related to colonialism: crusoe, the hero, is something of a colonist and this novel acts as a propaganda text. but we cant deny the progressive meanings of the novel. i believe these progressive meanings are beyond the limitation of space and time, peoples and social ideologies. iii. the progressive meanings of the robinson crusoe3.1 to pursue free life and realize individual valuein robinson crusoe, crusoes father had pressed him to be a lawyer, but at first in his mind he was filled with rambling thoughts of going to sea. no advice or entreaties could diminish his desire. “my head began to be filled very early with rambling thought, i would be satisfied with nothing but going to sea, and my inclination to this led me so strongly against the will, nay the commands of my father, and against all the entreaties and persuasions of my mother and other friends”(defoe, 1972:3), his father gave him excellent advice and counsel, “in my father house and my native country, where i might be well introduced, and had a prospect of raising my fortunes by application and industry, with a life of ease and pleasure”(defoe, 1972:4). his father told him that only men of desperate or of superior fortunes could go abroad in search of adventures, and that he was too high or too low for such activities. his social status was in the middle class. such a station, he argues, is not exposed to the miseries and hardships, the labor and sufferings of the mechanick part of mankind, and not embarrassd with the pride, luxury, ambition and envy of the upper part of mankind (defoe, 1972: 4) - rather, it existed stably within society, free of the worst extremes. the apparent glamour of the upper classes revealed itself to be full of suffering and vice, and it was rather the middle state which all other people envied (defoe, 1972:4). this explication of an economic middle way, the upper station of low life (defoe, 1972:4) allowed crusoes father to express and give approval to the path of his own life. the avoidance of the worst disasters and the enjoyment of the most commonly available pleasures allowed one, in the mind of crusoes father, to gain the most from life while being afflicted by the least suffering. rather than simply avoiding adventure, such a life strategy allowed one to go silently and smoothly thro the world, and comfortably out of it (defoe, 1972:5).crusoes father argued that acceptance of such a station did not only make oneself comfortable, but in fact allowed one to move gracefully through life, achieving goals and garnering pleasures without too much unnecessary travail. he suggested that crusoes current station was not only the one most suitable for him, but in fact the one in which he could reap the most happiness and rewards. if crusoe had, like a slave of fate, already been provided for, it seemed the father would have him accept this providence blindly and not act to alter it in any way. however, nature and the station of life had been only partial contributors to crusoes fate; the fathers merchandizing and subsequent marriage had done much to set crusoe where he was. indeed, his father implied it was unnecessary for crusoe to handle miseries which nature and the station of life he was born in, seemd to have provided against (defoe, 1972:5), arguing for a fatalism of birth which was auspicious rather than limiting. rather than simply being directed by fate, crusoe seemed at least in part provided for by the previous hard work of his father. through the work of this wise and grave man (defoe, 1972: 4), crusoe had been given enough means to enjoy the life his father saw fit. he might live without too many hardships, sensibly tasting the sweets of living, without the bitter, feeling that they are happy, and learning by every days experience to know it more sensibly (defoe, 1972:5). through the approval and recommendation of his current station, crusoes father revealed his respect for moderation even in enjoyment, and for a sensibly won knowledge not admitting of rash desires. the realization and contentment with the positive aspects of life - feeling that they are happy - is seasoned through a progressive knowledge, the process of understanding ones experience more finely each day. though such a respect remains necessarily modest, not claiming to gain much new emotional territory, it seemed also well-tested through long experience of losses and gains. crusoes father had, it seemed, lived his life in just such a fashion and had ended up generally satisfied with the results. “this way men went silently and smoothly through the world, and comfortably out of it, not embarrassed with the labors of the hands or of the head, not sold to the life of slavery for daily bread, or harass with perplexed circumstances, which rob the soul of peace, and the body of rest”(defoe, 1972:5); a position which all figures, great and small, would envy eventually, and his happiness would be assured if he would stay at home. nature has provided this life, and robinson should not go against this. but crusoe wanted to realize his dream to purse a free life, not depending on his parents. he didnt stand commonplace life and want to pursue new life. he did not want to sit idle to enjoy the fruits of other people .he chose adventure to prove his ability and value. although experiencing a lot of adversity, he finally got very rich and created a utopia for himself both mentally and physically. his activity was surprising to common people at that time, but it embodied its progressive meanings, that is, to pursue free life and realize individual value. it has been of the greatest importance in the past and today. it encourages the common people to rely on themselves and to realize their individual value. 3.2 to praise labor of human being and great creativityon a voyage to africa to buy slaves, robinson crusoe met with the most unfortunate shipwreck. then he found himself cast by the sea waves upon the shore of an uninhabited island. he decided to, or had to, stay there and managed the life for himself. robinson crusoe thought “it was in vain to sit still and wish for what was not to be had ” (defoe, 1972:49). first of all, he swam to the ship and took a few pieces of woods to build a raft. then he used the craft to take some food and clothes, a few guns and some ammunition. on this craft he loaded the provisions, everything from food to weaponry. he made a number of voyages to the ship in the next few weeks and brought back everything salvageable. that is “i got every thing out of the ship that i could get”(defoe, 1972:54), in thirteen days on shore, robinson had been eleven times on the ship, in which time he had brought away all that one pair of hands could well be supposed capable to bring ( defoe, 1972:56). when the ship was gone, robinson recovered him self with this satisfactory reflection, because he thought that he had lost no time, nor abated no diligence to get everything out of her that could be useful to him. had been cast island, robinson didnt pray to god and wait for god mercy, on the contrary, he seized any opportunities to labor and got useful materials for him. these materials offered essential condition for his future life. at first, in order to protect himself, robinson built a shelter and he didnt have any candle at the island, he was obliged to go to bed when it was dark, so robinson killed a goat , he saved the tallow, and with a little dish made of clay, which robinson baked in the sun, to which he added a wick of some oakum, he made him a lamp ,and this gave him light ( defoe, 1972:77). his obtaining of light was through his own labor and creativity.although robinson had never handled a tool in his life, in the island, he began to make such necessary things as he found he most wanted, as particularly a chair and a table, for without these he was not able to enjoy the few comforts he had in the world. with an adz and a hatchet and with infinite labor, he began to make chair and table. if he wanted a board, he had no other way but to cut down a tree, set it on an edge before him, and hew it flat on either side with his axe, till he had brought it to be thin as a plank, and then dub it smooth with his adz. by that way he could make but one board out of a whole tree. with his labor and creativity, he made a table and a chair.then he grew barley and rice, domesticated goats, he had the courage and will to face hardships and determination to preserve himself and improve his living condition by struggling against nature. he had also learned to tell the rainy season from the dry season, and decided to plant crops of rice and corn. he had no plough to turn the earth, no spade or shovel to dig it. robinson had a weeks work at least to make a wooden spade, which helped him to turn the ea