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Plot in Robinson Crusoe

Plot Examples in Robinson Crusoe:

Chapter II - Slavery And Escape

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"as will appear in the sequel of this story..."   (Chapter II - Slavery And Escape)

By “sequel,” Crusoe doesn’t mean the next novel in a series of tales; rather, he is referring to the next adventure that will happen to him after he escapes slavery.

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"It was my great misfortune that in all these adventures I did not ship myself as a sailor..."   (Chapter II - Slavery And Escape)

This line foreshadows many of the issues that Crusoe will face. Looking back on his adventures, here he says that he regrets not working as a sailor. This is important because it implies that Crusoe does not have much, or any, training as a sailor. His ability to navigate a ship and deal with the perils of the ocean, therefore, is severely limited.

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"In a word, we sat looking upon one another, and expecting death every moment, and every man, accordingly, preparing for another world; for there was little or nothing more for us to do in this...."   (Chapter III - Wrecked On A Desert Island)

Although Defoe’s style may seem old-fashioned now, his readers would likely have found constant scenarios of danger and precarity sensational and exciting. In terms of historical themes tied to English personhood, one could also note how constantly the English body is at risk anywhere other than in England.

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"I found a great deal of tobacco, green, and growing to a great and very strong stalk...."   (Chapter VII - Agricultural Experience)

Remember, Crusoe grew tobacco plants in Brazil. His familiarity with these plants comes from his experience on the plantation and makes his identification of the plant plausible.

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"Yes, I have been here..."   (Chapter XV - Friday's Education)

This instance reveals Friday’s important role in getting himself and Crusoe off the island. Now that he has been taught English, he holds knowledge precious to Crusoe: he can tell Crusoe where the island is and how far it is from civilization. His familiarity with both the island and it’s surroundings are what eventually allow for their escape.

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"I bid them halloo out, as loud as they could, and wait till they found the seamen heard them; that as soon as ever they heard the seamen answer them, they should return it again; and then, keeping out of sight, take a round..."   (Chapter XVIII - The Ship Recovered)

Crusoe’s plan literally has Friday and the captain’s mate running circles around the mutineers. The mutineers will be led in endless circles about the island; Crusoe takes advantage of his knowledge of the terrain—and faithful help provided by Friday—in order to tire out the mutineers and make them easier to capture.

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"I was now master, all on a sudden, of above five thousand pounds sterling in money, and had an estate, as I might well call it, in the Brazils, of above a thousand pounds a year, as sure as an estate of lands in England..."   (Chapter XIX - Return To England)

Crusoe's wealth equals that of lesser landed gentry in England during the eighteenth century.

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