Unit 2 Daniel Defoe

Topics for Discussion:

1.      What does Crusoe learn from reading of the Bible?

Answer: As mentioned in this selection, one morning, Crusoe opened the Bible, and he read these words, “ I will never, never leave thee, nor forsake thee.”  He believed that these words were for him, and he got spiritual support from his daily reading of the Bible. Sometimes he may be struck with despair, but he would not give up because he knew God had not forsaken him.

2.      What are the characteristics of Crusoe from the selected reading?

Answer: Robinson is a real hero, and we can sense many of his best qualities: his marvellous capacity for work, his boundless energy and persistence in overcoming difficulties. He is very practical and exact, always religious and at the same time mindful his own profit.

(Note: these are only some tips for you. It is your job to try to find some proof from the selected reading!)

3.      When he travelled across the island, he found the other part of the island was much more lush than his own part, why did he still return to his part?

Answer: Even though he realized that this part of the island was nicer than his own, he had begun to think of his part of the island as “home” and he longed to return there.

4.      What are the features of style of the novel?

Tips: As a journalist, Defoe’s journalistic work was a good training for his future writing. He had had great practice in writing simple, concise prose. He is a master of pure English: smooth, easy, almost colloquial, yet never coarse. He loved short, crisp, plain sentences, as we can find in this chapter. What’s more, there is nothing artificial in his language, it is common English at its best.