At the time Robinson Crusoe was written which was the 1700s, the British Empire was colonizing new territories all over the world. This was the newfound spread of imperialism on areas that created an empowerment for the British. In discussions of Robinson Crusoe, one controversial issue has been the impact of colonialism on Robinson Crusoe as a character because of his British roots. On the one hand, people argue that Robinson Crusoe is justified to act in a negative way because of the harsh conditions on the island but others say that Crusoe’s behavior was solely based on his British influences. At the time that this novel was published, the British were colonizing the new world and books were being published that depicted the influences of this colonialism on their characters. Because of Crusoe’s colonialist impulses on the island, he hurts his relationship with his family, he exploits the resources, and he exploits others because he feels empowered to do so. Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe clearly depicts the negative influences of British colonialism through Robinson Crusoe’s struggles and relationships on the island he was stranded on.
Robinson Crusoe’s constant drive for power, a major characteristic of British colonialists, hurts his relationship with his family. Since the beginning of the novel, Crusoe establishes that he can not stay at home because he believes he was meant for something greater than working so he decides to leave to go on adventures. Crusoe gets into many arguments with his parents about the matter and this causes trouble in their relationship which leads to him leaving home spontaneously. Defoe foreshadows Crusoe’s future troubles when Crusoe’s father says that “(t)hat boy might be happy if he would stay at home, but if he goes abroad he will be the miserable Wretch that was ever born” (7). This foreshadows Crusoe’s adventures because all throughout all of his adventures, Crusoe was troubled and upset because nothing went right for him which relates back to his decision to defy his father.
Robinson Crusoe’s constant drive for power, by influence of British colonialism, is responsible for his exploitation of the land that does not belong to him. According to McInelly, “(b)y imagining a solitary escapee on a far island, Defoe creates the conditions that will be crucial to the development of the novel: fully realized characters who internalized experience within a setting that resembles a real life” (McInelly 4). McInelly acknowledges that because of Crusoe’s experiences on the island, including his attempts to be Friday’s master and the “king” of the island, Crusoe shows his British influence. Furthermore, Smit-Marias also explains colonialism in Robinson Crusoe. A main point Smit-Marias made was that “Robinson Crusoe represents many aspects of Britain or “home” in relation to the island by perpetuating an ideology that placed Britain at the centre and colonies like the island at the margins” (Smit-Marias 1). In other words, Smit-Marias make a point to acknowledge the fact that Britain was colonizing colonies with natives such as the island that Crusoe was stranded on. There is an emphasis on Crusoe’s exploits on the land he claims but does not own because at the time Robinson Crusoe was written, the British empire was colonizing a lot of colonies which influenced many authors such as Daniel Defoe in writing novels that depict the power of the British.
Robinson Crusoe’s constant drive for power, by influence of British colonialism, is responsible for his exploitation of the people he is surrounded by. First, Smit-Marias also argues that “Crusoe recreates this monologic structure on the island by appointing himself as master over the island’s animal and human residents” (Smit-Marias). By self-appointing himself, Defoe implies that Crusoe desires to be a leader and to feed off the attention of others because of the power that comes along with it. Crusoe was in search for power and wanted it so badly that he even proclaimed himself as “king” of a goat colony. Crusoe’s constant search for power relates to the constant search for power by the British which again supports the idea of the huge influence British colonialism had on novels and characters.
Moreover, Crusoe portrays a constant drive for power by the influence of British colonialism through his relationship with a local man, that Crusoe himself named “Friday”, from the island that Crusoe was stranded on. Crusoe’s relationship with Friday consisted of Crusoe trying to change Friday in terms of religion, cannibalistic ideologies, and culture. Crusoe exploits his relationship with Friday from the moment they first met because Crusoe acted like he “saved” Friday from the other savages. Friday did not have a name or couldn’t speak English to say it so Crusoe named him Friday because Crusoe thought that Friday was the day that he saved Friday. The name, Friday, also alludes to the Bible because Friday is the day of salvation. This relates to Robinson Crusoe because Crusoe thought he was saving Friday from the other savages. Furthermore, Crusoe attempts to convert Friday to Christianity and succeeds to do so. Crusoe’s desire to convert Friday to Christianity affirms the idea that Crusoe has imperialistic influences because like Crusoe converts Friday, a native, to Christianity, the British and even the Spanish did so to the territories that they colonized. In addition, although Crusoe displayed the negative effects of colonialism, he was justified in a way. “As sole survivor of a shipwreck, Crusoe has to survive in, and adapt to a space which he initially experienced as alien and threatening, and he gradually begins to transform himself along with his environment” (Smit-Marias). Smit-Marias implies with this that Crusoe was justified in acting such a way to the obstacles of the island because it was something Crusoe was not used to. Because of the conditions on the island such as weather, hunger, and fear of the savages, Crusoe had to utilize his colonial impulses just to survive.
Robinson Crusoe is known to exploit others for greed and power which are some of the negative characteristics of the British colonialists. Friday was not the first native that Crusoe exploited because of his imperialistic ideals. Before Crusoe was stuck on the island in which he was on for over 20 years, Crusoe had a slave named Xury. Crusoe’s relationship with Xury was not described extensively but this relationship did give a foreshadowing of the future actions Crusoe will take on Friday. As soon as Crusoe gets the opportunity to display his colonial influences by enslaving someone or trying to change their native lifestyle, he takes it. Although Xury was loyal to to Crusoe and Crusoe enjoyed Xury’s company, Crusoe traded him away to receive money in return. This depicts that Crusoe would always do something that benefits him in terms of greed
In discussions of Robinson Crusoe, one controversial issue has been the impact of colonialism on Robinson Crusoe as a character because of his British roots. Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe clearly depicts the negative influences of British colonialism through Robinson Crusoe’s struggles and relationships on the island he was stranded on. Because of Crusoe’s colonialist impulses on the island, he hurts his relationship with his family, he exploits the resources, and he exploits others because he feels empowered to do so.Smit-Marias “suggest(s) that Robinson Crusoe indicates ways in which British colonial history made the genre of the novel possible” (Smit-Marias). As soon as Crusoe gets the opportunity to display his colonial influences by enslaving someone or trying to change their native lifestyle, he takes it. Throughout his adventures on the island that he was stuck on for over twenty-five years, Crusoe displays acts that some would consider inhumane but when the novel was written in the 1700s, these actions were considered normal.