When I first strolled into Barnes & Noble at Kierland Commons this summer I was not entirely sure what I was book I was going to select to read for the upcoming school year. I merely had a short list of books, all familiar titles, and yet I knew nothing of the stories that were inside. I proceeded to the "Classics"of the bookstore and as I was scanning the paperbacks Robinson Crusoe caught my eye mostly because I have heard the name before somewhere. When I picked up the novel up I flipped it over to the back cover like any curious reader to find a summary involving the survival of a man on an island for 20 years and cannibals. Needless to say, Robinson Crusoe sounded like an interesting story so logically, I made it my choice for summer reading. After reading I came to the conclusion that the story's greatest strength is that the plot of the story is very intriguing if viewed after finishing the book; however, the greatest weakness of the story is that it makes a captivating plot less interesting because of the rather dry language.
Upon reflection after finishing the story of Robinson Crusoe, one can conclude that the story itself is a remarkable one with many interesting plot points. He is marooned on an island and somehow manages to survive by making pottery, growing crops, hearding livestock, and even building a house. All of this including is including a deadly encounter with cannibals and a rescue of his companion/servant Friday. All of these plot points direct one to feel that Robinson Crusoe is a well thought out and alluring.
Although the plot is undoubtedly appealing, the actual story telling is somewhat diminished by Defoe's use of speech. For instance, if one looks at the scene near the beginning of the book where Robinson is experiencing his first storm on the boat, one will see that the description of the storm is somewhat lackluster when he says "all this while the storm encreas’d, and the sea, which I had never been upon before, went very high, tho’ nothing like what I have seen many times since.… I expected every wave would have swallowed us up…and in this agony of mind I made many vows and resolutions." In this quote, Robinson is not very descriptive with his word choice. This passage has the possibility of being full of action with crashing waves and a plethora of different emotions. Instead, he uses very simple and concise language which one could argue does not give the scene its appropriate portrayal.
Robinson Crusoe is definitely one of the classics because it is considered to be the first English novel. The great strength of this story is that the plot of the novel is extremely strong as well as fascinating. However the weakness is that the plot is not illustrated to its fullest extent with Defoe's
dry and rather undescriptive writing style.
Aj, this is certainly a start; however, the first thing I notice when glancing at your essay is that it is perhaps a bit short. Other than that, as I am going over the checklist of things to look for, I can tell which statement is your thesis, but I would like for it to be a bit more specific if possible. You say that the book's strength is that the story is intriguing; I would suggest discussing how and why it is intriguing. I see that you make an argument stating that the story's language is dry, but here's something to consider: you are suggesting that the story should have more description, but how much more description would you want Defoe to add? There is certainly such thing as overkill with description. I myself have read Robinson Crusoe, and the story itself if pretty long how it is. Much more descriptive language would definitely add to the story's length. Lastly, in terms of specific information, I think it would be helpful if you added a few more quotes (and you might want to make sure the font and size of the existing quote you have included are consistent.) Remember, page numbers should be included with your citations, etc. I hope my comments were helpful! -A
ReplyDeleteWhatup AJ!
ReplyDeleteI was strolling past my computer and I saw your blog. As it was titled "bloggerific" it seemed intriguing, so I read it.
My thoughts: this is a very interesting first draft. I really like that idea that something can have a great plot behind it, but it can be brought down and hampered by the writing itself. This I think was your main idea and you did a good job of making it clear and supporting it. Obviously this is just a short first take, but like Alex I think that this would benefit from increased quoting and analysis.
I also have a suggestion--like Alex mentioned, you say that Defoe is not descriptive. But it could also be that since this was written in the early 1700s, the accepted form of description of those days no longer applies now, and hinders the modern reader's appreciation of the story. Consider that perhaps you have find Robinson Crusoe to be timeless in its plot, but not in its composition.
Anyways, nice start AJ.
Nicole
AJ,
ReplyDeleteI can clearly see your thesis, but I would suggest you elaborate a little bit more on it. Also I would add more details about why you think the strengths of the book make it intriguing.
Micki