Robinson Crusoe Religion - Book Report/Review Example

Download file "Robinson Crusoe Religion" to see previous pages... This novel takes the reader on a spiritual journey hidden beneath the adventures of Robinson Crusoe’s life experiences.
Robinson Crusoe’s autobiography elaborates on the idea of redemption and deliverance. His life experiences give detail on how they come to us under the most unexpected times and circumstances.
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Redemption and deliverance are common concepts in Christianity. People confess their sins so that they may be redeemed. They engage in good deeds, so that they may be worthy to be in the presence of God when the time comes. It seems to be that it is in our nature to be most faithful when we are faced with adversities. Much of our deliverance comes during the most trying times that tests and confirms our beliefs or completely throws us off balance into another direction. Crusoe was the former, and we witness his spiritual growth into a firm believer of faith. "I have been, in all my circumstances, a memento to those who are touched with the general plague of mankind, whence, for aught I know, one half of their miseries flow: I mean that of not being satisfied with the station wherein God and Nature hath placed them" (Defoe, p. 310).
We may say that the first novel of Daniel Defoe can be considered as a literary manifest of an author-enlightener based on concept of the world and a human peculiar to the early period of the age of Enlightenment. It is impossible to consider the worldview of a natural individual of that time without taking into consideration the influence of religious and ethical principles. The novel 'Robinson Crusoe definitely proves this statement.
Numerous researchers of Defoe's creative work not only find direct illusions with texts of the Bible, but also draw an analogy between main plotline of the novel and some of the stories of the Old Testament.
Solution of a problem of origin of sermon on work in this context is very simple: 'ln the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for "dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return', said God to Adam on his expulsion from Paradise (Genesis 3:19)1. Hard working is one of the Commandments of Christianity. All this Robinson had to realize and gratefully accept being on uninhabited island. 'I had worked so hard on my jars that I had forgotten to write the days in my calendar. I found that the next day would be Sunday. I wished to spend it in the right way, for I thought of what the Bible says: 'Six days thou shalt labor and do all thy work, but the seventh is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work'2.
Reflections and reading the Bible Robinson open the universe for Robinson let him come to religious perception of life. From a certain moment of his being on the island he starts to take everything that happens to him as Divine Providence. Here we see that the author himself opens for us one more side of hard working which is spiritual perfection: 'My condition began now to be, though not less miserable as to my way of living, yet much easier to my mind: and my thoughts being directed, by a constant reading the Scripture and praying to God, to things of a higher nature, I had a great deal of comfort within, which, till now, 1 knew nothing of; also, my health and strength returned, I bestirred myself to furnish myself with everything that I wanted, and make my way of living as regular as I could'3.
In the light of this reflection one may suppose that Robinson was working hard on the island trying to improve his living conditions, not only because he tried to make his life comfortable, but what is probably ...Download file "Robinson Crusoe Religion" to see next pagesRead More