How Does Daniel Defoe Use Realism

Robinson Crusoe is a man who was lost in the world, stuck at home with his parents, he was expected to be a lawyer, but his heart longed for the sea. Crusoe eventually left home, without telling his parents what he planned. After several voyages, all of which were seemingly “unlucky,” he is shipwrecked on a desert island and is forced to survive with only bare necessities. Many people consider him a hero because of how he dealt with his misfortune. Some people believe that Robinson Crusoe is a likeable and admirable character, but others disagree. Robinson Crusoe is not a likeable or admirable character for three reasons: he is self-absorbed, he lacks emotion, and he is hypocritical.

In order for a character to qualify as the tragic hero they must posses all of these qualities: high standing, a major flaw, and a downfall. A tragic hero is someone that is usually of royalty, of nobility, honest, or brave. During the story they usually show a major flaw or weakness. This usually leads to their downfall, loss of power, or even death. Many stories have tragic heroes.

The literary movement of realism addresses material in an accurate way that is true to life, regardless of the moral boundaries which may be broken. Several authors have undertaken efforts to define this movement in the most accurate and concise way possible. Theodore Dreiser, in “True Art Speaks Plainly”, strives to identify those components which are necessary to literature that is classified under the realism movement. William Dean Howells’s “Editha” is a literary work that reflects this definition of realism. Dreiser’s arguments regarding the presence of immorality in literature as a precondition for artistic honesty find an example in the actions of the protagonist of Howells’s story. Theodore Dreiser’s “True Art Speaks Plainly” defines realism as literature that speaks the truth regardless of its moral substance, and this definition is observable in Howells’s “Editha” through the corrupt motivations of the protagonist, the critical portrayal of nation states at war, and the ugly manipulation utilized by the protagonist.

Greek plays include the element of the tragic flaw to demonstrate how mistakes can greatly affect one’s life; especially in Greek culture because one wrong mistake and the Gods could be very offended. In the Greek play, Antigone, Creon illustrates a tragic hero because his pride and ego took over his morals of resembling a good ruler. Historically, this would mean Creon’s Hubris, or over-weaning pride, makes him a tragic hero. Creon is a tragic hero because his demise as a ruler is illustrated from the beginning of the play, to the middle, and to the end of it. Creon began his kinghood with promise of being a successful leader, but his Hubris ultimately led up to his tragic flaw.

The conflict between law and morality has been in existence since the beginning of human society, and to this day still greatly influences people and society. Written by the Greek playwright Sophocles in the 5th century BCE, Antigone is the tragic story of a young girl who goes against the king’s edict and buries her brother, a traitor to the state, sentencing herself to execution. The conflicting ideals of logos - moral, divine, or natural laws, and nomos, or man made laws are Greek virtues explored in the characters of Antigone and Creon, both of whose lives end horribly. Although nomos is often too concrete to manipulate to one’s advantage, logos is much more open to interpretation, and in the case of Creon, whose tragic flaw is hubris, the fluidity of logos allows him to use it to justify and influence his actions, ultimately harming him much more than nomos, and causing his story to end in tragedy. After investigating societal gender roles and the effect they

The aristotelian tragic hero is thought to be of noble stature and to have a flaw that contributes to their own downfall. Though their misfortune may not be wholly deserved, awareness is gained along with an understanding of the situation rather than considering it a defeat. These characteristics coincide with Creon, Antigone, and Willy Loman. Their efforts for greatness were guided by flaws instead of strengths, which aided in their undoing.. Even if all three met with catastrophic endings, the series of events leading to that point differentiate for each person. Creon, Antigone, and Willy Loman all meet-and fail to meet- the definition of a tragic hero, yet face distinct situations that inevitably ended in misery.

There was a time in the middle of football season where my coach and I were arguing of what my coverage zone was in a passing play, I was so sure that I was correct that I argued with him about it in front of the whole team. He ended up telling me to do it his way for a play, I ended up getting an interception as soon as I listened to him. Almost the exact same situation happened to Creon in a lengthy play called Antigone by Sophocles. It’s a play about how the king Creon refused to give Antigone's close brother a proper burial, just for breaking the law. Now Antigone has gone on a quest to bury her brother.n the end Creon needed to learn that sometimes you have to take the advice of others and see their side of the story instead of thinking

author was able to lure his reader's into almost believing the reality created by his imaginative writing.

“Don’t go around saying the world owes you a living. The world owes you nothing. It was here first” (Mark Twain). Realism is a faithful representation of reality that isn’t swayed by unconscious bias or idealistic aims. Realism arose in literature from the period of the civil war where authors showed more truthiness in their writings (Campbell). Jack London and Mark Twain convey the theme that humans have faults through their different styles of writing in their works, “To Build a Fire” and “The Lowest Animal”.

Thus, Robinson Crusoe was displaying uncertain signs of his belief in God. It isn’t until he is on the uninhabited island that he begins to slowly convert into a full Christian.

Everyone could relate to realism because it was more realistic. Realism lasted through the mid 19th century and included writers such as Flaubert, Zola, and Dickens.

The first reason that Robinson Crusoe is an admirable character is because he devotes himself to growing his spiritual life. First, he asserts, “My duty to God, and the reading scriptures, which I constantly set apart some time from thrice every day.” (Defoe

It has been observed that when placed in harsh or unusual conditions, people tend to look to spiritual support to help them overcome adversity. In Robinson Crusoe, Daniel Defoe not only depicts the struggle of a man abandoned on a deserted island, but also depicts Crusoe's repentance for past disobedience against his father and humanity as well as his acceptance of religion into his life. Crusoe's religious beliefs, however, do not remain consistent; in fact, he later uses religion as a justification for murder and other immoral acts. Crusoe accepts religion into his life, repenting for his sins throughout the novel, however his faith is not genuine, only becoming strong when he experiences misfortunes.

In the beginning of the book, Robinson Crusoe runs away from home to get on a ship. Then, when he was on his way to Canary Island, his ship was bombarded by pirates, who took him hostage. Finally, after two long years,

This paper is an attempt to examine the seeming opposition of religion vs. self-interest with respect to the character of Robinson Crusoe. I will venture to demonstrate that in the novel, Defoe illustrates the contradictions with which Crusoe must contend as he strives to please God while ensuring his own survival in the world. In part, I will endeavor to show that a distorted sense of Puritanism as well as the existing colonial mindset exacerbated this opposition, and resulted in what I propose to be Defoe's (possibly retroactive) imposition of a religious justification for Crusoe's actions.