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Daniel Defoe
(1660–1731)Writer, born in London, England.
He was educated at a dissenting academy, travelled widely in Europe, and set up in the hosiery trade. In 1688 he joined William III's army, and strenuously supported the Kings party. In 1702 his satire The Shortest Way with the Dissenters raised much anger with Dissenters and High-Churchmen alike, and he was imprisoned at Newgate for seditious libel, where he continued his pamphleteering. On his release in 1704 he started The Review, writing it single-handed, three times a week, until 1713. During this time, his political conduct became highly equivocal; he supported, rejected, and then supported again the Tory minister, Harley. After the accession of George I (1714) he returned to the writing of fiction, and achieved lasting fame with Robinson Crusoe (1719-20). His other major works include A Journal of the Plague Year, Moll Flanders (both 1722) and Roxana (1724).
Robinson Crusoe (1719) Robinson Crusoe was shipwrecked after a severe storm. He was the only survivor, and he immediately began to build a shelter and search for food for survival. He tried to salvage as much as possible from the shipwrecked ship and save things that he thought was useful. He began to write in a journal so that he would be able to remember what happened to him while he was on the island. He learned many useful skills, including fishing and farming. During his time on the island, Crusoe began to talk to God and reevaluate his religious beliefs. After 15 years on the island, Crusoe discovered footprints in the sand but no signs of people. Years later, he spotted cannibals on the island. He spotted them again sometime later and noticed a victim escaping. Crusoe presumed the victim had managed to survive a shipwreck he spotted earlier in the year. Crusoe saved him, named him Friday and taught him how to speak English. Crusoe and Friday were eventually rescued from the island after they helped the captain of the ship escape a mutiny. Once in England, Crusoe discovered that he was wealthy. He married and had three children, but Crusoe still wanted to continue his adventures.
See more at: Life and biography of Daniel Defoe. http://www.luminarium.org/eightlit/defoe/defoebio.htm Daniel Defoe Books. List of Works. http://biblio.co.nz/defoe-daniel/author/392