Self-Reliance

Robinson Crusoe is at its core a story of adventure, and true to its nature the hero must rely upon his
wits and courage to survive. Throughout the novel readers see this theme in action. Robinson
Crusoe chooses the right moment to escape from his slave master and thinks quickly to push the
Moor accompanying him on the boat overboard. He demonstrates self-reliance in building his
plantation in Brazil. And most clearly and indefatigably, he uses his self-reliance to survive on the
island. Defoegoes to extraordinary lengths to tell how Crusoe sorts through the goods on the
wrecked ship to find just what he needs to survive and how he builds his rafts to bring it all ashore. It
describes how he builds his castle for both comfort and defense. Crusoe has few materials available
to him, but he manages to use what he does have in creative ways to build a comfortable and safe
home on the island.

Civilization
A system of rules and order governs Crusoe's life, even when he is isolated from organized and civil
society. Importantly, his concept of civilization is based on his experience with European culture and
civilization, so he does not recognize that the natives he encounters have civilizations of their own.
As a result, he insists that Friday give up his cannibal ways, wear clothing, and learn to speak
English. Readers are never given a hint that Crusoe makes any effort to learn Friday's language. And
remarkably, it seems Crusoe himself never adopts any of the cultural habits of the natives with
which he interacts. Yet the Spaniards who were cast ashore on Trinidad, and thus at the mercy of
the natives, do learn to speak their language. Friday and the other natives have lived and thrived in
the environment that Crusoe has been cast into for untold thousands of years, and yet he does not
adopt any technique that they use that might be useful for him. It could be noted, however, that
Crusoe does at least acknowledge that, although the natives are cannibals, he finally recognizes that
it is ingrained in their culture and that they do not see it as a sin.