“For I cannot think that GOD Almighty ever made them [women] so delicate, so glorious creatures; and furnished them with such charms, so agreeable and so delightful to mankind; with souls capable of the same accomplishments with men: and all, to be only Stewards of our Houses, Cooks, and Slaves.”
Quote by Daniel Defoe
Work
This collection brings together Defoe's most enduring fiction alongside his substantial body of non-fiction writing. The volume includes his celebrated novels of adventure and survival, such as the story of a castaway's solitary existence on a remote island and the picaresque narratives following characters who navigate criminal underworlds and colonial enterprises. The anthology also encompasses his historical chronicles, including eyewitness-style accounts of catastrophic events and military campaigns, as well as his writings on maritime life, economic speculation, and supernatural subjects. Defoe's prose works, often presented with the appearance of authentic memoirs or documentary records, pioneered techniques of realistic narration that proved foundational to subsequent English fiction. The collection further contains his biographical studies, topographical descriptions, verse, and periodical essays, offering a broad survey of his career as a prolific and versatile author who wrote across multiple genres during the late Stuart and early Georgian periods. more
