English Literature books summary

Т. Ф. уже давно, и единственное, чем он дорожит, что удерживает его там, -

любовь к вьетнамской девушке Фу-онг. Но появляется американец Олден Пайл,

который уводит Фуонг. Роман начинается с убийства Пай л а и с того, что

Фуонг возвращается к Т. Ф. Но дальше идет ретроспекция. Полиция ищет

преступника, а параллельно с этим Т. Ф. вспоминает о Пайле: тот спас его во

время нападения вьетнамских партизан, буквально отнеся в безопасное место,

рискуя собственной жизнью. Как будто бы добрый поступок? Пайл раздражает Т.

Ф. своими идеями, своим безапелляционным поведением, граничащим с

фанатизмом. Узнав наконец, что взрыв на площади, устроенный американцами, в

результате которого погибли женщины и дети, дело рук Пайла, Т. Ф. не

выдерживает и передает его в руки вьетнамских партизан: "Вы бы на него

посмотрели... Он стоял там и говорил, что все это печальное недоразумение,

что должен был состояться парад... Там, на площади, у одной женщины убили

ребенка... Она закрыла его соломенной шляпой". После смерти Пайла как-то

сама собой устраивается судьба Т. Ф.: он остается во Вьетнаме - "этой

честной стране", где нищета не прикрыта стыдливыми покровами; женщина,

некогда легко оставившая его для Пайла, с той же естественностью выгоды

легко и грустно приходит теперь назад.

Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe

Part 1 Summary:

The narrator introduces himself as Robinson Crusoe. He was born in

1632 in the city of York to a good family. His father is a foreigner who

made money in merchandise before settling to down and marrying his mother,

whose surname is Robinson. His true last name is Kreutznaer, but has been

corrupted into Crusoe by the English. There are two older brothers in the

family; one died in the English regiment, and Robinson does not know what

became of the other.

Crusoe's father has designed him for the law, but early on his head is

filled with "rambling thoughts" of going to sea. No advice or entreaties

can diminish his desire. His father gives him "excellent advice and

counsel," telling him that only men of desperate and superior fortunes go

abroad in search of adventures, and that he is too high or too low for such

activities. His station is the middle station, a state which all figures,

great and small, will envy eventually, and his happiness would be assured

if he would stay at home. Nature has provided this life, and Robinson

should not go against this. After all, look what happened to his brother

who went into the army. The narrator is truly affected by his father's

discourse, but after a few weeks he decides to run away. He prevails upon

his mother to speak to his father and persuade him to allow one voyage. If

Robinson does not like it, he resolves to go home and think of the sea no

more. She reluctantly reports their conversation, but no headway is made,

no consent given. About a year later, he is able to procure free passage on

a friend's boat heading to London. Asking for no blessing or money, he

boards the ship and leaves.

Misfortune begins immediately. The sea is rough, and Robinson regrets

his decision to leave home. He sees now how comfortably his father lives.

The sea calms, and after a few days, the thoughts are dismissed. The

narrator speaks with his companion, marveling at the "storm." His companion

laughs and says it was nothing at all. There is drinking that night, and

Robinson forgets his fear of drowning. Within a few more days, the wind is

behaving terribly, and then a true and terrible storm begins. Robinson

spends much time in his cabin, laying down in fright. He sees nothing but

distress, and is convinced he is at death's door. The ship is being

flooded, and he is commissioned to help bail water. At one point Robinson

faints, but is roused quickly. The water is coming too fast, so they board

life boats. People on shore are ready to assist them, if they can reach

land. The boats arrive at Yarmouth, and the magistrate gives the men rooms.

They must decide whether or not to continue to London or return to Hull.

His comrade notes that Robinson should take this as a sign that he is not

meant to go to sea. They part in an angry state. Robinson travels to London

via land. He is ashamed to go home and be laughed at by neighbors. Finally

he decides to look for a voyage. He is deaf to all good advice, and boards

a vessel bound for Guiana because he befriends the its captain. This

voyage, save seasickness, goes well, but upon arrival the captain dies.

Robinson resolves to take his ship and be a Guiana trader.

On a course towards the Canary Islands, they are attacked by Turkish

pirates, who capture them and take them into Sallee, a Moorish port.

Robinson is now a slave. His new master takes him home for drudgery work.

The narrator meditates escape for the next two years. An opportunity

presents itself when his master sends Robinson, along with some Moorish

youths, to catch some fish. Robinson secretly stores provisions and guns on

the ship. They set out to fish. Robinson convinces the helmsman that they

will find fish further out. He goes behind one of the Moors and tosses him

overboard, saying that he should swim for shore because he the narrator is

determined to have liberty. Robinson turns to the other boy, called Xury,

and says he must be faithful or be tossed as well. Xury resolves fidelity

and says he will see the world with Robinson. They sail for five days, as

the narrator is anxious to get far away. They land in a creek and resolve

to swim ashore and see what country this is. For two days they are anchored

there. They observe "mighty creatures" yelling on shore and swimming

towards the ship. Robinson fires a gun to discourage them from swimming

further. They are not sure what animal this is.

Although the two are scared, they need water. Together they will go

ashore, and either they will both live or both die. The land appears

uninhabited. They are able to kill a hare-like animal for dinner and obtain

fresh water. Robinson is sure they are on the Canary or the Cape Verde

Islands. He hopes to come upon English trading vessels that will allow them

to board. The two men remain in the creek. Together they kill a lion for

sport as they pass the time. Xury cuts off a foot for them to eat. They

begin to sail along the land in search of a river. Eventually they see the

land is inhabited by naked black people. Robinson and Xury go closer to

shore. The people leave food at the water's edge. They keep great distance

from the two men. Another creature swims toward the boat. Robinson kills

it, and sees that it is a leopard of some sort. The black people accept the

killing happily, so Xury goes ashore for water and food. In the distance

Robinson spies a Portuguese ship, but it is too far to make contact. They

leave immediately, trying to follow the ship. Robinson fires a gun to get

their attention. Joyfully, Robinson finds they will let Xury and himself

board, and the captain does not demand any money from them. The ship is

headed for Brazil.

Part 2 Summary:

The sea captain is extremely kind to Crusoe. He buys Robinson's boat,

all of his worldly goods, and Xury. At first the narrator is reluctant to

part with his servant, but the captain promises to free him in ten years if

he has turned Christian. As Xury finds this agreeable, Robinson allows the

exchange. The voyage to Brazil goes well. The narrator is recommended by

the captain to the house of an "honest man." This man lives on a

plantation, and Robinson lives with him for a while. Seeing how rich the

plantation owners are, he resolves to become a planter, and begins

purchasing much land. Once Robinson is planting, he becomes friendly with

Wells, his Portuguese neighbor. They slowly increase the diversity of their

stock. At this juncture Robinson regrets having sold Xury. He is in a trade

that he knows nothing about, and he has no one to talk to but the neighbor.

If he had listened to his father, he would have been comfortable at home.

Still, he is sustained by his augmenting wealth.

The captain returns and tells Robinson to give him a letter of

procuration so that he can bring the narrator half of the fortune he has

left with the English captain's widow. He returns not only with money, but

with a servant. Robinson is now infinitely richer than his neighbor, and

purchases a "Negro slave" and a "European servant." Each year he grows more

tobacco and thrives. But he is not completely happy with this life.

"Nature" and "Providence" stir him so that he is not content, and winds up

throwing himself into the pit of human misery once more. Having made

friends during his four year residence in Brazil, he has spoken much of

voyages to Guinea, where one can buy desirable items, but especially Negro

servants for plantation work. It is a highly restricted trade, though.

Three merchants come to him and say they want to buy the Negroes privately

for their own plantations. They ask if he will join and manage the trading

on Guinea. Ignoring the inner voice of his father, Robinson wholeheartedly

agrees to go. He makes the investing merchants promise they will look after

his plantation if he "miscarries." He boards the ship on the first of

September, eight years after he ran away from home.

Good weather lasts for a while, but then it turns stormy. One man dies

of sickness; a little boy is washed overboard. After 12 days it is clear

that the ship will not make it due to leakiness. They decide to try and

make it to Africa, where they can get assistance. For 15 days they sail,

and another storm hits. There is land in the distance, but they are afraid

it might be inhabited by savages who will eat them. The ship crashes into

sand, and the sea powerfully washes over it. They use their oars to edge

closer to shore, but their hearts are heavy because they know as soon as

they get there, the ship will be dashed to pieces and they will be

overtaken by the undercurrent and drowned. They have to at least try and

swim. Once they jump into the sea, Robinson has some good luck and is

helped to shore by a wave. He runs as the sea continues to chase him. The

water fights him, but he manages to land safely on shore. Robinson thanks

God for his deliverance. He looks around, sees nothing to help him, and

runs about like a madman until he falls asleep in a tree. The next day is

calm and sunny. The narrator now sees that if they had stayed on board, the

ship would have made it to land without being dashed. But the rest of the

company is dead, and Robinson grieves. He swims out to the ship and takes a

few pieces to build a raft. On this he loads the provisions, everything

from food to weaponry. Robinson looks about the island for a good place to

live and store his supplies. There are no people, only beasts. A tent

serves as his lodging. He makes a number of voyages to the ship in the next

few weeks and brings back everything salvageable. In order to guard against

possible savages, the narrator moves his tent near a cave with steep sides.

He sets up a home with cables and rigging. A hammock is his bed. He makes a

cave behind the tent to serve as a cellar. Discovering goats on the island,

Robinson goes out daily to kill his food. This leads to his making a

cooking area. When desolation threatens to overwhelm him, he forces himself

to remember the dead company, and how much better off he is. At the very

least he has housing and guns to kill food.

Part 3 Summary:

After having been there about 12 days, Robinson decides to keep a

calendar by marking a large wooden post. He is very happy to have some pen

and paper, three Bibles, two cats and a dog, all from the ship. The work

upon his home is tedious without proper tools, but he improvises. After

all, he has nothing else to occupy his time. To comfort himself the

narrator makes a list of pros and cons about his shipwreck. Ultimately he

decides to be joyous because God has delivered and provided for him. He is

raising a wall around his home. After about a year and a half, he has

rafters and a thatched roof. Robinson realizes there is nothing he wants

that he can't make: thus he creates entrance and exit to his home, table

and chairs that he might truly enjoy writing and reading. The narrator

begins a journal, in which he documents his initial misery, and all of his

tasks and duties that he performs in acclimating to the island. A scheduled

routine forms for his hunting and building. Every animal he kills, he keeps

the skins and hangs them as ornaments. Robinson goes about the business of

making chests to store his provisions, as well as tools such as a

wheelbarrow. The cave/cellar appears to be finished when a quantity of

earth falls from the ceiling; Crusoe repairs this. He builds storage

shelves to create "order within doors." A more solid fence begins to form

around his dwelling. The narrator takes frequent walks and discovers

pigeons, a very good meat. The darkness is his greatest annoyance; he

decides to make candles from the tallow of slaughtered goats. While

emptying sacks from the ship, Robinson shakes out come pieces of corn.

After the rains, husks of barley appear. The narrator is astounded and

thanks God. He manages to plant some rice as well.

Robinson builds a ladder to the entrance of his home. While in his

cave/cellar, an earthquake occurs and much of the walls crumble. He is

frightened and prays profusely. It rains violently. He resolves to move his

tent a bit to prevent untimely death from other earthquakes. Pieces of the

shipwreck wash up on shore. Robinson gathers them to use on his new home.

He finds a large tortoise that provides a good meal. Soon he falls ill and

has chills for many days. The narrator sleeps restlessly and has nightmares

about dark men coming to kill him. He reflects once more on how good God

has been to him, and assumes that this sickness is a punishment for not

realizing this goodness sooner. He regrets not listening to his father.

Robinson prays what he refers to as his "first prayer." He makes a homemade

remedy in the form of rum, tobacco and water. When his sickness grows worse

he wonders what he has done to deserve this. His conscience answers that he

has led a "dreadful misspent life." Robinson takes up reading the Bible. He

becomes better.

Part 4 Summary:

It takes some weeks for Robinson to recover his full strength. He

marvels at this deliverance from sickness. More serious reading of the

Bible commences. The narrator now looks at his past life with complete

horror. His thoughts are directed to a "higher nature." The rainy season is

dangerous to his health, so he spends little time walking about. Crusoe's

habitation is set; he feels that he wants to explore the rest of the

island. When the weather improves, he goes about and sees many meadows. He

also finds some tobacco growing. In the woods there is fruit growing in

great abundance, and a spring of fresh water. Robinson tries to being fruit

back, but he is gone so long it spoils. He resolves to try again. Returning

to his home, Crusoe finds that some of his grapes have been trod upon.

There must be wild creatures thereabouts. He hangs the remaining grapes to

dry them into raisins. Robinson loves the wilder part of the island so

dearly that he resumes his thoughts of a new habitation, and decides to

simply build another one and have two homes: a "sea coast house" and a

"country house." He finishes in time for the next rainy season. His cats

are breeding with wild cats on the island, so he is forced to kill some of

them, that his food supply is not entirely diminished. The year anniversary

of his arrival is unhappy. He prays again to God.

He has learned the rainy season from the dry season, and decides to

plant crops of rice and corn. The first crop is a good one, so Robinson

extends the arable land. He busies himself with the farming and with making

finer household items, like baskets. He moves frequently between his two

homes. His greatest desire at the moment is for a pipe. On an exceptionally

clear day, he spies a line of land, but he cannot be sure where it is. He

is sure, however, that the inhabitants are cannibalistic savages. He

discovers more animals on his rambles around the island. Many times the

narrator sleeps outdoors, in trees to protect himself. When he comes home,

however, he is always very happy. He has tamed a parrot and a young goat,

who follow him endlessly. The two year anniversary arrives, and it is still

solemn, but with much more joy in Robinson's heart. His desires in life are

completely altered. He decides he can be more happy in this existence than

in his previous one. Scripture reading is done daily and methodically. The

narrator finds that his crops are being eaten by birds. He shoots one and

uses it successfully as a scarecrow. The next goal is to try and make

bread. His parrot Poll now talks.

Robinson makes some very good pots and jars. He then forms a stone

mortar to beat the corn into meal, and a sieve to dress it. Over hot embers

he bakes the batter and gets corn bread. This new technique leads to an

enlargement of the barns, to hold more corn.

Part 5 Summary:

Robinson is growing curious about the land on the other side of the

island. He believes from there he might spot a mainland and obtain escape.

Yet he does not think about falling into the hands of savages. The narrator

wishes for Xury and the boat they sailed. He resolves to try and repair the

wrecked ship's boat, but it sinks repeatedly. He then decides to build his

own boat. Crusoe is unsure as to how he will get the boat off land, but

decides to worry about this later. In retrospect this is referred to as

"preposterous method" of work. The boat is well-made, but Robinson is

unable to get it to the water due to its weight. The only way is to build a

canal to the ocean, which will take a long while. The fourth anniversary

comes, and Crusoe observes it with respect, marveling that there is no

wickedness here. Ironically, all the money he has is worthless--he longs

for a tobacco pipe or a handmill. He reflects upon the goodness of

Providence, and spends much time remembering important dates in his life.

Robinson's clothes have begun to wither. He manages to use the skins

of creatures he has killed to make a "sorry shift." The skins keep him very

dry in the rain, so he decides to make an umbrella. He also makes another

boat, small enough that he can get it to the water. In the sixth year of

his "reign or captivity," he sets out on a voyage around the island. The

current is strong and sweeps him away from the island. Crusoe begins to

fear that he will not be able to return. Gradually the wind changes, and

the narrator immediately goes back to shore, drops to his knees, and thanks

God. He is able to reach his country house by nightfall. He is terribly

frightened to hear a voice calling his name, asking where he is, until he

sees it is the parrot Poll. For the next year Robinson lives a quiet,

sedate life. He perfects his carpentry skills and is able to make a wheel

tool to aid in his building. His powder supply is decreasing, so he begins

to set traps to catch the goats and have his own flock. Eleven years have

past. The goats provide him with milk, from which the narrator is able to

make butter and cheese. He now dines like a "king among his subjects."

Still the narrator longs to sail around the island, but he is afraid of

being swept away. Thus he decides to have a boat on either side of the

island. One day going to visit his boat, he spies a man's footprint near

it. Robinson is thunderstruck with fear: it must be a savage from nearby

lands. He wonders if there are on the island, if it is the mark of the

devil. His religious hope is abating. But the narrator resolves to let God

decide--if he is not to be delivered from the evil, so be it.

Part 6 Summary:

Robinson begins to think that he might have made the footprint

himself; this makes him bolder and he goes out again to milk his goats. But

he walks with incredible fear, always looking behind him. He concludes that

since he has not seen anyone in fifteen years, the people must come from

abroad in boats. He wants to hide himself even more, so he reinforces his

walls and plants groves of trees that develop into a forest in six years

time. He moves his goats to a more remote location and divides them into

two groups. Crusoe makes his way to the shore opposite to the one on which

he landed, and finds it littered with human bones. His fear of

cannibalistic savages is confirmed. He thanks God that he was not eaten and

that he is distinguished from these people whom he sees as abhorrent.

Gradually the narrator becomes comfortable again, but he is cautious about

firing his gun, and prefers to tend his livestock, so he does not have to

hunt. Aside from this, he sets his mind to other tasks, such as learning to

make beer.

Crusoe is not fearful but vengeful. He longs for the chance to hurt

these savages and save the victims. Several times he imagines the proper

mode of ambush and attack. He picks the exact sniper spots. A daily tour

commences to look out for approaching ships. He then steps back, however,

and wonders if it is his place to engage in violence with people who have

not done him any personal harm, and who are most likely killing prisoners

of war. Robinson debates with himself and concludes that he should leave

them to the justice of God. He continues his secluded life and is once more

thankful for his deliverance. Occasionally he is frightened by strange

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