J.M. Coetzee's Foe

 Thinking Activity: Foe

This blog is in response to Yesha Bhatt madam's thinking activity task. In this blog, I will describe/answer the questions about this task centred on J. M. Coetzee's novel Foe.

How would you differentiate the character of Cruso and Crusoe?

In his novel, Foe, J. M. Coetzee tells the story of a woman named Susan Barton who was stranded on an island with her young daughter. There, she meets a man named Cruso who has been living on the island for years. Cruso is a very different character from the Cruso in Daniel Defoe's The Robinson Crusoe.

The Cruso in Coetzee's novel is a much more melancholy figure. He has been living on the island for years and has given up hope of ever being rescued. He has made peace with his situation and has come to accept his solitude. In contrast, the Crusoe in Defoe's novel is much more optimistic. He believes that he will be rescued and is always looking for ways to improve his situation.

The difference between the two characters is evident in their attitudes toward life. The Cruso in Coetzee's novel is resigned to his fate, while the Crusoe in Defoe's novel is determined to make the best of it.

The Cruso character in J.M. Coetzee's novel is a much more complex and enigmatic figure than the Crusoe character in Daniel Defoe's novel. In Coetzee's novel, Cruso is a mysterious and seemingly omniscient figure who guides the protagonist, Friday, through a series of challenges and trials. Cruso is also a far more sympathetic and compassionate character than his counterpart in Defoe's novel.

It is generally accepted that Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe is based on the true story of Scottish sailor Alexander Selkirk, who was marooned on an uninhabited island off the coast of Chile for four years. However, there are several key ways in which the character of Cruso in J.M. Coetzee's novel differs from Defoe's Crusoe.

For one, Cruso in Coetzee's novel is significantly more passive than his counterpart in Defoe's novel. Selkirk was a real-life action hero, engaging in daring rescue missions and leading the fight against pirates, while Cruso in Coetzee's novel is content to sit on the beach and contemplate life. This is likely due to the fact that Selkirk was younger when he was marooned, while Cruso is an older man when we meet him in Coetzee's novel.

Another key difference is that Cruso in Coetzee's novel is much more reflective and introspective than Crusoe in Defoe's novel. This is likely due to the fact that Coetzee's novel is set many years after Selkirk's marooning, while Defoe's novel is set during Selkirk's time on the island. As such, Cruso has had much more time to contemplate life and his place in the world.

Finally, Cruso in Coetzee's novel is much more accepting of death than Crusoe in Defoe's novel. This is likely due to the fact that, as an older man, Cruso has come to accept that death is a natural part of life. In contrast, Crusoe in Defoe's novel is much more scared of death and is constantly trying to find ways to avoid it.

Friday’s characteristics and persona in Foe and in Robinson Crusoe.

There are many similarities between Robinson Crusoe and Friday, the two main characters in Daniel Defoe’s novels. Both are stranded on islands, both are saved by the other, and both have a strong sense of loyalty and friendship. However, there are also some key differences between the two.

Friday is much more of a simple character than Robinson Crusoe. He does not have the same level of education or sophistication, and he is not as resourceful. Robinson Crusoe is able to build himself a shelter and find food and water, whereas Friday is completely dependent on Crusoe for survival.

Friday is also very religious, whereas Crusoe is not. This is likely due to the fact that Friday is from a native tribe, and Crusoe is from England. Friday’s religion is a key part of his character, and he is shown to be very faithful and devout.

Overall, Friday is a very loyal and helpful friend to Robinson Crusoe, but he is not as independent or clever as Crusoe is. This makes for an interesting dynamic between the two characters and helps to create a sense of suspense and adventure in the novel.

Write an article on the difference between Friday’s characteristics and persona in Foe and in Robinson Crusoe

When Crusoe is shipwrecked on an uninhabited island, he finds that he is quite Tarzan-like and must teach himself how to survive. In order to do this, he makes himself a little home and learns how to cultivate the land. He also rescues a feral child, whom he names Friday, and teaches him English and Christianity. Friday is very grateful to Crusoe and is fiercely loyal to him.

In J.M. Coetzee's Foe, the title characterFridayis a very different sort of figure. He is the plaything of the ruthless pirate leader, Captain Crusoe. Friday is mostly silent and does what he is told without question. He is also quite childlike, which allows Crusoe to manipulate and abuse him. When Crusoe is eventually rescued, Friday is left behind on the island.

While both Friday figures are ultimately loyal to Crusoe, they couldn't be more different in terms of personality and character. In Robinson Crusoe, Friday is portrayed as a noble Savage who, through Crusoe's tutelage, becomes a civilized Christian. In Foe, Friday is a victim who is permanently scarred by his experience with Crusoe. Which Friday do you think is more interesting and complex?

Personally, I find Friday in Foe to be more interesting because of the mystery surrounding his character. We never really know why he is so loyal to Crusoe or what goes on inside his head. The Friday in Robinson Crusoe is a bit more one-dimensional and is simply a vehicle for Crusoe's self-aggrandizement.

Is Susan reflecting the white mentality of Crusoe (Robinson Crusoe)?

There is no denying that Susan Barton, the protagonist of J.M. Coetzee's novel "Foe", is a white woman. She is English and was raised in a time when English were the dominant force in the world. It is no surprise, then, that Barton displays many of the same mentalities as her contemporaries when it comes to race. She is incredibly naïve, and her views on the native people she encounters are incredibly paternalistic. She sees them as children who need to be taught, and she is more than happy to be the one who does the teaching. Barton is also very self-righteous, and she has a very difficult time understanding why the natives do not want to accept her help. In her mind, she is only trying to help them, and she does not understand why they would not want to be helped. All of these traits are reflective of the white mentality of the time, and Barton is very much a product of her environment.

While Barton's views on race are certainly reflective of the white mentality of her time, it is important to note that she is not a bad person. She is only doing what she knows, and she genuinely believes that she is helping the people she encounters. In many ways, Barton is a victim of her own ignorance, and she is not intentionally trying to harm anyone. Her views are outdated and offensive, but they are not evil.

It is important to remember that Barton is not the only character in "Foe" who displays the white mentality of the time. Crusoe, the other main character in the novel, is also very much a product of his environment. He is also naïve and self-righteous, and he has a just as difficult time understanding the native people he encounters. However, Crusoe is ultimately a good person, and he is able to see past his own prejudices and learn from his mistakes. He is able to connect with the natives in a way that Barton never could, and he ultimately helps them more than she ever could.

While Barton is certainly a reflection of the white mentality of her time, she is not the only character in the novel who is. Crusoe is also a reflection of the time period he lived in, but he is ultimately a good person who is able to learn and grow from his experiences.

Throughout J.M. Coetzee’s Foe, the character of Susan Barton is consistently portrayed as a symbol of the white, Western mindset. Even before Susan Barton makes her first appearance in the novel, she is described by Crusoe as “an emblem of all that [he] had lost” (Coetzee, 42). This immediately sets her up as an opposing force to Crusoe, who has been stranded on a deserted island for 28 years.

As the story progresses, it becomes clear that Susan Barton is unable to see the world from anything other than a Western perspective. She is baffled by the fact that Crusoe speaks English fluently, but has never heard of Shakespeare or the Bible (Coetzee, 50). She also refuses to believe that Crusoe has been living on the island for 28 years, insisting that he must have come from a shipwreck like herself. In her mind, there is no way that someone could survive on an island without Western amenities and comforts.

This is in stark contrast to Crusoe, who has managed to not only survive but thrive on the island. He has built himself a shelter, cultivated a garden, and even tamed a wild animal. In short, Crusoe has made the best of a bad situation. Susan Barton, on the other hand, is completely unable to adapt to her new surroundings. She is miserable and longs for her old life in England.

In the end, Susan Barton’s inability to see beyond her own Western perspective ultimately leads to her downfall. She stubbornly refuses to believe that Crusoe could be anything other than an Englishman lost at sea, and this close-mindedness ultimately gets her killed. Crusoe, on the other hand, is able to embrace the fact that he is now “a man of the island” (Coetzee, 100). He has come to accept his new way of life and is all the better for it.

Coetzee, J. M. Foe. Toronto: Penguin Books, 1986.

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