Reading 1001 discussion

Finished 22 June 2018. 2 stars.

My last of the Defoe books on the 1001 books list!

So, this book is nearly 300 years old. And it feels like it. The language is dated and took some getting used to. The scandals wouldn't be so scandalous (not that I would want to be friends with "Roxana") today. And today, Roxana would not have to struggle to avoid marriage to keep control of her wealth. Of course, today it is a lot harder to lose someone (or to be lost yourself), so many of Roxana's problems would never have happened n the first place.

So, it is what it is. I do wonder who read this book c1724. I can't believe it was women and families--or would Roxana's behavior not be seen as shocking as much as offensive? Or was this written for men to read in clubs, and to laugh with their friends about? I should look into this.

Rating: 3 stars


A bit of a far-fatched story about a woman who marries at a young age, has a bunch of kids, and is left penniless by her husband. She proceeds to have more lovers and more kids (honestly, I lost count), but manages to increase her station in life. There are a lot of similarities I see to both Fanny Hill and Moll Flanders.

I found the character of Roxana fascinating. I found myself liking her but she is a terrible mother who abandons all her children and goes to almost farcical lengths (literally) to avoid confirming she is the mother of the only one who is interested in knowing her. She is greedy, duplicitous and ambitious but still manages to arouse sympathy.

Her arguments against marriage ring very modern but the author did not hold them himself and supplies (rubbish) counter arguments through the character of the Dutch merchant. This is Defoe's most psychological novel and it does not always work.

The ending is grating from a modern perspective and hits falsely like that of Elizabeth Gaskell's Ruth does, for example. You would have to be very conservative to be outraged by Roxana's sexual escapades nowadays (the childrearing or rather, lack of, though!) Nowadays she would probably have her own reality show. Then, she got a rubbish ending.

I really enjoyed this book.