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The term Robinsonade denotes a literary subgenre that is named after Daniel Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe (1719). It refers to imitations and adaptations of Defoe’s castaway narrative as well as, more loosely, to variations on the desert island trope. We begin with Robinson Crusoe but then move on to the second half of the 20th-century to explore how modern authors use this narrative to address both specific problems and more general ones. We will finalize the reading list together at the first meeting, but I suggest that we include Ballard’s novel Concrete Island (1974), Derek Walcott’s play Pantomime (1978) and J M Coetzee’s Foe (1986). We might also watch the film Cast Away (2000).
As there are many more Robinsonades than we could possibly read in one term the course will include some project work. Depending on your interests you will prepare a short presentation on a literary work / film / series. Literary options include Ballantyne’s 19th-century adventure novel The Coral Island, William Golding’s The Lord of the Flies (1954), Marianne Wiggins’ John Dollar (1988), Sam Selvon’s Moses Ascending (1975) and also works in other languages. |
