robinson crusoe
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
Proper noun 1. The protagonist and title character of Daniel Defoe's 1719 novel: A fictional English sailor who becomes a castaway and spends 28 years on a remote island near the Caribbean, detailing his survival, self-reliance, and encounters with others, notably a native man he names Friday.
Usage Examples
- As the central character:
- In the story, Robinson Crusoe builds a shelter, hunts, and farms on the island.
- The novel focuses on Robinson Crusoe's psychological and spiritual development during his isolation.
- Referring to the novel itself:
- I am reading Robinson Crusoe for my literature class.
- The themes in Robinson Crusoe include colonialism and the human will to survive.
Advanced Usage
- As an archetype or symbol: The name is often used to symbolize a person who is isolated, self-sufficient, or a solitary survivor.
- After the network failure, the sysadmin felt like a modern Robinson Crusoe, cut off from the digital world.
- His cabin in the woods was his personal Robinson Crusoe fantasy.
Variants and Related Words
- Crusoe, Robinson (alternative ordering).
- Friday (noun): The character rescued and named by Crusoe, now commonly used to refer to a loyal assistant or companion.
- Crusoe-like (adjective): Resembling or characteristic of Robinson Crusoe, especially in terms of isolation and resourcefulness.
- He led a Crusoe-like existence in the remote cabin.
Synonyms
- Castaway
- Survivor
- Isolate (as a noun)
Related Idioms and Phrases
- A Robinson Crusoe situation: A circumstance where someone is or feels completely isolated and must rely on their own resources.
- The power outage left the village in a Robinson Crusoe situation for a week.
Noun
- the hero of Daniel Defoe's novel about a shipwrecked English sailor who survives on a small tropical island