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

1. the hero of Daniel Defoe's novel about a shipwrecked English sailor who survives on a small tropical island