The novel Robinson Crusoe was written by Daniel Defoe. It was written in 1719 and was first published on 25 April, 1719. The novel’s first edition credited the work’s protagonist Robinson Crusoe as the novel’s author. This lead many to believe that Robinson Crusoe was a real person and the book was a story of true events that happened in his life. This novel is very descriptive with every that happens in the book, so descriptive, in fact, that you can create a visual image in your brain of what is happening, it is like you are right there with him. I love that in a book, and I am sure that lots of people agree with me, maybe even you. (You can read my other paper on Robinson Crusoe called Robinson Crusoe, “How important for the narrative are the descriptions of the storms?”)

According to Wikipedia, “Daniel Defoe was an English writer, trader, journalist, pamphleteer and spy. He is most famous for his novel Robinson Crusoe, published in 1719, which is claimed to be second only to the Bible in its number of translations.” This is pretty impressive. Robinson Crusoe was Daniel Defoe’s greatest work, and many people believe it to be the second most translated book in the world. Apparently, he was a very good writer, and obviously people loved his book. It is also still widely read even today.

Now in the title, “Why did he take the coins off the ship?”, you may be asking yourself, “what coins?” Well, just in case you do not know what I am talking about, I am going to give a recap of what I have read.

In the beginning of the book, Robinson Crusoe leaves his home in search of adventure. Later, he is on a ship, sailing to a place where he can build a life, and a storm rolls in, and damages the ship, but does not sink it. Later, another storm comes in and sinks the ship, but Crusoe and some other people escape in lifeboats. Eventually they get rescued by another ship and this ship takes Crusoe and the crew to Brazil. Later into the book, Crusoe builds a plantation in Brazil and becomes very wealthy. Eventually, he listens to some people to go to Africa and get some slaves to bring back, and he says he would. On the course to Africa, another storm rolls in and maroons the ship a ways back from the shore of an island. Crusoe himself survives, everyone else dies. Crusoe then tries to empty the ship of everything useful so he can survive on the island, but he is worried when another storm comes and sinks the ship, along with everything on it. Crusoe then tries to empty the ship of everything useful before the next storm hits. About a little under a month later, he finally empties the ship of anything useful, and a storm comes that night, sinking the ship. Later in the book, the hull of the ship reappears, this time much closer to shore. He decides to explore the ship, and on it he finds some coins. He then decides not to take them because they would be useless on a deserted island, but then he had second thoughts, and takes the coins.

Why would he take useless coins to a deserted island? Maybe it was to melt them down to useful metal, or the help build something, or maybe even to barter a way off the island just in case a ship happens to find him. Whatever the reason, I do not know.