Shaima Nima Mohammad
University of Karbala, Iraq
The study opens with an introduction that presents a background about the English novelist Daniel Defoe; his life and his style in writing Robinson Crusoe and the issues which he discusses in other novels. The introduction also tackles his remarkable achievements as he wrote about current religious causes, morals, and manners. Chapter One shows the concept of spirituality, its meanings, and its sources as far as this concept is related to religion and humanity as well. Robinson Crusoe consists many interpretations, one of which is that this novel should be read through a religious perspective and it should be regarded not merely as an adventurous story, but as a spiritual and moral novel in which man represented by Crusoe finds his way to God through faith and repentance. The study continues with Chapter Two which discusses spirituality in the novel by analyzing the plot including time, place, events, and characters. Crusoe’s character is the key to the door of spiritual survival since he lives a turbulent life and his suffering stems from the way how he should understand spirituality. Metaphorically speaking spirituality plays an important role in Crusoe’s journey of life. This journey raises several questions Crusoe’s existence. Experiencing despair and poverty is the reason behind Crusoe’s and people’s loss of faith. They have been spiritually imprisoned due to the psychological suffering in a society neglects its people’s needs. Finally, the study ends with the conclusion which sums up the ultimate result of reaching the path of spirituality. Robinson Crusoe is considered to be the first novel of incident. After a long journey of spiritual torture, Robinson Crusoe survives as he finds his destination and all answers that he needs. He is convinced that all of his calamities have resulted from disobeying God.
The above abstract is a part of the article which was accepted at The Third International Conference on Current Issues of Languages, Dialects and Linguistics (WWW.TLLL.IR), 31 January-1February 2019 , Ahwaz.
