Rewriting Crusoe: The Robinsonade across Languages, Cultures, and Media

Published in 1719, Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe is one of those extraordinary literary works whose importance lies not only in the text itself but in its persistently lively afterlife. German author Johann Gottfried Schnabel - who in 1731 penned his own island narrative - coined the term ‘Robinsonade’ to characterize the genre bred by this classic, and today hundreds of examples can be identified worldwide. This celebratory collection of tercentenary essays testifies to the Robinsonade’s endurance, analyzing its various literary, aesthetic, philosophical, and cultural implications in historical context. Contributors trace the Robinsonade’s roots from the eighteenth century to generic affinities in later traditions, including juvenile fiction, science fiction, and apocalyptic fiction, and finally to contemporary transmedial adaptations in film, television, theater, and popular culture. Taken together, these essays convince us that the genre’s formal and ideological adaptability to changing social and cultural circumstances explains its enduring relevance to this day.