The Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Famous Moll Flanders

Description

The Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Famous Moll Flanders by Daniel Defoe, simply known as Moll Flanders is one of the author’s most complex and most challenging texts. One of the major themes of the novel is the discussion of women’s roles in 18th century British society, but through it Defoe formulates a critical view of contemporary society as a whole as well.

The story begins before Moll is born. Her mother is a convict in London whose execution is halted because she is with child. The woman is eventually sent to America where she gives birth to a baby girl – Moll. The child is raised by foster parents, then she finds work as a servant in a household with two boys, both of whom woo her. She marries one of them and has children, but her husband dies soon, so Moll leaves her kids with her in-laws and goes away trying to find a wealthy man who would marry her. She marries a tradesman and has children, but her husband goes bankrupt and flees to Europe. She marries again, this time a kind gentleman in Virginia. She eventually finds out that the woman she believes to be her mother in law is in fact her birth mother, so she dissolves the marriage and returns to England to find a new husband.

She starts a relationship with a married man and has more children, but the man decides to return to his wife. Moll finds herself another lover, a man about to divorce his unfaithful wife, but while waiting for the divorce to be finalized, she seduces another man, marries again and has another child, too. The marriage ends with the husband’s bankruptcy and death and Moll becomes a thief, which brings her the financial security she has been looking for. She is caught stealing and is sentenced to death, but she repents and is sent to the Colonies instead where she lives a humble life. She returns to England eventually and lives a life of repentance until her death.
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