Defoe as the first published author

Why was Daniel Defoe considered the 'First published author':

What of those that came before him?

By Jennifer Richards

In this essay I will be analysing various authors, male and female including Defoe and their published work, specifically female authors published before his time, I will be comparing the difference in their work, discussing the literary cultural production and deciphering whether or not this is a gender issue. In the early days of literary publication it is known that there has been a constant struggle for female authors and their credibility has always come into question, why is it then, that a male writer was to be considered the first published author, if there were a number of published works that predated his written and were written by women and can this be looked at as a feminist issue? I will also be analysing why the title of 'First published author' was awarded to Daniel Defoe specifically when authors such as Aphra Behn and William Shakespeare had their work published prior to Defoe's lifetime. 

To begin with we will look at the author in question, as a man who is not unfamiliar with the struggles and hard times that befell many authors and merchants in the 17^th century, Daniel Defoe's acclaim as an author when many others were overlooked cannot be solely chalked down to cultural privilege. Women were not the sole members of society looked down upon or oppressed during that time, the working class, poverty stricken members, male and female were all familiar with the limitations throughout their society. Defoe illustrates his experiences both with liberty or lack thereof, evidently this shows that no matter what your gender is, your role in society is not fixed, nor is your freedom or oppression:

"In Prison I have learnt to know that Liberty does not consist in open Doors, and the free Egress and Regress of Locomotion. I have seen the rough side of the World as well as the smooth, and have in less than half a Year tasted the difference between the Closet of a King, and the Dungeon of Newgate."

It is true that many of Defoe's hard ships and his lack of freedom were self inflicted due to his debt, however whether or not this debt was avoidable and was only brought about by poor life choices is not certain. To say that Defoe is recognised as the first published author cannot be entirely down to male privilege, though that may have been a contributing factor. In fact it was because of his exercise of freedom of speech, his rhetorical pamphlet that he lost his civil freedom for a while. Perhaps he was not part of the oppressed but it can be said with certainty he was not afforded the luxury of cultural freedom for most of his life, either literally or in the face of heavy criticism. Considering the discontent one of his pieces spread throughout the country it's likely he would have had to work even harder to earn the credibility of a published author later on in life. His poem 'a hymn to the pillory' perfectly summarises the struggle with creative freedom many artists, poets and authors faced by exercising creative expression: 

"Actions receive their tincture from the times,
And as they change are virtues made of crimes." 

We have to consider that this title is not intended literally as there were many authors, male and female, with published works prior to his time. The most notable is of course William Shakespeare, why is it then that such a title be awarded to an author that, despite his vast contribution to literature, could not match the contributions of Shakespeare, who is known for almost completely shaping the English language. Though he did spark controversy, as many of his plays were known to have questioned the role of Queen Elizabeth and furthermore question the stability of society with a female ruler, Shakespeare himself managed to adhere to traditional societal constructs and cast himself as a patriarchal figure, even regarding his inclusion of the occult in his work. Is it perhaps that his work primarily as a dramatist and poet as opposed to a novelist cast him in a light unfitting for the title of first published author? Or is it, like Aphra Behn that such a title was too limiting? The impact shakespeare has on the literary community especially in regards to its development and evolution has made him one of the most profound authors throughout history, throughout his life he was primarily a play-write, unlike Aphra Behn and Daniel Defoe he had little active involvement in other areas however the footprint he left has reached far beyond that point. It could also be seen from a more literal stand point, although his works were published prior to Defoe, his area of expertise was more geared toward his work being performed as opposed to being recognised as a body of published work. 

To help answer this more expansively we look to Robinson Crusoe, one of his most highly acclaimed pieces. Known for being one of the first of its kind to employ realistic characters using simple prose as well as illustrating man's inherent need for civilisation or the inevitability of cultural evolution, simultaneous with independence and liberty. As Bamber Gascoigne describes it: 

“Defoe created a realistic frame for the novel, which distinguished it from its predecessors. The account of a shipwrecked sailor was a comment both on the human need for civilized society and the equally powerful necessity for individual freedom. But it also offered a dream of building a private kingdom, a self-made Utopia, and being completely self-sufficient, without any political, social or religious constraints.”

Even the notion of the utopia rings true of basic human nature; the yearning for peace, beauty, safety and freedom, an implausible construct invented by mankind that exists solely in our minds, indefinitely sought after and never achieved. It could be said that the critical message and relate-ability of this literary classic is what awarded him the title he carries to this day. A title clearly not intended in a literal sense but something earned through the importance of ones work and how it relates to society. It is also not entirely a question of quality of work; perhaps the relevance to humanity Robinson Crusoe had was the difference between that and the work of other authors, particularly Aphra Behn and Shakespeare. The work of the latter detracted itself from reality to an extent that either wrought comedic affect or brought about dream like themes. Despite the very clear messages behind his work and how that pertains to society, the way in which his fiction was segregated from reality could have been what differentiated his work from the work of Defoe. Furthermore Daniel Defoe's novel Robinson Crusoe takes us back to almost indigenous values and the very early stages of humanity and civilisation, his work often centralised around humanity as a whole, be it in his economic journalism, his religious pamphlets, travel logs and mercantile documents, even his natural tendency to go back and forth between different perspectives or moral standpoints rings true to the nature of humanity and this was evident in his work. His work presented a very raw and early picture of the psychology or behaviours of our species, reminding us of how, despite our advancements, we are all still primitive at heart. Could it be said that it was this present theme in his written work that won him the title of 'First published author'? Is it that he was the first to publish work that illustrated humanity as a whole and could the title be looked at as “first published author of humanity”? The first few lines of 'True born English-man' are a perfect example of the way in which he discussed and challenged human behaviour: 

“Wherever God erects a house of prayer,
The devil always builds a chapel there:
And 'twill be found upon examination,
The latter has the largest congregation.”

A notable author worth looking at to further analyse the question was Aphra Behn, a profound and highly revered writer, when considering her acclaim and contributions to literary society, what reasons other than unfair gender roles enforced against female authors that diminished their credibility within the literary community, despite their contributions, can be drawn from this? To limit oneself to such a conclusion without proper analysation would be to discredit the work of a huge number of authors, even though through naming Daniel Defoe as the first published author he is cast as the face of 17th-18^th century literature and this sets a standard, reinforcing a patriarchal power in the written community in the eyes of the public and as such making it harder for women to create their literary footprint. Defoe was by no means privileged in his upbringing and living standards, however being a prolific male author he already maintained an unfair advantage. Perhaps despite its simplicity, gender can be considered a contributing factor.

Aphra Behn has previously claimed that she believes her work would have received less scrutiny and criticism had it been written by a man, it is no secret that the work women produced was often discredited, ignored or held to a higher standard than the work of men, earning a living or voicing opinions that didn't coincide with the standards women were expected to uphold was considered controversial, taboo or scandalous, subsequently this automatically meant that female authors were not taken as seriously or were held up to higher scrutiny. This double standard has hindered the women of the literary community back to a fault, authors such as Behn were overlooked because of this. Being the first woman in England to identify herself as a professional writer, Aphra Behn has been noted for her controversial role in literary and cultural society. Steering herself away from the traditional role of a woman, her work both in writing and as a spy has earned her national interest and the way in which she forever alludes biographical analysation of historians increases the mystery behind this woman. She has been immortalised throughout history as a feminist icon, as Virginia Woolf famously stated “All women together ought to let flowers fall upon the tomb of Aphra Behn, for it was she who earned them the right to speak their minds”. Many believed Behn to have been a hero for women's rights and the example she set inspired fire in the hearts of women everywhere to find their voice. Could her lack of adherence to society's standards for both men and women be the crutch to her being recognised as the first published author? Some would recognise this to be a feminist issue and perhaps to some degree it was, it is easy to write this off as being a result of a misogynistic civilisation, yet in doing so you are looking solely at the authors, not the body of work they produced nor the way in which it effected society. To say that Aphra Behn was not awarded the title of 'First published author' because she was a woman is to ignore the work of so many other prolific writers including her own. Perhaps it was not her gender but the way in which she chose to live out her life that caused the title to befall someone else. No doubt Daniel Defoe's livelihood was far from the status quo, however even as a man who sequestered both controversy and acclaim unto his character, Defoe was unable to match the reputation given to Aphra Behn. The lack of information on Behn's life as well as the enigma like quality that she maintained, when added to her rebellion against traditional values and the way of life she chose, this could be the reason she never earned the title of 'First published author'. The title itself carries a stable, finite connotation to the nature of work accompanying said title, which seems unfitting or even limiting to Behn's accomplishments, Daniel Defoe was known primarily for his work as an author, Aphra Behn however was known for her character, not just her talents or literary prowess. 

To say this was a gender issue would seem too simplistic, there are far too many characteristics of authors or external factors to write this off as being the result of unfair gender standards against female authors. When comparing Defoe and Behn, both had fairly similar lifestyles and bodies of work, however, the qualities of these authors or how they were recognised in society, both then and now, contributes to the roles given to them as historical figures. As stated before, Daniel Defoe's primary role in history was as a writer, though that certainly wasn't all he was noted for, his published works played the biggest role and we remember him more for his written word than for his character or other accomplishments, yet Aphra Behn played a bigger or at least more eclectic part. Her work as a play-write and poet was undoubtedly groundbreaking in regards to politics however as she has expanded beyond this her work as a writer was not the only part of her life worth noting. 

If gender was to be the sole reason behind female writers being overlooked for the title of 'first published author', then we have to imagine the work of Daniel Defoe being carried by his masculinity, this being subjective depending on how you look at it, however it is hard to believe he could have earned his place in history based on just that. As previously stated, there is no doubt gender was a contributing factor, not only to the prerequisite criteria for such a role but also to how we look at the work of various authors, were it not for this many female writers would have published their work with their real names tied to it, instead of choosing anonymity or a male pseudonym. In the end a contributing factor is the extent to which this effects how their work is viewed, we also have to consider that this title has remained consistent throughout history and up to modern day in which female authors are given just as much value as their male counterparts. Lastly this is too broad a factor and overlooks many important details of their work as well as how they changed the literary world. Aphra Behn's style of writing and her character simply don't fit the role given to Defoe, though they bear similarities in their work and lifestyles the result of said lifestyles garnered very different reactions and points of view. Daniel Defoe was in fact the first published author to include realistic characters and his use of prose was like none before it, it encapsulated human spirit at its most organic form and his entire collection of work coupled with the way he went about working can be viewed today as an early map to the inner-workings of our genus. William Shakespeare was to play a different role in society, though his work taught us important values about human behaviour and civilisation his focus was more satirical and advanced, looking more toward political values and cultural constructs as opposed to basic human behaviour. His style of writing followed a theme of fantasy, the examples of humanity and emotions we see in his work are somewhat melodramatic, which further divorces his work from reality and his use of comedy, the occult, magic or dream like sequences paint a picture too elaborate to be appropriately associated with the way our species works. So to conclude, after having discussed and analysed the various possibilities as to why Daniel Defoe holds the title of 'First published author' it is safe to say we can rule out this being entirely an issue of unfair gender standards. To write it off as such ignores the brilliance of Aphra Behn's accomplishments, it identifies and limits her to being just another female author and she has reached high acclaim in spite of this, it also ignores the work of Shakespeare, for if this were a gender issue and nothing else why then was he overlooked, being a male that advocated the patriarchy, lastly it insinuates the work of Daniel Defoe as being prominent due to his gender. This brings us to the possibility that, as prestigious a title as it is, it was either unfitting or too limiting to apply to William Shakespeare or Aphra Behn, they played a different role in history and their prowess exceeded being known for just that. Their work centralised around alternate themes and addressed other issues not pertaining to the work of Daniel Defoe. In summation, the key word in the title being “First”, Defoe was the first published author to write in a way that regards and contests basic human behavioural patterns, the psychology behind building societies and civilisations as well as the birth of human culture, though there are many other contributing factors toward this title as previously discussed, the primary reason must be the precise and raw nature of his written work and the impact that left on the society he both challenged and integrated into. 

References

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Poetryfoundation.org, (n.d.). Aphra Behn : The Poetry Foundation. [online] Available at: http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/aphra-behn [Accessed 19 Dec. 2014].

Speck, B. (2001). The life and opinions of Daniel Defoe. 1st ed. [ebook] Northumbria: H-Albion, pp.1, 2. Available at: http://www.h-net.org/reviews/showpdf.php?id=5649 [Accessed 19 Dec. 2014].

Watt, I. (1960). Daniel Defoe (1660-1731) as a novelist by Ian Watt. [online] Ourcivilisation.com. Available at: http://www.ourcivilisation.com/smartboard/shop/defoed/novel.htm [Accessed 19 Dec. 2014].

Williams, A. and O'Connor, K. (n.d.). [podcast] Who is Aphra Behn?. Available at: http://writersinspire.podcasts.ox.ac.uk/content/who-aphra-behn [Accessed 19 Dec. 2014].