Robinsonade () is a literary genre of fiction wherein the protagonist is suddenly separated from civilization, usually by being shipwrecked or marooned on a secluded and uninhabited island, and must improvise the means of their survival from the limited resources at hand. The genre takes its name from the 1719 novel Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe. The success of this novel spawned so many imitations that its name was used to define a genre, which is sometimes described simply as a "desert island story" or a "castaway narrative".
The word "robinsonade" was coined by the German writer Johann Gottfried Schnabel in the Preface of his 1731 work Die Insel Felsenburg (The Island Stronghold). It is often viewed as a subgenre of survivalist fiction. Already in Simplicius Simplicissimus (1668) by Hans Jakob Christoffel von Grimmelshausen the shipwrecked protagonist lives alone on an island.
Common themes
Common themes of Robinsonade works include the protagonists being in a state of isolation (e.g. on a desert island or an uninhabited planet), a new beginning for the work's characters, self-reflection as a plot point, contact with indigenous peoples or extraterrestrial life and social commentary.
Utopianism
Unlike Thomas More's Utopia and romantic works which depicted nature as idyllic, Crusoe made it unforgiving and sparse. The protagonist survives by his wits and the qualities of his cultural upbringing, which also enable him to prevail in conflicts with fellow castaways or over local peoples he may encounter. However, he manages to wrest survival and even a certain amount of civilisation from the wilderness. Works that followed went both in the more utopian direction (The Swiss Family Robinson) and the dystopian direction (Lord of the Flies).
Inverted Crusoeism
The term inverted Crusoeism was coined by English writer J. G. Ballard. The paradigm of Robinson Crusoe has been a recurring topic in Ballard’s work. Whereas the original Robinson Crusoe became a castaway against his own will, Ballard's protagonists often choose to maroon themselves; hence inverted Crusoeism (e.g., Concrete Island). The concept provides a reason as to why people would deliberately maroon themselves on a remote island; in Ballard’s work, becoming a castaway is as much a healing and empowering process as an entrapping one, enabling people to discover a more meaningful and vital existence.
Examples
One of the best known robinsonades is The Swiss Family Robinson (1812–27) by Johann David Wyss, in which a shipwrecked clergyman, his wife, and his four sons manage not only to survive on their island but also to discover the good life. Jules Verne strands his castaways in Mysterious Island (1874) with only one match, one grain of wheat, a metal dog collar, and two watches.
Robinsonade proper
The robinsonade proper also contains the following themes: Progress through technology A storyline following the triumphs and the rebuilding of civilisation Economic achievement Unfriendliness of nature
Science fiction robinsonade
Genre SF robinsonades naturally tend to be set on uninhabited planets or satellites rather than islands. The Moon is the location of Ralph Morris's proto-SF The Life and Wonderful Adventures of John Daniel (1751), and of John W Campbell Jr's paean to human inventiveness, The Moon is Hell (1950). A classic example of an SF robinsonade which has all the elements of the robinsonade proper is Tom Godwin's The Survivors, as well as J. G. Ballard's Concrete Island. A more recent example is Andy Weir's 2011 The Martian. Joanna Russ' We Who Are About To... (1977) is a radical feminist objection to the entire genre.
Sears List of Subject Headings recommends that librarians also catalog apocalyptic fiction —such as Cormac McCarthy's popular novel The Road, or even Robert A. Heinlein's Starship Troopers—as robinsonades.
Film
Mr. Robinson Crusoe is the 1932 updating of the story where Douglas Fairbanks Sr. maroons himself on an uninhabited island for a year to win a bet.
Robinson Crusoe (1954 film) is the 1954 adventure film directed by Luis Buñuel, with Dan O'Herlihy in the title role.
Robinson Crusoe on Mars is the 1964 story of the survivor of a space ship crash on the planet Mars.
Lt. Robin Crusoe, U.S.N. is the 1966 comedic retelling, featuring a US Navy pilot and a chimpanzee astronaut named Floyd.
Robinson Crusoe (1972) is the 1972 Russian film (Odessa film Studio) with Leonid Kuravlyov in the title role, and music by Antonio Vivaldi.
Enemy Mine is the SF story of a human and enemy alien who crash land on a barren planetoid and eventually cooperate to survive.