![]() ![]() This is especially likely if they are trapped in a Lost World.Īudiences have long been used to the kind of Robinsonade stories that hardly ever go into detail as to what exactly being stranded on a deserted island implies and what you need to do in order to survive. Characters may be forced to deal with some sort of strange phenomenon, such as Eldritch Abominations, dinosaurs, mutant man-eating shrews, or mutant animal human hybrids. While many such works try to depict nature in a realistic manner, others delve into the realm of Speculative Fiction. In Science Fiction, a deserted planet or Lost Colony can be substituted for the island. ![]() Any sufficiently isolated Wild Wilderness will do, such as a desert or arctic region. However, the location need not be an island. The island serves to keep the characters on it trapped, allowing attempts to get off the island (by building a boat, constructing a signal bonfire, etc) to move the story forward. The Deserted Island is the archetypical setting of such stories. Another variation is to have the location inhabited by natives, who can be either hostile or helpful. If a group of characters are marooned together, the Robinsonade allows for a variety of interpersonal interactions. Additional conflicts can also be introduced. Sometimes the characters are already skilled survivors before they become marooned, but more often they are forced to undergo a difficult learning process full of Character Development. If it's a nice enough place, and the right kind of person, they may decide they don't even want to be rescued. Depending on the work, the characters might find themselves in a bountiful paradise or an exceptionally hostile environment. How easy this survival is depends on the location and the skill level of the person stranded. Sometimes they succeed in style, turning their desolate location into a taste of paradise sometimes they fail, descending into a pit of savagery. The characters are forced to battle for survival. The term was coined in 1731 by the German writer Johann Gottfried Schnabel in the Preface of his work Die Insel Felsenburg.Īt its heart, the Robinsonade is a Man vs. Robinsonade takes its name from the 1719 novel Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe, which spawned enough imitations that its name was used to define a genre. A Robinsonade is a plot about characters being stranded in the wilderness far away from civilization, and forced to live off the land in order to survive. ![]()
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