Morals
The main themes of Defoe's Roxana are morals and economics. These
two are causally and conceptually related: while moral issues pervade the
entire work, literally down to the last sentence, Roxana and her maid's morals
are constantly compromised for money. Amy's dictum in life—“comply, survive;
defy, die”—is something both women followed. At first, Roxana decides to become
her landlord's mistress because her husband has abandoned her, leaving her
destitute and in utter poverty. But her later decisions to give her body for
considerable sums of money, stocks and property are obviously motivated by
greed and ambition.
But Defoe was considerably more complex than what one would expect from a
pragmatic entrepreneur in the early eighteenth century. The plots of
Roxana are arranged so that the title character's behavior is arguably
justifiable. She comes close to annihilation when abandoned by her husband and
she resolves to never let herself be financially vulnerable again. Having made
herself a fortune, courtesy of two lovers, she would never again hand over her
finances—and her freedom—to a husband. Financial security becomes an obsession
for Roxana. Once she is able to successfully negotiate the transactions with
her first keeper—her landlord—subtly seducing him with her charm, wit and
sexuality, she is on a set course to prosperity. Throughout her dealings with
men—the landlord, the French nobleman, and the Dutch tradesman—Roxana is never
under any illusion that she is behaving morally. In fact, through her many
ruminations and self-criticism, she continuously reminds herself that she is “a
whore.”
Self-reflection on moral issues and repentance seems to be an important aspect
in all Defoe’s narratives. Robinson Crusoe, who had gone to the ill-fated sea
voyage against his family’s wishes, bemoans his lack of obedience and asks
forgiveness from God many times. But Roxana, who also has the capacity for
self-reflection on moral matters nevertheless is able to give perfectly logical
reasons to justify her actions. If Milton justifies the ways of God to men in
Paradise Lost, Defoe seems to be justifying the ways of women to God. Time and
time again, Roxana confronts the moral implications of her actions. The power
of her reasoning to defend herself is impressive, especially because she
invariably ends up admitting her moral liability, but insists that in her
society, with the problems a woman faces, there is no other way: comply and
survive; defy, die.
The moral issue in Roxana can be further subdivided into the following
categories: sex, marriage, and motherhood. Once again, like a typical early
Augustan writer, these concepts are conceptually and rationally
interrelated.
Sex
It was Bonamy Dobree, an eminent scholar and critic of eighteenth-century
English literature who first commented on the extraordinary treatment of sex in
Roxana . According to Dobree, it borders toward the erotic. Interestingly, Defoe must have been well aware of the erotic passages. He wanted to be truthful to the history of this woman he was writing about, he says in the preface. “If there are any parts in her story, which being obliged to relate a wicked action, seem to describe it too plainly, the writer says, all imaginable care has been taken to keep clear of indecencies and immodest expressions; and it is hoped that you will find nothing to prompt a vicious mind, but everywhere much to discourage and expose it.” Still, the author seems troubled about the erotic nature of parts of this book. Toward the end of the preface, he puts the blame squarely on the reader: “Scenes of crime can scarce be represented in such a a manner...
(This entire section contains 323 words.)
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but some may make a criminal use of them....If the reader makes a wrong use of the figures, the wickedness is his own.”
So, at least in purpose, sex in Roxana has a moral intention. The
protagonist, when a handsome, intelligent woman of fifteen, chooses a handsome
man, the son of a brewer, for a husband she does so because she is attracted to
him sexually. After marrying him, however, the bottom falls off, as it were.
She is abandoned and thrust toward annihilation. The husband is declared a fool
– literally – by his wife and she and her maid plot to ensnare the landlord who
is hugely attracted to her. The long discussions regarding the morals of
selling one’s body for shelter and survival make for interesting reading as
Amy, the smart, bright and intelligent maidservant, convinces Roxana that she
should be a mistress to the landlord. Thus, in Roxana’s world, love and sex
eschew marriage.
Marriage
When Roxana is next confronted with the proposal of marriage, years
afterward, when she has already been a seasoned mistress to three different
men, she flatly turns him down saying that she would never again be a wife to
anyone. The long discussion that follows, creating an interesting debate on
whether women of fortune should marry for the sake of security.
The discussion begins when the lovers, Roxana and the Dutch tradesman, are in
bed and the man asks her why she refuses to be his wife, why, if she has given
him her most intimate gift, she refuses to make him “her own.” Roxana replies
simply: she does not want to lose her liberty; no other reason. The tradesman,
however, genuinely loves her and is not willing to accept such a simple answer.
In the end, he broaches the sensitive question: is it because Roxana thinks
that by marrying him she would have to give up her wealth to him? He promises
her this will not be the case. He would not lay claim to one pistole of her
earnings and that she would be free to bequeath her money to whomever she
wished.
Roxana is silenced by this question. Indeed, it is true. She is nothing if she
was not a complex woman, capable of intricate thoughts and deep
self-reflection. Quickly, she realizes that if she admits the truth, she could
seem as an entirely unscrupulous woman, one who would rather give up her virtue
and expose herself naked to a man than give up her money. No, she could never
admit to that. So she takes another route.
There upon follows a long argument between the two. The man insists that she
would not lose her freedom, but Roxana is a realist. She believes his sincerity
but cannot ignore what really happens in marriage: that the very nature of
marriage contract makes the woman “a slave.” The man gives several arguments in
favor of husbands. It is the husband who has to be the breadwinner, he says,
whereas the wife, for all her subjugation, simply spends his money. They argue,
back and forth, until the tradesman promises that should Roxana be his wife,
she would manage the family’s finances, not he. Regardless, Roxana is not
convinced and sarcastically berates her lover for allowing her to run the
family’s finances. The wife is a mere “boy,” in the family ship, says Roxana;
the husband is “pilot.”
It is, therefore, somewhat ironic that toward the end of the story, Roxana does
become his wife, and, not soon after, he discovers her deceit.
Motherhood
Connected to marriage is the theme of motherhood. During the course of the story, Roxana has eight children, none of whom she raises herself. This tendency to dispose of the children is quite common in Defoe’s fictions. Other characters, like Moll Flanders, have done it. In Roxana, the first five children, all from her first and only marriage, are given away to relatives out of financial necessity. But even then, the dexterity with which she and Amy get rid of them is quite remarkable. Somehow, Roxana, throughout the fictitious history, is unusually matter-of-fact when relating the status of her babies. For instance, when Roxana leaves Holland for England, having broken up with her Dutch lover, she seems to be quite content leaving with “money in my pocket and a bastard in my belly,” as she describes her situation. One gets the impression that to Roxana, nothing matters except her lovers as a means to get rich.
Economics
Economics is the next most important theme of this work. Having learned too
early in her life the importance of money, money becomes almost a fetish to
her. There are several instances in this work where Roxana, having collected
the money from her departed lovers, sits down to count her gold almost moments
after regretting the death of one of her lovers or the departure of another.
Defoe, of course, was a business man and an entrepreneur, and, as such,
understood the value of money. In Robinson Crusoe and Moll Flanders there are
many instances of counting: counting goods from a wrecked ship, or counting
gold pieces. Keeping ledger is an important motif in Defoe’s fiction. Human
relationships are intricately connected with economic relationship.
Thus, in Roxana, our so-called “fortunate mistress” is constantly in search of
gold. No amount of money seems to be enough for her. Not only does she “earn”
the money using her body, she also spends judiciously, spending well and saving
much. Therefore, her acquaintance with Sir Robert Clayton, the economist, makes
for an unusual and rather interesting reading. It adds not only to the realism
of the work but also gives us an insight to Defoe’s economic mind.
By the time she returns to England, Roxana is phenomenally rich. She meets Sir Robert Clayton, a wealthy man, who, for a change, seems to have no romantic or sexual interest in Roxana. All he is interested in is showing her how to invest her wealth, how to double it and triple it. Defoe goes into the details of investment and in lay person’s terms. Sir Robert explains to Roxana how she can save and invest. Introducing terms like “capital,” “family economy,” and "the scheme of frugality," Sir Robert shows Roxana how she can become one of the richest women in London.