WORLD
Use our resources to better understand real-life Robinson Crusoes.
Discussion Ideas
- The title of the Nat Geo News article says José Alvarenga may join a “pantheon” of famous castaways. What is a pantheon? Why didn’t the writer just say “list”?
- A pantheon is a collection of all the gods and goddesses from a particular religion or mythology. Thor, Odin, and Loki are members of the Norse pantheon. Zeus, Athena, and Apollo are members of the Greek pantheon. Vishnu, Shiva, and Ganesh are members of the Hindu pantheon.
- The Nat Geo News writer was using “pantheon” as a metaphor. People who survive a long time alone at sea may be considered secular, survivalist deities.
- Read the Nat Geo News article, and our own This Day in Geographic History article on Alexander Selkirk, the “Real-Life Robinson Crusoe.” How is Selkirk’s story very different from José Alvarenga and most of the other castaways featured in the article?
- Selkirk’s story differs in two important ways.
- Selkirk was marooned on an island, not adrift at sea.
- Selkirk was not stranded by accident. He was intentionally left on the island by other sailors after voicing concerns about the safety of their ship. (Capt. William Bligh, another castaway featured in the article, was also intentionally abandoned by his fellow sailors.)
- Selkirk’s story differs in two important ways.
- Alexander Selkirk was probably the inspiration for Daniel Defoe’s adventure tale, Robinson Crusoe. Another castaway profiled in the Nat Geo News article was a consultant for the movie Life of Pi. The events that set Capt. William Bligh adrift—the mutiny on the Bounty—have been adapted in poetry (by Lord Byron, no less), historic novels, and many (mostly mediocre) movies—including one with my very favorite actor, Charles Laughton, as Bligh. Can you think of other castaway stories?
- Can you not?! From the Odyssey to Gilligan’s Island, it’s a classic genre for books, films, and games. What are your favorites? Why?
Great blog post — makes you think about a lot of things!
My favorite castaway was the character played by Tom Hanks in the 2000 movie “Cast Away” (interestingly spelled as two words not one!). Tom Hanks plays a FedEx pilot who survives a crash in a remote area and washed onto a deserted island. My brother is a FedEx pilot (so I guess that’s one reason I was captivated) and he knows more GEOGRAPHY than just about anyone I know. So, I’d point out that survival as a castaway requires ingenuity and using the geographic skills you have!
And to curious students reading this cool blog, the movie “Cast Away” may be old, but it WON the 2001 Teen Choice Award for best “Chemistry” for Tom Hanks and Wilson, his only companion (a volleyball).