PBA Galleries

This landmark work of English literature remains one of the most popular novels ever written. The story tells the tale of a sailor, shipwrecked alone on an island in the middle of the ocean, who manages to survive by recreating his English life: he builds a home, learns how to cook, and gathers the necessities of life, including raising goats and growing crops. He comes to appreciate his sovereignty over the entire island. After fifteen years of absolute mastery over the island, a mysterious footprint appears on the sand, and Robinson meets with another human on the island. Robinson adopts the native, christened Friday, as his companion and servant. The story is apparently based on the adventures of a seaman, Alexander Selkirk, who had been marooned on one of the Juan Fernández Islands off the coast of Chile in 1705.