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Poetry · Chapter
VII explained
The chapter reflects on the nature of piety, comparing it to small-pox in its contagiousness, but noting that Robinson Crusoe contracted it in isolation, suggesting it may have been inherent.
What happens
The chapter reflects on the nature of piety, comparing it to small-pox in its contagiousness, but noting that Robinson Crusoe contracted it in isolation, suggesting it may have been inherent.
Key passages
“Piety, like small-pox, comes by infection. Robinson Crusoe, however, caught it alone on his island. It is probable that he had it in his blood.”
Piety is typically spread through social contact, like a disease, but Robinson Crusoe developed it in solitude, implying it might have been innate.
The narrator uses an analogy to question the origin of piety.