Visualizing Crusoe

"Evil" and "Good" List

Shipwrecked upon the island and distressed about his situation, Crusoe decides to make a list to weigh both the misfortunes and blessings of his condition. He writes: 


I now began to consider seriously my condition, and the circumstances I was reduced to; and I drew up the state of my affairs in writing, not so much to leave them to any that were to come after me—for I was likely to have but few heirs—as to deliver my thoughts from daily poring over them, and afflicting my mind; and as my reason began now to master my despondency, I began to comfort myself as well as I could, and to set the good against the evil, that I might have something to distinguish my case from worse; and I stated very impartially, like debtor and creditor, the comforts I enjoyed against the miseries I suffered, thus:—
 


Upon the whole, here was an undoubted testimony that there was scarce any condition in the world so miserable but there was something negative or something positive to be thankful for in it; and let this stand as a direction from the experience of the most miserable of all conditions in this world: that we may always find in it something to comfort ourselves from, and to set, in the description of good and evil, on the credit side of the account.

The listing exercise—reminiscent of a modern "pro and con" list—ultimately leads Crusoe to consider what he has to be thankful for, even in his unfortunate circumstances. Creating the list is a therapeutic and cathartic exercise that puts his mental anguish to paper, alleviates some of his distress, shifts his perspective, and allows him to move forward in creating a habitation as comfortable as his circumstances allow. After he makes the list, he takes stock of his possessions, builds a table and a chair, and begins a journal of his daily experiences. 

The first edition of the text (1719) depicts the "evil" and "good" reflections as a list proper:


Some digitized and later print versions of the text, however, render the list into a table format. Depending upon the edition, the "evil and good" reflections has been visualized as a list, table, and/or ledger. The Project Gutenberg digitized edition of the text, for example, visualizes the list as a table:


What changes—if anything—when Crusoe's "evil and good" reflections are visualized as a list, table, or ledger? As shown above in the 1719 edition of Robinson Crusoe, earlier editions of the text render the "evil and good" graphic as a list. In list format, Crusoe's reflections resemble the journal that he later creates to keep track of his experiences and are an artifact of Crusoe's mental listing exercise. The "evil" and "good" observations in list format make the two sides of the list appear as two sides of the same coin—two perspectives and approaches to the same problem that cannot be separated or considered in isolation. In table format, the "evil" and "good" points are not combinatoric (that is, the information presented cannot be read in another other way other than the one in which it is presented), and the table rows and columns emphasize the stark distinctions between the "evil" and "good" sides of the list, making each side appear as complete opposite positions. Rendering the list into a table format is more common in digital editions, which may be influenced by the table data structure and standards for text encoding.  

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