Rating: 
Summary: Moll Flanders could be a character of today
Review: Moll Flanders was written by Daniel Defoe, the same author of Robinson Crusoe. Although the settings are different, we can see many similarities between the stories, like the implicit criticism of british society of the XVII/XVIII centuries and the importance that society gave to exterior looks. Moll Flanders can be divided in two parts. In the first one, Moll, being poor, is raised in a foster home, and, being pretty, catches the attention of the elder son of the family whose house she lives in. It is when her misfortunes begin. Misled and deceived by this elder son, she has to leave the house and be on her own. When she was a child, she wanted to be a "dame of society", and that's what she desperately tries to become, looking for a rich man who will support her financialy. To catch the eyes of such men, she has to pretend she is very rich herself, and then all she manages to have are false "gentlemen", trying themselves to marry a rich woman. Even then, she is able to find a man she loves (more than one, in fact), but through a series of bad luck she always looses everything. The second part of the book is where Moll Flanders transforms herself in a successfull thieve. This is a fun part, where she describes her struggle to accomplish the thefts without being caught and thrown to infamous prison Newgate. And then, the ending seemed a little too sudden to me. Defoe's book is a stinging critic to his society, and that's why he chose to write in a female first-person, self centered (there are almost no other names in the course of the story) and desperate to get to the high level of society, showing that everybody could be affected by hypocrite puritanism and moralism. Grade 8.5/10
Rating: 
Summary: thought-provoking
Review: Moll Flanders: Who was Born in Newgate, and during a Life of continu'd Variety for threescore years, besides her childhood, was Twelve Year a Whore, five times a Wife (Whereof once to her own Brother) Twelve Year a Thief, Eight Year a Transported Felon in Virginia, at last grew Rich, liv'd Honest, and died a Penitent by Daniel Defoe has been an interesting read. This is a true story taken from Moll Flander's own memoirs. This book is a story of wickedness until the last fifty of three hundred pages when 'Moll' finally becomes penitent. It then becomes a story of forgiveness and God's mercy no matter what a person's past life or background has been. Moll is a clever woman who, although wants to be honest and pure, cannot become so because of the society she lives in and what it has reduced her too. This, however, does not exempt her from responsibility for her actions, it just serves as a catalyst and partial cause of her circumstances. The bulk of the book serves as a warning that once a sin is set in motion it is very difficult, if not impossible, to stop. It is a lesson for those who are willing to read the book. I give it a lower rating because the story, although quite thought-provoking, became dull at times and was a little too graphic. Another note worth mentioning is that there are no chapters or separations in the book. It is written without any quotation marks so that dialouge is written as 'he said' 'she said.'
Rating:
Summary: Tasty
Review: The'plot structure of Moll Flanders is conventional: it's the usual plot about a deviant who, in the end, regenerates oneself and kowtows before conventional morals - Moll's ultimate fate being no different from that of the late Sex and the City foursome. However, what a different between Defoe's ironical ending - when Moll and her "Lancashire husband" settle down in Maryland to enjoy a comfortable old age out of her looting as a street criminal - and the dull Victorian-like endings of so many of our popular culture fictions - which by the way, lack entirely in genuine conviction about the values they intend to upheld!Moll Flanders is a healthy beast - someone who accepts her world as it's and makes the best out of it.It's this matter-of-fact attitude which makes most of the novel's charms, and makes today's readers refreshed! Read, and enjoy!
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