Defoe's Jack Shephard
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In his introduction, the editor gives his ratings for the authenticity of these pieces as works of Defoe. In the first (Jack Shephard) piece he rates it as not being by Defoe, the second (Jack Shephard again) as being possibly by Defoe, and the third (Jonathon Wild) as being definitely by Defoe.
Well I see everything the wrong way round! The first Jack Shephard piece is obviously by Defoe, and it is easy to see from reading it why an established and successful author like Defoe should take an interest in the subject. It is a fine work of journalistic art written by someone who is used to writing such. I like the way that the humour accumulates and Jack Shephard's audacious character and wit emerges through it. Hackwork this is definitely NOT.
The second piece about Jack Shephard is obviously by Shephard himself, and Defoe may well have had a hand in giving him the pen and paper for it because it resolves the astounding mystery of his escape from the Castle and effectively completes the first piece. I like the way that Shephard's natural wit becomes a little self-conscious and mannered with pen and paper. But it is a nice read, perhaps due to Defoe's editoring.
Together their coverage of Shephard's life is a perfect and complete work of journalistic art worthy of Defoe, and it is a vivid portrait of the subject and his London. It is a biography-autobiography and so it resmbles The Storm in character.
But there are doubts about the authenticity of the Jonathon Wild piece. It could have been written by any good lawyer or journalist and there is nothing in it to show why a successful literary artist like Defoe should be doing it. It is good hackwork. It repeats itself over an important point in a way that is clumsy and lacks Defoe's perfection of form, and its attitude to Christian principles is demur and Defoe's never was. The Jonathon Wild piece is certainly worth having and it is historically valuable, but it is not Defoe's and it is not great literature.
I like the cover design but I wish the typeface was bigger and printed black.
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Protect the innocent by punishing the guilty
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Of the 5 texts in this volume, only one can be attributed surely to Defoe.
The texts on Sheppard relate the latter's extraordinary prison escapes and his wanderings through London until his execution. Those on Jonathan Wild explain how a criminal, playing very cleverly and deadly both thief and thief-catcher, could build a fortune.These are minor works by Defoe, and they have absolutely not the same high standard as his masterpieces (Robinson Crusoe, Moll Flanders).
The text(s) on Wild is completely overshadowed by the treatment of the same story by Henry Fielding. Fielding's work is a masterpiece and highly recommended. The introduction of this volume by Richard Holmes is excellent. Only for Defoe fans.
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