The text of Great Britain1998

This is the first full-length analysis of A Tour through the Whole Island of Great Britain (1724-26), long recognized as a key book for understanding the eighteenth century and as one of Daniel Defoe's most characteristic works. A principle aim of this book is to describe the elements that went into the making of the Tour. A substantial introduction sets out a conceptual framework for the chapters that follow, putting the Tour into the historical context of travel writing and the development of a literature of tourism. This work also reflects the concerns and methods of Defoe's oeuvre as a whole. Other aspects of the Tour's ideology are reviewed, notably its political bearings and its treatment of the South Sea Bubble of 1720, a national disaster that has strong personal overtones for Defoe. Finally, an attempt is made to illuminate the design of the work and the ways in which its formal structure supports Defoe's intellectual attitudes.