Daniel Defoe: a reference guide 1731-1924 (review)

REVIEWS 161 like Roxana restrict itself to historical reality, and does it gain or lose in attractiveness ? Bram Dijkstra explores the issue in all its fascinating ramifications, and he leaves no doubt where he stands. Spiro Peterson Miami University Spiro Peterson. Daniel Defoe: a reference guide 1731-1924. Boston: G.K. Hall, 1987. xxxiii + 455pp. US$45.00. The stated purpose of this reference guide is "to illustrate the history and development of the subject author's reputation" (p. ix) through extensive annotations of virtually everything published on Defoe before 1925. The coverage stops where it does because there are comprehensive bibliographies already available on more recent Defoe criticism. With so much Defoe material available, the question arises as to whether or not a reference work so delimited provides a useful addition to the growing body of work on Defoe. Since Spiro Peterson says that he intends his work to supplement John A. Stoler's Daniel Defoe: An Annotated Bibliography ofModern Criticism, 1900— 1980 (1984), perhaps a brief comparison of the two will help demonstrate the usefulness of Peterson's reference guide. Although these two research aids are about the same length (Peterson—1,565 entries; Stoler—1,569), there are major differences between them. For instance, with 606 entries for the period 1900-1924 Peterson is much more comprehensive than Stoler, whose book is overwhelmingly weighted towards the scholarship of the last forty years. Not only does Peterson list more items, but his individual entries are usually more detailed than Stoler's. The latter describes William P. Trent's Daniel Defoe. How to Know Him in about seventy words, whereas Peterson's annotation runs close to 450 words. Moreover, Peterson is frequently more thorough in searching out various editions and reprints of works on Defoe. Stoler lists Ernest Ross's dissertation, "The Development of the English Sea Novel from Defoe to Conrad," as does Peterson, but the latter also notes the 1926 Edwards Brothers' published edition of the study along with its Folcroft Press reprint of 1969. While Stoler does not annotate the work because it is a dissertation, Peterson provides a full annotation . Finally, although Stoler lists more reviews of important books, Peterson lists those reviews which make original contributions to the study of Defoe as separate, numbered items and annotates them fully. By limiting the scope of his reference guide, Professor Peterson has avoided needless repetition of Stoler's material while at the same time expanding upon 162 EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY FICTION it. However, his main achievement is much greater than merely supplementing already-existent bibliographies. By listing almost a thousand items published between 1731 and 1900, most of them copiously annotated with an eye towards emphasizing the fluctuating views of Defoe and his work, he has admirably succeeded in fulfilling his stated purpose of illustrating the "history and development" of Defoe's literary reputation. The best previous effort to accomplish this end is Pat Rogers's Critical Heritage volume on Defoe (1972), which directly quotes from fifty-six statements on Defoe and his work published between 1703 and 1789. The lengthy introduction , with frequent references to the quotations which form the body of the book, traces the broad patterns of Defoe's changing status as a literary figure . Although the items reprinted by Rogers are few in number, they are well selected and provide an opportunity for the researcher to work with primary materials which otherwise would be difficult to obtain. Although Peterson cannot provide the same opportunity, surprisingly he does give the reader something of the flavour of the original materials he lists through his accurate, detailed annotations bolstered by frequent direct quotations. And, of course, the number of entries in Peterson dwarfs the fifty-six items cited by Rogers. The reference guide lists almost every statement made about Defoe prior to 1900. The problem with such an exhaustive listing is that the user must plough through dozens, if not hundreds, of items which are not really useful for a study of Defoe. This reservation is rendered insignificant, however, by the fact that the annotations make it clear which items are or are not relevant to a given study and therefore save the reseacher hours of...