The conjurer

"There are more ways than one of living eternally." This statement of Foe's (told to Susan) following the narration of two tales of two different women is meant to comfort and inspire her. He is asking her to think beyond her present abject conditions, to look at "the big picture". He tells her that her vision and her story are not dull, but that her story "is too much the same". Does he mean that she has not learned from her experiences, that she has not shed "the husk" of her old self, not metamorphosized? Is he waiting for her to evolve a little more?

“Like the patient spider who sits at the heart of his web waiting for his prey to come to him. And when we struggle in his grasp, and he opens his jaws to devour us, and with our last breath we cry out, he smiles a thin smile and says: “I did not ask you to come visiting, you come of your own will.”. This is Susan's description of Foe, whispered to herself during one of her conversations with him.

Surprised

Was anyone else as surprised as me with how passionate Susan's feelings for Cruso were, especially as he was dying on the ship. Considering his personal flaws, I am curious as to why she was so into him and attached to him...

Susan and Cruso

It seems that Cruso has no concern for the preservation of memory through writing (this is an important way we preserve culture and history, right?). He also acts in a sexist and patronizing way towards Susan - he does not want her to leave the hut on her own, and yells at her when she does: "While you live under my roof you will do as I instruct". He also seems to have stereotypes about foreigners in his mind, for example his reference to the Brazilians "cannibals". Cruso's island is symbolic of his personal isolation from the outside world, his ignorance and provincial view: "Growing old on his island...he had come to be persuaded he knew all there was to know about the world. "

Betzaida's discussion item on Foe

I did enjoy the reading and found a bit challenging to decode the
message the author wanted to address in this book about each of the
characters. These are my interpretations...
Cruso- having spent so many years without communicating verbally he did
a great deal of his communication non verbally(defiant looks, turning
his back on Susan to not answer her questions). He also showed an
authoritative personality over the island an the people in it, on what
he chose to teach Friday. If he was a teacher I would say he would be
the Atlas type. Also, that even if you can communicate verbally doesn't
mean that you will choose to do so, he didn't.
Susan- I found Susan to be the most complicated character, a very
inquisitive mind. Always questioning, analyzing and not conforming. What
irritated me about her character is that she wanted HER story written by
somebody else when in reality she was the one writing it. As for her
role in the life of Friday she was blinded with the preconception that
he was "stupid". She saw no point in teaching him but kept trying maybe
just to feel better with herself. I associated this with some teachers
of students with disabilities that lower the standards for those
students because they don't see the point of teaching them those skills
if they are not going to be used.( which reminds me that Cruso also
believed that Friday didn't "need" to learn some things because of his
condition as a slave) I also saw in her the desire and need we all have
to communicate, even when Foe did not get the letters she kept on
writing, I guess we all have a story to tell and the need to tell it.
The issue about the daughter I did not get. Was there a daughter or just
a need to have motivation to move her out to explore the world? Someone
please enlighten me!
Friday- At the beginning of the story I thought Friday was just a victim
of the society, colonization ,slavery, mutilation. But as the story went
on, I realized that he had more power than it was given to him. Even
though he could not communicate verbally, he did so non verbally. He did
not respond to Susan's teaching either because he was not interested or
because of her teaching methods. You cannot teach a student that doesn't
want to learn, can you? Which reminds me of the concepts of acquisition
and responsibility. But to be honest at one point I thought that he was
autistic with the spinning, the fixating with the wigs and robes and the
humming. I did reflect on the kind of life Friday would have had if he
was white, English perhaps and not a mutilated African slave. How could
his life been different? Full of opportunities and a chance to be free
and not oppressed. But then again , as Foe asks,what is freedom if there
is not a desire to be free.(p.143) At the end I think that of all of
that was taken or given to Friday, he only took what he needed and most
of all what he wanted.
Foe- Foe pushed Susan to reflect on her life and the purpose of her
being a castaway on the island. He kept asking questions and making her
come to her own conclusions about what the story of her life was and
converted it into the written word. My favorite part of the book in
relation to Foe is when he talks about the meaning of freedom.(p149)He
implicitly talks about the need to teach with purpose and with meaning.
Also from the stand point of communication he stresses the importance of
the written word in communication( think this as the way Coetzee
communicates his ideas and art to the world). My first question when
reading the book was why doesn't anyone teaches Friday to write? Well he
answered my question. He saw beyond the "disability" and found a way to
reach his purpose, teach Friday to write, one letter at a time.
After reading the book and about the the author:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J.M._Coetzee
I conclude that he wanted to touch on Foe social aspects like
colonization, slavery, oppression, poverty, social class, the role of
women in society and the purpose and need of communication. I saw
characteristics of Coetzee and/or his experiences being African on all
the main characters. Cruso's quiet personality and his choice to limit
verbal communication as he chooses writing as a profession. Susan's
inquiring and reflective personality. And Friday's life as an oppressed
slave, which he saw living in Africa and African history.

Will Foe write the story for Susan?

Foe was not my favorite person, but that was not relevant to the point of the story. I think the tension that the reader feels between characters and their self actualization is what was most salient to me. No one ever really felt that the quest was over, or that they were satisfied.
Also, the mysteries were never solved, though many suggestions were made. This was not a comforting book, but a thought provoker.

Fellow "Foes"

Foe by Coatzee, based loosely on the classic Robinson Crusoe, guides the reader deep into the psyche of an author, taking liberties and license in the process of crafting a unique story, a tale of desperate searching and of survival, sending symbolic messages about social isolation, domination, colonialism. The writer of the novel, Coatzee, introduces a woman into the story to give the reader a new perspective. Susan approaches Foe (based on Daniel DeFoe)with a request that he write her story because she feels he is a famous writer, and will do it justice.The character, Foe, has become a recluse, and is avoiding the bill collectors. Therefore he does not receive most of the letters Susan writes telling her story as a castaway on a desert island. Foe does not seem to care about much of anything; he appears to be a misanthrope, although he welcomes Susan and Friday, a slave, into his home, once they finally track him down.