Alexander Selkirk

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Alexander Selkirk

Alexander Selkirk , 1676-1721, Scottish sailor whose adventures suggested to Daniel Defoe the story of Robinson Crusoe (1719). In 1704, as a sailing master, Selkirk quarreled with the captain of his ship in the Juan Fernández islands and asked to be put ashore. He remained on Más a Tierra Island for four years and four months before he was rescued (Feb., 1709) by an English privateer.

Bibliography: See J. Howell, The Life and Adventures of Alexander Selkirk (1829).

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"Alexander Selkirk." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 12 Nov. 2009 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

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Selkirk, Alexander

The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature | 2003 | | Â© The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature 2003, originally published by Oxford University Press 2003. (Hide copyright information) Copyright

Selkirk, Alexander (1676–1721), joined the privateering expedition of Dampier in 1703. Having quarrelled with his captain, Thomas Stradling, he was at his own request put ashore on one of the uninhabited Pacific island of Juan Fernandez in 1704, and remained there until 1709 when he was rescued by W. Rogers. Steele published an account of his experience in The Englishman (3 Dec. 1713); Defoe used the story in Robinson Crusoe and Cowper in his poem, ‘I am monarch of all I survey’.

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MARGARET DRABBLE and JENNY STRINGER. "Selkirk, Alexander." The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. 12 Nov. 2009 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

MARGARET DRABBLE and JENNY STRINGER. "Selkirk, Alexander." The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. (November 12, 2009). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O54-SelkirkAlexander.html

MARGARET DRABBLE and JENNY STRINGER. "Selkirk, Alexander." The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. 2003. Retrieved November 12, 2009 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O54-SelkirkAlexander.html

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maroon, to

The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea | 2006 | © The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea 2006, originally published by Oxford University Press 2006. (Hide copyright information) Copyright

maroon, to, to put ashore a sailor and leave him there. The action implies being left in some relatively inaccessible place. The best-known case of a marooned seaman was Alexander Selkirk, on whom Daniel Defoe based his character Robinson Crusoe.

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"maroon, to." The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea. Oxford University Press. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (November 12, 2009). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O225-maroonto.html

"maroon, to." The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea. Oxford University Press. 2006. Retrieved November 12, 2009 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O225-maroonto.html

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Free newspaper and magazine articles

	Souhami, Diana. Selkirk's island; the true and strange adventures of the real Robinson Crusoe.(Young Adult Review)(Book Review)(Brief Article) Magazine article from: Kliatt; 3/1/2003
	Tras los pasos del verdadero Robinson Crusoe: una simple historia que comenzó en el archipiélago de Juan Fernández, en Chile, creó una leyenda que ha inspirado libros y películas a lo largo de los siglos. Magazine article from: Américas (Spanish Edition); 11/1/2002
	Dampier, el pirata cientifico: pudo aduenarse de medio mundo y termino su vida sin un centavo, pero con el alma llena de fabulosos recuerdos. (La Aventura Humana).(William Dampier )(Biografia) Magazine article from: Contenido; 5/1/2003

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Related articles from newspapers, magazines, and more

	The real Robinson Crusoe: Alexander Selkirk was marooned for 52 months in the South Seas.(Features)(Books) Newspaper article from: The Christian Science Monitor; 2/21/2002; 700+ words ; ...later, a Scottish sailor named Alexander Selkirk protested, claiming that their...And so they left him there. Selkirk spent the next 52 months marooned...soon forgot there ever was an Alexander Selkirk. Now, with her fascinating...
	Desert island dyspeptic John Preston on the travails of Alexander Selkirk, the foul-tempered original of Robinson Crusoe Newspaper article from: The Sunday Telegraph London; 5/13/2001; ; 700+ words ; Selkirk's Island by Diana Souhami Weidenfeld...pounds 12.99 (99p p&p) 0870 155 7222 ALEXANDER SELKIRK had a good deal in common with his fictional...survived for 28 years on his island, Selkirk for a mere four. Crusoe, latterly at...
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	Robert Kraske: Marooned: The Strange but True Adventures of Alexander Selkirk, the Real Robinson Crusoe.(Brief Article)(Young Adult Review)(Book Review) Magazine article from: The Horn Book Magazine; 11/1/2005; ; 620 words ; ...Kraske Marooned: The Strange but True Adventures of Alexander Selkirk, the Real Robinson Crusoe; illus. by Robert Andrew...1704 a young, hot-headed sailing master, one Alexander Selkirk, was unceremoniously dropped off on a deserted South...
	Marooned: The Strange but True Adventures of Alexander Selkirk, the Real Robinson Crusoe.(Brief article)(Book review)(Children's review) Magazine article from: Children's Bookwatch; 6/1/2006; 459 words ; ...0618568433 $15.00 www.amazon.com Scottish mariner Alexander Selkirk is marooned on a South Pacific island--and becomes...in Marooned: The Strange But True Adventures Of Alexander Selkirk, The Real Robinson Crusoe.
	Travel: Crusoe's island paradise; Tobago's main claim to fame may be Alexander Selkirk but its determination to encourage only eco-friendly tourism should also win it plaudits, says Eric Tingley.(Features) Newspaper article from: The Birmingham Post (England); 3/16/2002; 700+ words ; ...enough. The hero of Daniel Defoe's 18th-century novel was based on the real-life experiences of one Alexander Selkirk. Selkirk ran away to sea in 1704 and asked to be left on an uninhabited island and rescued five years later. He built...
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	Real story of Crusoe can now be told; Author claims Selkirk's castaway tale was based on someone else. Newspaper article from: The Mail on Sunday (London, England); 6/16/2002; ; 700+ words ; ...tears. The hirsute creature was Alexander Selkirk, a Scottish mariner abandoned...land surrounded by the South Sea. Selkirk, so the story goes, survived...return to London, the captain of Selkirk's rescue vessel, The Duke...
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