Colonel Jack

Style and Technique

The novel «Colonel Jack» is written in Daniel Defoe’s characteristic pseudo-documentary style, where the narrator’s voice is confessional and intimate, as if revealing a true autobiography to the reader. The language is rich in vivid everyday detail, simple and expressive, lending the narrative a special authenticity and vitality. Defoe masterfully employs interior monologue, allowing the reader to enter the hero’s psychology, to feel his doubts, remorse, and hopes. The author skillfully weaves dialogues into the fabric of the story, enlivening the action and revealing the characters. The structure of the novel unfolds as a sequential chronicle of Jack’s life’s twists and turns, with each episode marking a stage in his moral development. The motif of journey and wandering holds a special place, symbolizing the hero’s inner metamorphoses. Defoe uses realistic description, paying close attention to the details of daily life, social environment, and the customs of the era, creating a multilayered portrait of early eighteenth-century English society. The narrative is imbued with subtle irony and a hidden moral reflection, giving the novel depth and ambiguity.