The Circle of the Seven Deadly Sins In Daniel Defoe's "Moll Flanders"

Abstract

In this essay, I explore how Daniel Defoe in his novel "Moll Flanders" makes Moll Flanders represent the seven deadly sins. As I argue, the circle of the "seven deadly sins" is a concept in Defoe's novel. Defoe represents Moll as a symbolic and embodied version to represent the "seven deadly sins". Defoe does this through Moll life-journey, in which each of the seven sins, envy, greed, pride, lust, gluttony, anger and sloth are represented. Thus, Defoe's puritan background is apparent in the harsh manner he treats Moll, and the way in which he makes her repent at the end.