The Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Famous Moll Flanders

Written in a time when criminal biographies enjoyed great success, Daniel Defoe's "The Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Famous Moll Flanders" (aka "Moll Flanders") details the life of the irresistible Moll and her struggles through poverty and sin in search of property and power. Born in Newgate prison and abandoned six months later, Moll Flanders' drive to find and hold on to a secure place in society propels her through incest, adultery, bigamy, prostitution and a resourceful career as a thief before her crimes catch up with her, and she is transported to the colony of Virginia in the New World. The bawdy story of Moll Flanders vividly illustrates Defoe's themes of social mobility and predestination, sin, redemption, reward and woman's struggle for independence.