The History and Remarkable Life of the Truly Honorable Col Jacque, Commonly Call'd Col Jack: Analysis of Major Characters
"The History and Remarkable Life of the Truly Honorable Col Jacque, Commonly Call'd Col Jack" chronicles the tumultuous life of Colonel Jack, a rogue shaped by a series of misfortunes and moral dilemmas. Born as an illegitimate child, he faces adversity early on when his caretaker dies, leading him to a life of crime as a pickpocket. His journey takes him from the streets to indentured servitude on a plantation in the American Colonies, where he navigates complex dynamics as an overseer of enslaved individuals.
Throughout his life, Colonel Jack's relationships, particularly with women, reveal a spectrum of loyalty and betrayal, as exemplified by his various marriages. His first wife is unfaithful yet ultimately seeks redemption, while his second wife embodies infidelity and his third suffers from addiction leading to tragedy. In stark contrast, Captain Jack, his foster brother, serves as a symbol of the darker path of crime, eventually facing execution for his misdeeds.
After a series of adventures and moral reckonings, Colonel Jack ultimately seeks forgiveness and aspires to inspire others to repent. The narrative reflects themes of redemption, the consequences of one's choices, and the often turbulent intersection of personal and social morality, inviting readers to consider the complexities of human behavior and the potential for transformation.
The History and Remarkable Life of the Truly Honorable Col Jacque, Commonly Call'd Col Jack: Analysis of Major Characters
Author: Daniel Defoe
First published: 1722
Genre: Novel
Locale: England, France, and Virginia
Plot: Picaresque
Time: Late seventeenth century
Colonel Jacque, called Colonel Jack, an adventurer who commits many misdeeds. An illegitimate child, he is given to a nurse who dies when Jack is but ten years old. Having to fend for himself, Jack the waif becomes a successful though sometimes conscience-stricken pickpocket. He is tossed by fate into the American Colonies and becomes an indentured servant on a plantation, where he becomes a successful and kindly overseer of slaves. When freed from his period of indenture, he becomes a landowner in Virginia. Leaving his plantation in the hands of his faithful overseer, he returns to England and marries. Unfortunate in love, he attacks his wife's lover and flees to France to become a professional soldier, fighting with the French against his countrymen. After another sojourn in Virginia and many adventures, he finally repents of his life of crime and violence, seeks a pardon from the English crown, and settles down in England, persuaded that only the goodness of God has saved him. He hopes that his life story will make other persons repent of their sins and become good Christians.
Captain Jack, Colonel Jack's thoroughly evil foster brother. He is a witty, intelligent rogue who introduces Jack to the picking of pockets. Captain Jack rebels against indentured servitude, flees to England to resume his criminal life, and is at last hanged as a common criminal.
Will, a pickpocket and a partner in crime of Colonel Jack. Will is a vicious man who murders as well as robs. Will's hanging at Newgate Prison saddens Colonel Jack, even though he knows the punishment is deserved.
Jack's First Wife, an unfaithful woman, as well as a gambler and spendthrift. She turns up years later as an indentured servant and a repentant woman. She and Colonel Jack are re-married and live happily for many years in their old age.
Jack's Second Wife, the daughter of an Italian innkeeper, who is unfaithful to her husband.
Jack's Third Wife, a beautiful and virtuous woman who becomes a drunkard and finally commits suicide. By her, Colonel Jack has three children.
Jack's Fourth Wife, an older woman who provides Jack with a pleasant home and is good to his children. She dies after a fall.