At the beginning of the novel, what specific advice does Robinson Crusoe's father give him regarding his future career and social standing?
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Correct answer: To embrace the 'middle station' of life, least exposed to mankind's miseries and disasters.
Crusoe's father delivers a lengthy speech praising the 'middle station' or middle class, arguing it is the most stable and genuinely happy tier of society, free from the luxury of the high and the desperation of the low. Crusoe's outright rejection of this advice is framed as his 'original sin' within the novel's puritan moral framework. This restless defiance launches his decades of suffering and exploration.
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