Guilhamet revisits the writings of Daniel Defoe to evaluate them in terms of cultural and political Whig themes. While Defoe did not slavishly follow one strand or another of Whiggism, he did subscribe to its social and cultural foundations. Guilhamet demonstrates that, through his characters, Defoe presents the stories of those whom society has failed. Religious themes are also presented in the light of the spiritual burden of poverty. These informed Defoe's ideas of repentance and forgiveness. Guilhamet looks at Defoe's major novels as signaling the birth of the Whig novel.
