Moll Flanders and the Immorality of Capitalism

In The Fortunes and Misfortunes of the famous Moll Flanders author Daniel Defoe takes pains to have Moll give a rigorous inventory of her net worth following each of her many marriages or affairs. This obsession with capital worth is certainly not coincidental considering that England was in the midst of transforming into a nation dominated by the rights of property, and that marriage was the only property transaction available to a woman interested in keeping herself one step away from poverty or debtors prison. Understanding the mushrooming attachment to property's increasing value during Defoe's time is vital for anyone attempting to fully understand the novel's preoccupation with capitalistic trade, and especially its association of trade with the convention of marriage.

Consider that at the time Daniel Defoe wrote Moll Flanders there existed in England essentially no difference in the punishment received by those who comitted theft and those who committed murder. All the while, of course, a woman’s rights to property were for all practical purposes null and void. A woman’s opportunity for marrying into money was greatly dependent upon how much wealth she could bring to the marriage. Moll Flanders takes precious little time to grasp and embrace this relationship. Like many of her real-life contemporaries, Moll Flanders quickly comprehends that money is the thing, and the mere possession of money is really the one thing that makes a woman agreeable to a man when marriage is up for consideration.