Robinson Crusoe. I remember reading this book as a little child, enthralled by the tale of a man who, against all odds, and all alone, with only what he could grab from a beached vessel before it sank, took dominion over his island, fought off savages, and most importantly, found his way back to God.
Through all of the book, there is a reoccurring theme, the storms. There was a storm when he first went to sea; there was another on his second voyage, and the storm that resulted in his being cast on an uninhabited island. How important are these storms to the story?
I believe I can say that they are probably one of the most important elements to his story. First, as an allegory. The physical storms he faced represented the spiritual storms Crusoe was experiencing. Also, the storms are borrowing from the the idea of Jonah, or the sailors in Psalms 107:23-30, who were faced by the seas, which were acting as the physical representation of the hand of God. Second, the storms give a crucial element of danger and adventure that would otherwise be lacking. The storms help get us to take far more interest in the story than we would of otherwise, and act as a very critical part of the story of Robinson Crusoe.