Robert Louis Stevenson’s most famous novel, Treasure Island (serialized 1881-2; published as a single volume 1883) remains successful both commercially and dramatically. It has never gone out of print; it is available in multiple editions; it has been the basis for a number of film adaptations, some of which are really not bad. (Of some of the others, the less said the better.)
Even though it's relatively easy to read, however, and wildly entertaining for most, it is a disciplined piece of writing, and it is a very useful introduction to a whole range of ideas about how to read and interpret literature. A student who has some of these ideas planted early will come to other literary reading with a greater flexibility of mind and a small but useful vocabulary of analytical terms from which to branch out. I believe that this class is probably accessible to anyone from the fourth grade on — or even the third, provided strong reading skills — but could interest students much further along in their education as well. I continue to find the book — its narrative, its imagery, and its nearly perfectly balanced plot architecture — to be fascinating and entertaining.
There are many published editions of the work, and more still available online. You can certainly find the text in the Project Gutenberg site. I have listed one version on the school bookstore website, but all I insist on is that you have a complete (uncut, unmodified) edition so that we’s all looking at the same text.
I have read carefully through the book and tried to identify troublesome points of diction or vocabulary, and have constructed a glossary linked here. If you find any other terms or passages that need to be explained, though, let me know, and I'll try to track them down to add to the glossary.
In each session we’ll look at a different aspect of Stevenson’s narrative (click on the left triangles to expand the headings):
Have you read it already? If not, you need to get it done by next week if at all possible.
Don’t try to read the whole book all at one go. Break it up according to natural divisions. The sections of the book are clusters of a few chapters each that should give you time to breathe.
What are the most important characters?
Which characters are just supporting characters?
How much development do you get about each of them?
How do you reach conclusions about them, when you know?
What difficulties does it present (special words, unusual constructions)?
Using a dictionary is not just for wimps
What you can learn from the words
Strange usages and sentence structures
Try to take several chapters at a time to get hold of the continuity
Try to imagine the characters in your mind’s eye.
How does the work break down into sections?
The internal dynamic and structure of episodes/chapters
Acceleration and deceleration in narrative
A constant pace is wearying and uninteresting
A model breakdown.
I have not here cited any of the many cartoon versions or spinoffs, or those associated with the Muppets, whom I do not dislike, but none of them really advances the cause of the story here.
• 1920: Dir. Maurice Tourneur
Starring Shirley Mason, Charles Ogle, Lon Chaney
Time 1:16.
Not available as far as I can find.
• 1934: Dir. Victor Fleming
tarring Wallace Beery, Jackie Cooper, Lionel Barrymore
Time 1:50
Uneven, but some of the parts are brilliant. Lionel Barrymore owns the show with his performance as old Billy Bones.
• 1950: Dir. Byron Haskin
Starring Robert Newton, Bobby Driscoll, Geoffrey Wilkinson
1:36
The Disney classic, with lots of mugging and overacting, and a rendition of Long John that is way over the top. Many of my generation grew up with this version of the show.
• 1966-67: Miniseries, in German; dir. Wolfgang Liebeneiner
Starring Michael Ande, Ivor Dean.
Time 5:44 total in four episodes: 1:20; 1:28; 1:32; 1:24
I have not found this for sale in or through United States sources.
• 1970: Dir. John Hough, Andrea Bianchi, Antonio Margheriti
Starring Orson Welles, Jim Burfield, Walter Slezak.
Time 1:34
Not bad, not really very good. Welles was the star power stapled to this farm-team production, and it barely has time to get the story told.
• 1977: Dir.Michael E. Bryant
Starring Alfred Burke, Anthony Bate, Patrick Troughton
Time 3:20
Tonally quite impressive; this BBC series of four 50-minute episodes presents a lot of back story of Silver and the other pirates before we ever meet them in the book, as well as more concerning Jim’s home situation, his father’s struggle with debt, and so forth — inventive, but none of it from the book. It is, intriguingly, the only one of the filmed versions I have seen that actually presents the Hispaniola as a schooner. I have found it available only as a Region 2 (Britain and parts of Europe) DVD, not in standard American (Region 1) format. You will need either a region-appropriate or a region-free player to manage it.
• 1990: Dir. Fraser C. Heston
Starring Charlton Heston, Christian Bale, Oliver Reed, Christopher Lee.
Time 2:12
Probably the best of the American film versions. Longer than most, which allows it room to breathe.
• 1999: Dir. Peter Rowe
Starring Jack Palance, Keven Zegers, Patrick Bergin
Time 1:34
I have not seen this one; when I get a chance I will revise this entry.
• 2007: Dir. Hansjörg Thurn
Starring Tobias Moretti, François Goeske
3:06
Looks intriguing, and the amount of time allocated is encouraging, but I haven't found it for sale through any American channels I’ve checked.
Birth
Early career
Early death (44 y.o.)
Treasure Island (1883) – his first major success, a tale of piracy, buried treasure and adventure; has been filmed frequently. In an 1881 letter to W. E. Henley, he provided the earliest-known title, "The Sea Cook, or Treasure Island: a Story for Boys".
The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde (1886) – a novella about a dual personality; much adapted in plays and films; also influential in the growth of understanding of the subconscious mind through its treatment of a kind and intelligent physician who turns into a psychopathic monster after imbibing a drug intended to separate good from evil in a personality.
Kidnapped (1886) – a historical novel that tells of the boy David Balfour's pursuit of his inheritance and his alliance with Alan Breck Stewart in the intrigues of Jacobite troubles in Scotland.
The Black Arrow (1888) – a historical adventure novel and romance set during the Wars of the Roses.
The Master of Ballantrae (1889) – a tale of revenge set in Scotland, America and India.
Some people consider the books (esp. Treasure Island) lightweight
Is it so? Is that bad?
“Lilliburlero”, written 1689
John Benbow (1653-1702) became an admiral in the end of his life, 1702 when he was involved in the “Action of August”, the ships subordinate to him disobeying his orders.
Livesey claims to have fought in the Battle of Fontenoy, which was in 1745.
Admiral Hawke (Edward Hawke, First Baron Hawke (1705-81) promoted to rear admiral 1747.
Flint dead (acc. to the story) in Savannah, Georgia, in 1754.
Book refers to the Bow Street Runners, 1749 ff. These were law enforcement officials in Westminster (London), and London’s first professional police force. They were eventually replaced by London’s Metropolitan Police, founded ten years later by Sir Robert Peel (known, on that account, as the “Peelers”.
Somewhere probably between 1760 and 1785 or so, not specific.
Background of the period
Where is Treasure Island supposed to be (loosely)?
Piracy in the ancient world was very common, and some of the pirates were well entrenched.
Julius Caesar was captured by pirates in his youth, and ransomed. (Tell story if wanted)
Pompey the Great was noted in his youth for largely getting rid of the pirates in the Mediterranean, at least for a time.
Arab piracy in the Mediterranean; Vikings in the North Sea and Atlantic
Privateers like Drake and Hawkins were free agents targeting one nation’s trade on behalf of another.
William Kidd (Captain Kidd) active 1696-1699.
Edward Teach (Blackbeard) active 1716-1718).
Edward England, active 1717-1720.
Howell Davis, active 1718-1719.
Bartholomew Roberts, active 1719-1722. (Whom many will know as “The Dread Pirate Roberts” from The Princess Bride).
Specific pirates alluded to in the book, directly or indirectly
It’s worth noting that most of these had very short careers. Being a pirate could get you a lot of money in the short run, but you were unlikely to last long. Most were captured, tried, and hanged.
Piracy is still with us. One can find piracy out of control chiefly in the Indian Ocean now, especially certain bands based in Somalia, which is short on civil government.
The famous literary pirates seem chiefly 1600-1800.
Important ones?
Do the others matter?
Wood, usually oak.
Depending on purpose, carried a lot or a little armament. A ship of the line — a veritable floating fortress — might have forty guns or more.
Square-rigged ships requiring large crews that could go aloft to take in or let out sail.
The Walrus (despite its fictional captain) was a square-rigger, apparently, and real — captured in 1765 in battle, off the island of La Graciosa near Tenerife. The treasure of the pirates of La Graciosa was buried and then all were killed, so the treasure has never been recovered.
The Hispaniola is a schooner, fictional
A schooner is not a square-rigged ship; it has fore-and-aft sails like the modern sailboat.
Similarly smaller than most fighting ships, and not generally fitted out for serious combat. It carries a few guns.
A schooner (but not a square-rigged ship) could be sailed by one person. This becomes important in the novel.
Introduction
Thematic elements — defined
Justice
The presence of the past
Fidelity and trustworthiness (the men, Squire Trelawney, and the like)
Courage and fear
Brain vs. brawn
Deceptive appearances (e.g., Ben Gunn)
Ambiguity in outcome and status (e.g., characters)
Stasis for beginning
Precipitating incident (perhaps anticipated, but chief one)
Various episodes involving the development of the plot
Climax and denouement
Precipitating incident
Deliberate forward movement by main characters who take the initiative (where does this happen?)
Arrival of Billy Bones, and his place at the Admiral Benbow
The arrival of Black Dog and the other pirates; their death and the discovery of Bones’ map
Fitting out of the expedition — planning
Sailing: Everything seems fine
Sailing: We discover that there is mutiny afoot
Going to land and the opening of hostilities
The excursion of Jim H. and the fight for the Hispaniola
Return to the island and subsequent issues
The quest for the treasure and its frustration; combat and resolution
Climax
Resolution and denouement
Main twists: how does Stevenson tweak our expectations and awaken our anticipation?
Place of comedy in the serious materials.
Jim Hawkins
Dr. Livesey
Squire Trelawney
Long John Silver
Billy Bones
Mother
Black Dog
Israel Hands
Capt. Smollett
George Merry
Blind Pew
The remaining pirates
A strong character
Robust but evil
Recalled in narrative
Used as leverage against Silver’s characterization
Echoed in the parrot of the same name
Never appears alive
A weak character
Good, but physically feeble
In some ways a foil to Flint
Direct narrative description
Dialogue, direct or indirect
Commentary from others (e.g., descriptions of Flint, who never appears)
Comparison — what does it mean when we are told that Flint was afraid of Silver?
Jim shows his place in the story and in relation to others in the first sentence.
Self-presentation
What does he tell us about?
What does he not tell us about?
Unusual transference of narrative voice
Why does the author do this?
What does Dr. Livesey provide that Jim couldn’t, both in structural narrative terms and in tone?
The present absent — how the figure of Captain Flint, who never appears, looms over the whole story.
The place of story within the story — how people remember others (including Flint).
Pious pirates — is spoiling a Bible the highest consideration for a bunch of cutthroats and murderers?
The development of menace — unfolding threats as they arise.
Long John Silver: the jolly villain as friend and foe.
The parrot as a proxy representation of Captain Flint
Style
Details
Whatever you want to bring up
© Copyright 2024 by Bruce A. McMenomy.