Study notes: Treasure Island
Jim Hawkins finds a map in a dead sailor’s chest and leaves his mother’s inn for a voyage. Long John Silver, the cook, is charming and dangerous. The adults on the ship trust the wrong people. Jim makes brave choices and also reckless ones. Stevenson wrote a straight adventure: islands, mutiny, and a treasure that does not make anyone kinder. The book is the pattern for a lot of later pirate stories, including the ones that softened Silver.
Themes
Charm is not the same as loyalty. Growing up can mean seeing through an adult. Greed makes a crew fragile.
People to follow
Jim Hawkins, Long John Silver, Dr. Livesey, Squire Trelawney, and Ben Gunn.
Talk about
- Where do you still like Silver, and where should Jim stop listening?
- Which adult mistake starts the trouble?
- Does the treasure solve the story’s real problem?
Public-domain text.