Designed to forever kindle a dream of high romance and distant horizons, Treasure Island is, in the words of G. K. Chesterton, 'the realization of an ideal, that which is promised in its provocative and beckoning map; a vision not only of white skeletons but also green palm trees and sapphire seas.' G. S. Fraser terms it 'an utterly original book' and goes on to write: 'There will always be a place for stories like Treasure Island that can keep boys and old men happy.'
MY THOUGHTS:
I never considered myself among the target audience for this classic. Perhaps that's why I've only now got around to reading the Victorian boys' adventure story, because it was part of a beautiful set of William Morris inspired kids' classics I came across.
Jim Hawkins' father is the inn-keeper of the Admiral Benbow, a small coastal hotel. One day a scruffy old sailor shows up, and gatecrashes for weeks, deterring more refined clientele. He finally dies after guzzling too much rum, leaving behind a battered wooden chest. Inside, young Jim finds a bundle of papers wrapped in oil cloth, including a map of a mysterious island with buried treasure clearly marked.
Mr Trelawney, the talkative local squire, along with the more circumspect Dr Livesey, decide to hire a ship and follow the directions with Jim as cabin boy. Trelawney reveals too much about their top secret mission while hiring a crew for the Hispaniola. A sweet talking, one-legged man named Long John Silver begs for a job as cook, and offers to recommend several other willing crewmen. Sounds legit, hey?
Not until they're long underway does young Jim accidentally overhear a frightening plot. Turns out he and his mentors have unintentionally surrounded themselves with a ruthless gang of cutthroat pirates. They must begin a dicey game to fake oblivion among these desperadoes who are also playing their own role of innocent sailors. And the good guys know full well time is of the essence. They must figure out what to do quick smart.
This action adventure yarn probably took off from the outset because Stevenson created an easy hero for his target audience to get behind. Jim Hawkins is supposedly just a normal kid, yet when the crunch comes, he keeps surprising himself with his own amazing strokes of luck and quick-thinking way out of jams. His terrifying predicaments always turn out to be the exact right place and time for life-saving exploits. Stevenson's original boy readers might've liked to imagine they possessed similar reserves of dormant heroism.
(Okay, hold tight for a bit of a rant. I've come across many reviewers who criticise modern kids' novels because the main characters are willful and flout authority at every turn. 'Harry had no business to disobey rules and wander around the halls of Hogwarts at night; it gives such wrong messages to kids, yada, yada.' Well, believe me, no young fictional hero could possibly top Jim Hawkins for brazen disobedience and going off on his own merry way, ignoring masters and mentors. And this is a beloved classic from the Victorian era, when children were generally well-behaved. I guess my point is that compliant youngsters who always do as they're told don't always find themselves in riveting story situations. We need to cut modern authors some slack.)
Also quite fascinating is the mutual admiration between young Jim and Long John Silver. These main characters stand for opposing values, yet their behaviour styles are similar. Silver is a charismatic chameleon who makes accurate split-second decisions on the spot, which keeps him from the noose. I suspect the psychological reason young boys enjoy playing pirates, or reading about them, is to flirt with their own shadow selves in a socially acceptable way. If so, then Stevenson really provides for this manner of indulging their intrigue for darkness, while remaining squeaky clean themselves.
I can't figure out whether my 4-star ranking is for the quality of Stevenson's story or because of how popular culture has jumped onto the fruit of his imagination. He's done for piracy what Dickens did for Christmas. It's all so colourful and reckless. Whether it's Long John Silver bellowing, 'Shiver me timbers,' or Captain Flint, the parrot, squawking, 'Pieces of Eight,' it's become the stuff of legend. Piracy clearly isn't just a job, it's a lifestyle.
Still, I find it interesting how these Victorian pirates feel uneasily tied in their minds. (They're technically Georgian, since Stevenson set it a century before he wrote it.) Even though they've relinquished their souls to booze and vice, an uneasy Christian worldview hovers over their heads, filling them with dread for the afterlife. I suspect that if the likes of Dick Johnson and Israel Hands existed today, their consciences would have a far easier time, yet on the other hand, 21st century outlaws have surely lost a lot of their romantic mystique. Hopefully young Dick, at least, wouldn't find it so easy to be lured to the dark side, so to speak.
I learned some interesting facts while reading Treasure Island. There is the barbaric practice of 'keel hauling' in which miscreants are roped up and dragged beneath the ship's keel, having their flesh maimed by barnacles and other sharp marine life. And the meaning behind the jolly roger flag, which stems from the French 'joli rouge' meaning 'pretty red' with its bloodthirsty connotations.
Of course, running through the whole story is, 'Fifteen men on a dead man's chest, yo ho ho and a bottle of rum.' Sort of corny really, but it's unapologetically over-the-top and fun.
I doubt I'll ever be tempted to re-read it, but 4 stars anyway.
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