Good Vs. Evil In George Orwell's Treasure Island
Treasure Island Treasure Island is an adventure tale that deals with greed and a central theme of good versus evil (bad guys versus good guys). “No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.” (Matthew 6:24) Once the main character Jim Hawkins leaves his boring life at the Inn, the book becomes very fast paced and more exciting which is due to the main characters sense of curiosity and adventure. The main character is the narrator of this book. He appears to be full of life and ready to take on any situation once his confidence builds during the story. Treasure Island is also a pirate tale filled with action scenes
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and drama. It has been listed as one of the most popular adventure novels ever written. Peer pressure and the desire to belong and to be accepted by others were very apparent in this book. Alcohol abuse was a temptation that Jim faced during this book. He was encouraged to drink by those around him but Jim refused to drink even though his refusal could have brought on ridicule and intimidation by those trying to influence him. Today teenagers are faced with the situation of making the right decision and not drinking alcohol which makes them open to being made fun of and excluded from their peer group. Jim proved that if you have self assurance and a strong moral character you will stay true to your beliefs without fear of rejection.
Throughout the book Treasure Island Jim, who could be called a hero, is tested in many ways. Jim must make quick decisions, remain courageous in scary situations, and believe in himself as he overcomes many obstacles. Jim learns many lessons about life and himself as he appears to be triumphant in each situation he encounters.
Jim’s first encounter with someone who had exciting adventures is when Billy Bones walks into the Inn, The Admiral Benbow. This character was not in the story very long but was one of the most important characters because he possessed a map that spoke of treasure. This was exciting to Jim because it began his interest on going on an adventure. The Capitan, Billy Bones, had an unusual visitor named Black Dog, who had two fingers on his left hand missing. A fight between Black Dog and Billy Bones at the Inn was the beginning of exciting action in the story, particularly since both men drew swords and Black Dog was injured.
The next curious visitor to the Admiral Benbow was a blind beggar named Old Man Pew. On his first visit he passed a secret note to Billy Bones telling him that he had one month to repay his debts. This caused Billy Bones to have an epileptic seizure and die. After Billy Bones’ death, Old Man Pew returned in search of the map of Treasure Island. Old Man Pew became rough with Jim and grabbed his arm and bent it awkwardly. This was Jim’s first encounter with violence and evil. The excitement continued when Old Man Pew and his mates ransacked the Inn in search of the treasure map. “The greedy person stirs up strife, but whoever trusts in the Lord will be enriched.” (Prov. 28:25). Old Man Pew later that night was trampled by horses and died. Jim obtained the map from his belongings and decided to go hunt for the treasure.
Jim obtained Dr. Livesey, the family physician, to come on board with him, Dr. Livesey begin to formulate a plan to get a ship and a crew and go to Treasure Island to hunt for the treasure. Impressed by Jim’s sense of adventure and intelligence, the doctor asked Jim to be a cabin boy on the ship. Dr. Livesey asked his friend Squire Trelawney to arrange for the ship and appoint a crew for the trip to Treasure Island.
The Captain of this ship was an experienced Captain named Capitan Smollet. Capitan Smollet recognized Long John Silver, one of the crewmen on the journey, as a pirate. The pirate was one of the trickiest and most dishonest characters in the book. Long John Silver was an interesting character capable of being both cruel and charming. This notorious pirate had a wooden leg and a parrot named Capitan Flint. Silver acted like a gentleman, but was actually very shrewd, unusually calm, and evil. He was a very complex character and was considered the villain in the book. Whereas Jim was considered the good hero in the book, Long John Silver was considered the evil hero.
The ship set sail for Treasure Island with the characters described above and other crewman. During the course of the journey nineteen of the crewman was recognized as pirates. When the ship landed on Treasure Island the honest crewman decided among themselves that they needed to flee the boat to be safe from the pirates. After fleeing the ship, and as he was exploring the island, Jim met an English man named Ben Gunn who was the only human resident of Treasure Island. He had been marooned by a group of pirates three years ago. When Jim met Ben Gunn, Ben was seen jumping like a monkey among the trees. He craved human contact and was in a pitiful state of mind. He was the first person to find the treasure and put it in a safe place and would later help the men defeat the pirates.
Upon fleeing the ship, the honest crewmembers barricaded themselves in the stockade to protect themselves from the pirates.
A gun fight ensued, many people were killed, and Capitan Smollet was injured. During the following night Jim used his bravery to slip away and cut the ship free that now housed the pirates. Before going back to land he climbed aboard the ship to evaluate the situation. After doing this, he noticed that the pirates were drunk and were fighting amongst themselves. Then Jim fell from the front of the ship and became stunned. He awoke to find himself drifting out to sea. He tried paddling to shore but soon realized he could not make it. He succeeded to paddle to the ship and again board it. Once boarding, he found a lone pirate who agreed if Jim gave him brandy he would help him beach the boat safely. Later on the pirate attacked him and Jim shot him dead. The boat soon came to rest on the north end of Treasure Island.
On disembarking and going back to the stockade Jim noticed something wasn’t right. Silver and the pirates had taken over the stockade and his friends had fled. Jim was captured by Silver and the pirates, but when the pirates wanted to kill Jim, Silver stood up for Jim. This was the turning point in the book where Silver went from evil to good. After Silver tricked his men into entering a hole in search for the treasure, the pirates became angry when they found out the treasure was not there. The good guys ambushed the pirates (triumph good over evil) and killed three pirates and three
escaped.
The reader soon realized that the treasure had been recovered by Ben Gunn two months before the ship arrived and hidden it in his cave. Ben and the rest of the crew, including Capitan Silver, returned to the ship with the treasure with plans to return for the mainland. The injured Capitan Smollet made the decision to go to Spain to pick up more crew for the long sail home. While the ship was docked in Spain Capitan Silver abandoned the ship with only his share of gold. The rest of them returned home dividing the treasure amongst them.
After researching and doing my biography on Robert Louis Stevenson, I personally think that because of his frailty and frequent illness the author created a character that was very physically active and participated in adventures that he wished he had the physically ability to pursue.
and drama. It has been listed as one of the most popular adventure novels ever written. Peer pressure and the desire to belong and to be accepted by others were very apparent in this book. Alcohol abuse was a temptation that Jim faced during this book. He was encouraged to drink by those around him but Jim refused to drink even though his refusal could have brought on ridicule and intimidation by those trying to influence him. Today teenagers are faced with the situation of making the right decision and not drinking alcohol which makes them open to being made fun of and excluded from their peer group. Jim proved that if you have self assurance and a strong moral character you will stay true to your beliefs without fear of rejection.
Throughout the book Treasure Island Jim, who could be called a hero, is tested in many ways. Jim must make quick decisions, remain courageous in scary situations, and believe in himself as he overcomes many obstacles. Jim learns many lessons about life and himself as he appears to be triumphant in each situation he encounters.
Jim’s first encounter with someone who had exciting adventures is when Billy Bones walks into the Inn, The Admiral Benbow. This character was not in the story very long but was one of the most important characters because he possessed a map that spoke of treasure. This was exciting to Jim because it began his interest on going on an adventure. The Capitan, Billy Bones, had an unusual visitor named Black Dog, who had two fingers on his left hand missing. A fight between Black Dog and Billy Bones at the Inn was the beginning of exciting action in the story, particularly since both men drew swords and Black Dog was injured.
The next curious visitor to the Admiral Benbow was a blind beggar named Old Man Pew. On his first visit he passed a secret note to Billy Bones telling him that he had one month to repay his debts. This caused Billy Bones to have an epileptic seizure and die. After Billy Bones’ death, Old Man Pew returned in search of the map of Treasure Island. Old Man Pew became rough with Jim and grabbed his arm and bent it awkwardly. This was Jim’s first encounter with violence and evil. The excitement continued when Old Man Pew and his mates ransacked the Inn in search of the treasure map. “The greedy person stirs up strife, but whoever trusts in the Lord will be enriched.” (Prov. 28:25). Old Man Pew later that night was trampled by horses and died. Jim obtained the map from his belongings and decided to go hunt for the treasure.
Jim obtained Dr. Livesey, the family physician, to come on board with him, Dr. Livesey begin to formulate a plan to get a ship and a crew and go to Treasure Island to hunt for the treasure. Impressed by Jim’s sense of adventure and intelligence, the doctor asked Jim to be a cabin boy on the ship. Dr. Livesey asked his friend Squire Trelawney to arrange for the ship and appoint a crew for the trip to Treasure Island.
The Captain of this ship was an experienced Captain named Capitan Smollet. Capitan Smollet recognized Long John Silver, one of the crewmen on the journey, as a pirate. The pirate was one of the trickiest and most dishonest characters in the book. Long John Silver was an interesting character capable of being both cruel and charming. This notorious pirate had a wooden leg and a parrot named Capitan Flint. Silver acted like a gentleman, but was actually very shrewd, unusually calm, and evil. He was a very complex character and was considered the villain in the book. Whereas Jim was considered the good hero in the book, Long John Silver was considered the evil hero.
The ship set sail for Treasure Island with the characters described above and other crewman. During the course of the journey nineteen of the crewman was recognized as pirates. When the ship landed on Treasure Island the honest crewman decided among themselves that they needed to flee the boat to be safe from the pirates. After fleeing the ship, and as he was exploring the island, Jim met an English man named Ben Gunn who was the only human resident of Treasure Island. He had been marooned by a group of pirates three years ago. When Jim met Ben Gunn, Ben was seen jumping like a monkey among the trees. He craved human contact and was in a pitiful state of mind. He was the first person to find the treasure and put it in a safe place and would later help the men defeat the pirates.
Upon fleeing the ship, the honest crewmembers barricaded themselves in the stockade to protect themselves from the pirates.
A gun fight ensued, many people were killed, and Capitan Smollet was injured. During the following night Jim used his bravery to slip away and cut the ship free that now housed the pirates. Before going back to land he climbed aboard the ship to evaluate the situation. After doing this, he noticed that the pirates were drunk and were fighting amongst themselves. Then Jim fell from the front of the ship and became stunned. He awoke to find himself drifting out to sea. He tried paddling to shore but soon realized he could not make it. He succeeded to paddle to the ship and again board it. Once boarding, he found a lone pirate who agreed if Jim gave him brandy he would help him beach the boat safely. Later on the pirate attacked him and Jim shot him dead. The boat soon came to rest on the north end of Treasure Island.
On disembarking and going back to the stockade Jim noticed something wasn’t right. Silver and the pirates had taken over the stockade and his friends had fled. Jim was captured by Silver and the pirates, but when the pirates wanted to kill Jim, Silver stood up for Jim. This was the turning point in the book where Silver went from evil to good. After Silver tricked his men into entering a hole in search for the treasure, the pirates became angry when they found out the treasure was not there. The good guys ambushed the pirates (triumph good over evil) and killed three pirates and three
escaped.
The reader soon realized that the treasure had been recovered by Ben Gunn two months before the ship arrived and hidden it in his cave. Ben and the rest of the crew, including Capitan Silver, returned to the ship with the treasure with plans to return for the mainland. The injured Capitan Smollet made the decision to go to Spain to pick up more crew for the long sail home. While the ship was docked in Spain Capitan Silver abandoned the ship with only his share of gold. The rest of them returned home dividing the treasure amongst them.
After researching and doing my biography on Robert Louis Stevenson, I personally think that because of his frailty and frequent illness the author created a character that was very physically active and participated in adventures that he wished he had the physically ability to pursue.