Adventure analysis: Treasure Island

“Treasure Island” is one of the most read and retold adventure stories in the world. It follows a boy, Jim Hawkins, on a voyage to find buried treasure. The novel is built on elements of danger, suspense, and exploration. Jim starts a simple innkeeper’s son, but through the story as his horizons expand, he learns and grows and begins to understand the world. When he finally returns to his home, he no longer wishes to leave it.

The beginning of every adventure story is a call. Few heroes leave their home to seek adventure without some sort of prompting. Jim’s call to adventure comes in the form of a map, which is left in the inn by Billy Bones, a former seafarer. Bones is an interesting character. He is neither helpful nor specifically antagonistic toward Jim, but fulfills his role in setting the main character on the course that will eventually take him to the island the book is named for. Bones dies in the inn of a stroke, and Jim and his mother find a map among his belongings that they later discover leads to a hoard of treasure.

The second stage of Jim’s adventure begins. His mother’s inn is ransacked by men searching for the map, and now he has even more motivation to go after and recover the treasure. But it is impossible to do this alone, or from home, so he must venture out to new places, where he will inevitably meet new people. He is to be assisted in finding the treasure by two men, the doctor and the squire, who are Jim’s main allies on his journey. He also meets Long John Silver, who becomes, for part of the story, the antagonist. Jim trusts Silver in the beginning, though any audience member can see that he is not all he appears. This easy misplacement of trust on Jim’s part is a trait of childhood that he will grow out of before the end of the story.

The next part includes the actual adventure. It begins when Jim overhears Silver planning to mutiny, and follows Jim through all kinds of danger and excitement. Silver goes from being a friend to an enemy and then later he and Jim become allies again. This stage in any adventure story is the most exciting, and also the stage where the character grows the most. Through his courage and cleverness, Jim proves himself to be more than a helpless boy. The adults around him, the doctor and the squire, start treating him less like someone to be protected, and more like a valuable ally, which is something I believe all children want. In the end of the fighting, Jim and his friends have the treasure, and the pirates are left on the island when they begin their return journey.

The last stage of most adventure stories is a homecoming. Not only does it decisively end the story, it allows for a chance to report the adventurer’s progress. Jim returns to his mother older, more experienced, and in this case wealthier than he was when he left. In the narrative he describes how he no longer wishes to go on any more adventures, and is content to live a quiet life. The contrast between Jim’s character in the beginning of the story and his character in the end proves that he grew and changed through his experiences.

“Treasure Island” is an excellent example of an adventure story for children. The main character, a young boy, leaves his home in search of treasure. He runs into many kinds of people and situations, good and bad, and earns the trust and respect of the adults around him. He overcomes all the obstacles and achieves his goal, then returns to the safety and comfort of his home.