The eternal legacy of treasure island

Originally published in , Treasure Island has captivated audiences for over years.

This idea of pirates, both in the way they speak and the way they look, derives mostly from the popular novel Treasure Island and one of its movie adaptations.

At time of publication, it presented new role models for Englishmen and anti-Imperialist themes at a time when Britain was only gaining more and more power. Treasure Island is an adventure that follows Jim Hawkins, the young son of an inn owner, when he gets swept up in a hunt for buried treasure. A long-time, mysterious patron of the inn is hunted down by a band of pirates- former shipmates- and Jim finds what the pirates are looking for: a map to untold riches buried on an island by notorious pirate, Captain Flint.

Taking the map to officers Jim trusts, Dr. Outnumbered by the pirates, Jim embarks several daring solo missions to disadvantage the mutineers at the risk of his life and the trust his companions have in him. Long John Silver eventually turns against his mates to strike a deal with the doctor so with his aid and the help of a marooned man they encounter named Ben Gunn, Jim and his companions are able to locate and secure the treasure, eventually all returning home.

However, after being compiled and sold as a novel in , adults across Victorian England were fascinated by the story, the characters, and the subliminal themes throughout the text. At the time, Englishmen were struggling with their own identities and what it meant to be an educated man, a husband, a father, a gentleman. Jim is a boy, antithesis of masculinity in his youth, lack of education, and willingness to act alone and against authority.

The Eternal Legacy of Treasure Island.

Pirates throughout history and especially in literature in the mid-Victorian era were painted to be barbaric criminals and enemies of civilization itself, but Stevenson is the first to turn this notion on its head. The pirate is a gentleman, the boy is a pirate, and the British Empire itself is the source of moral ambiguity within men.

The fantasy of never-ending boyhood, prevalent in the late nineteenth century, finds its roots in Treasure Island and inspired stories like Peter Pan — a boy who never grows up and his counterpart, a gentlemanly pirate. As Deane points out, however, this is just a fantasy. Thanks to this novel, historians can pinpoint the shift in political views during the Victorian era from a liberal Imperialist nation to one questioning the lengths their country is going to acquire power.