"Treasure Island," a romance by R. L. Stevenson, published in book form 1883.
The narrator is Jim Hawkins, whose mother keeps the Admiral Benbow inn somewhere on the coast in the west of England in the 18th cent. An old buccaneer takes up his quarters at the inn. He has in his chest information, in the shape of a manuscript map, as to the whereabouts of Capt. Flint's treasure.
Of this his former confederates are determined to obtain possession, and a body of them, led by the sinister blind pirate Pew, makes a descent on the inn. But Jim Hawkins outwits them, secures the map, and delivers it to Squire Trelawney. The squire and his friend Dr Livesey set off for Treasure Island in the schooner Hispaniola taking Jim with them. Some of the crew are the squire's faithful dependants, but the majority are old buccaneers recruited by Long John Silver.
Their design to seize the ship and kill the squire's party is discovered by Jim, and after a series of thrilling fights and adventures is completely thwarted; and the squire, with the help of the marooned pirate Ben Gunn, secures the treasure.
How to cite this entry:
"Treasure Island" The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. Ed. Margaret Drabble and Jenny Stringer. Oxford university Press, 2007. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. 8 October 2011
