Literary illuminator post #7

well as it seemed to me, there was some sense in this. We struck our bargain on the spot. In three minutes i had the hispaniola sailing easily before the wind along the coast of treasure island, with good hopes of turning the northern point ere noon and beating down again as far as north inlet before high water, when we might beach her safely and wait till the subsiding tide permitted us to land.
Then i lashed the tiller and went to my own chest, where i got a soft milk hankerchief of my mothers. With this, and my aid, hand bound up the great bleeding stab he had recieved in the thight, and after he had eaten a little and had a swallow or two more of the brandy, he began to pick up visibly, sat straighter up, spoke louder and clearer and looked in every way another man. p.g, 145
I chose this passage because there was one reoccuring problem throughout the book which was the way the wind blew. This affected the way the boat would sail, which is a major problem when your on a ship with sails. Did anyone else see this reoccuring problem?

Literary illuminator post #6

It was still quite early, and the colest morning that i think i ever was abroad in- a chill that pierced into the marrow. the sky was bright and cloudless overhead, and the tops of the trees shone rosily in the sun. But where Silver stood with his lirutenant, all was still in shadow, and they waded knee deep in a low white vapour that had crawled during the night out of the morass. The chill and the vapour taken toghther told a poor tale of the island. it was plainly a damp, a feverish, unhealthy spot. "Keep indoors, men" said the captain. "ten to one this is a trick" p.g. 113

i chose this passage because it reminded me and my friends in the summer. although its a hard comparison i thought of myself waking up in the summer and then having ym friends coming over for breakfast poolside, and talking evry seriously such as the captain, and we kept indoors for the sun. Slightly different things, but it reminded me of summer. what did it remidn you guys of?

Literary illuminator post #5

we made our best speed across the strip of wood that now divided us from the stockade, and at every step we took the voices of the buccanears rang nearer. Soon we could hear their footfalls as they ran and the cracking of the branches as they breasted across a bit of thicket.
I began to see wee should have a brush for it in earnest and locked to my priming.
"captain", said I, "trelawney is the dead shot. Give him your gun; his own is useless."
They exchanged guns, and trelawney, silent and cool as he had been since the beginning of the bustle, hung a moment on his heel to see that all was fit for service. At the same time, observing gray to be unarmed, i handed him my cutlass. It did all our hearts good to see him spit in his hand, knit his brows, and make the blade sing through the air. It was plain from every line of his body that our new hand was worth his salt .p,g 104

I chose this passage because is saw a trend with the authors writing. At the beginning of each chapter he would start with an action of what was going on with the ship, anyone see this for the passages during the voyage?

Discussion Director #5

Chapter 30 Page 122

This is where Jim wakes up to doctor Livesey's arrival, and Silver greets the doctor, and Jim holds back a little bit, he was nervouse and afraid to face him.

Questions:

What do you think will happen between Jim and the doctor?

Why do you think Jim is making it a big deal to hold back away from the doctor, and was afraid to greet him?

Why was silver more interested in greeting the doctor nicely?

What are some differences between Jim and Silvers personalities?

What mood do you think the author is trying to set?

(please comment with a sum up of your answers, i will respond back :)

Discussion Director #4

Chapter 33 Page 135

In this page, Jim was given a double-barrelled pistol to hold for protection against any attacks, because one of the men were shot, and the captain went to go protect the rest, and try to save the one shot. So he gave Jim the pistol to watch for any shooters. There were 6 men all together.

Questions:

What do you think Jim will do with this pistol if there are unwanted attacks?

Do you think the attacks will continue?

By the end of the journey, do you think that there will be any crew members left on the boat besides Jim? or No? If so, why?

Putting yourself in Jim's shoes, how would you feel if you where in the situation he was in?

What characteristics best describe Jim in your eyes?

(please comment on this, with a sum up of your answers and i will reply :)

Discussion Director #3

Chapter 23 Page 92

Here Jim had been analyzing the boat he is going to use to continue his journey, he describes "her" as a cross grain lop-sided craft to manage. He was wondering how he was gonna continue with this boat, but what he did not know, he had to find out.

Questions:

What do you think his journey would be like on the boat?

If you were him would you have taken the risk of riding the boat as well?

Do you feel he should have had more people on the boat?

Do you think this was a wise choice for Jim to make?

(comment on this, sum up your answers and i will comment back with a reply :)

Researcher Post #6

There isn't much to talk about in this situation, but it just struck me as a little awkward. If anyone has ever noticed, there weren't any woman the book untill after the first 15 chapters, well, except for Jim's mother. This didn't seem very right to me, so I researched the topic and found out that Stevenson's step-son Lloyd didn't want there to be any women in the book; I assume that Stevenson took that advice.

Why do you think Lloyd didn't want women in Treasure Island?

Also, I must appoligize for Research Post #4 because I did make a mistake there. It turns out that the characters in Treasure Island did use guns as well as other pirate steryotypical weapons, which means that's one more similarity between the actual Caribbean pirates and the pirates from Treasure Island. One more thing that I forgot to mention was that Robert Louis Stevenson wanted to write Treasure Island due to is hearings of the Golden Age of Piracy; this is when the real pirates flourished. The reason being is because his father and grandfather always told him stories about the pirates.

Now, you can either answer the question above, or this question now: Would you be inspired by hearing stories about the Catibbean pirates? Why or why not?


Biography: "Treasure Island." Treasure Island. 14 Apr. 2010. Web. 14 Apr. 2010. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treasure_Island.

Discussion Director #2

Page: 51-53

These pages summed up the event where Jim sits down and is spoken to by the Squire and the captain about what is going on, and about how Jim was right and they apologize for what was happening and there mistakes, and wrong assumptions.

Questions:

Do you think that Jim was reasonable listening to what his crew ha to say?

What do you think should have happened further on in the story?

Do you trust that his crew is responsible enough to have his trust?

If you where the author what would you have changed most about this event?

( answer with a post, try and sum up your ideas, and i will comment on your answer :)

Discussion Director #1

Page: 13

This is where Jim is helping out his MATEY, when he awoke and tried getting up in pain, then begged Jim to lay him back down.

Questions:

-How do you feel about this current situation?

-What do you feel is gonna happen with Jim's matey? Will he survive he pain, will he bear through it, or will he just constantly lean to Jim for help?

-Do you think he will need further assistence from Jim, or Doctors help, or will he heal?

(please answer the questions as comments on this post, and i will respond as well)

Researcher Post #5

I have done a little more research on the whole black spot characteristic, and I have found out a few things that I think might be helpful. First, I would like to remind you that the black spot is an actual black spot, not on their body, but it is given to them on a blank card that has nothing but a black spot on it. This may seem simple enough, but it turns out that the black spot is really a literary device that Stevenson invented. It is used to represent guilt and punsishment saying that something bad will happen or that pirate will have to give up their high ranking positions by will or by force! In the book, Billy Bones didn't die from the consequences of the black spot, but he died in fear of it, that's how powerful it was to pirates. Research also shows that Stevenson may have gotten the idea from what the actual caribbean pirates done; they used to hand out the ace of spades to any pirate who was know for being a traitor, that indicated that eventually, something bad would happen to them.

How would you react if you got the black spot and why? Would you try to hide it?


Bibliography: Black Spot (Treasure Island). 22 Mar. 2010. Web. 15 Apr. 2010. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Spot_(Treasure_Island).

Summarizer post #5

pgs 196-200

The pirates voyage was a success. They found a great amount of gold, and are ready to bring it home. They lost almost all their men, and only a handful remained. They had to bring the gold to the ship which was 3 miles away from where they were, so they had their own voyage to make to the ship. Things were good, because the men got what they wanted

Summarizer post #4

pgs 77-81

The pirates are on their voyage on the Hispaniola. Jim is talking about his first voyage which is the one the pirates just left for. Their is a great storm that is making it hard for the pirates to sail, but the Hispaniola is a big, and powerful ship, so there's not a real great danger. Jim talks about how there was a beautiful day the next morning, and how everything was going to be okay.

Summarizer post #3

pgs 58-63

The pirates are rushing to get everything prepared for their biggest voyage yet. The men broke out in song, and singing the signature pirate song, "Fifteen men on the dead mans chest, Yo-ho-ho, and a bottle of rum!" This song keeps the spirits up of the pirates because it's hectic getting everything ready for the sea voyage. The pirates have a conversation about "Barbecue" whos the cook on the ship. This gives us a idea of what kind of person he is, and all the pirates seem to have positive things to say about the cook, and maybe the pirates all respect each other, and have something positive to say about everyone.

Summarizer post #2

pgs 18-23

One pirate was injured and he's begging Jim to bring him some rum, and Jim doesnt want to, but he's being so annoyed that he finally agree's to give the man some rum, if he pays the debts that he owes Jim's father. Then when Jim tell's the man how long he has to remain in bed for one week, the pirate freaks out. He says something about getting the black spot. Im not too sure what the black spot is suppossed to symbolize, but maybe it can be a sign of death?

Summarizer post #1

pgs 7-12

Something I noticed while reading this first chapter, is that the main character (Jim Hawkins) is actually writing this book. The passage says, "Dr. Livesy, and the rest of these gentlemen having asked me to write down the whole particulars about Treasyre Iland, from beginning to the end, keeping nothing back..." Jim's friends want him to share all of his experiences to the public. Jim had such an adventure that he thought it should be written down and enjoyed by all of those who read the book.

Literary illuminator post #4

This was fifth trip was quite different from any of the others. In the first place, the little gallipot of a boat that we were in was gravely overloaded. Five grown men, and three of them- Trelawney, redruth, and the captian- over six feet hight, was already more than she was meant carry. Add to that the powder, pork, and bread bags. The gunwale was lipping astern. Several times we shipped a little water, and my breeches and the trails of my coat were all soaking wet before we had gone a hundred yards.
The captain made us trim the boat, and we got her to lie a little more evenly. All the same, we got her to lie a little more evenly. All the same, we were afraid to breathe.

I chose this passage because it moves the story along, from after they left shore. This shows that the passage didnt lack of food, even through that time period, which is the great depression. Do you guys think the food they ate is something you would prefer.

Literary illuminator post #3

It was about half past three- three bells in sea phrase- that the two bpoats went ashore from the hispaniola. The captian, the squire, and I were talking amtters over in the cabin. Had there been a breath of wind, we should have fallen on the six mutineers who were left abroad with us, slipped our cable, and away to sea. But the wind was wanting; and to complete our helplessness, down came Hunter with the news that Jim hawkins had slipped into a boat and was gone ashore with the rest.p.95

i chose this passage because it described the boat leaving from the land. This is the passage when they told the captain that a few from the ship ended up in the water. I thought this was a moving passage to the story thats why i chose it.

Literary illuminator post #2

All that night we were in a great bustle getting things stowed in their place, and boatfuls of the squires friend, mr. Blandly and the like, coming off to wish him a good voyage and a safe return. We never had a night at the admiral benbow when i had half the work; and i was dog tired when, a little before dawn, the boatswain sounded his pipe and the crew began to man the capstanbars. I might have been twice as weary, yet I would not have left the deck, all was so new and interesting to me- the brief commands, the shrill note of the whistle, the men bustling to their places in the glimmer of the ships lanterns.

I chose this passage because it was one of the first passages of the voyage itself. It described like the hastle of before going out for the voyage and everyone is just being a bit nervouse and the ship is pretty hectic. This is why i chose this passage.

literary illuminator post #1

This time, as the distance was short, i did not mount, but ran with Dogger's stirrup-leather to the lodge gates and up the long, leafless, moonlit avenue to where the white line of the hall buildingslooked on either hand on great old gardens. Here mr. dance dismounted, and taking me along with him, was admitted at a word into the house. p.g. 34

Ichose this passage because I think that it is a very good example of setting. This is one of many interesting settings in this book. Do you agree? Anyone get this vision in their head while reading the passage?

Researcher Post #4

In an intresting manner, I looked up how actual pirates behaived and what they did. It turns out that real piracey wasn't about drinking rum and sailing across the gloab looking for treasure, it was really a matter of survival. In 1680-1720 pirates roamed the Caribbean area hijacking and attacking ships and rival traders. In Treasure Island, the pirate's purpose was mainly to find burried treasure, but real life pirates were sent out to sea mainly for weakining one country's trading rival, by attacking their ships, which caused the ships to not only be delayed, but possibly hijacked of all goods as well; an example of a country who really liked to use pirates would be France to stop England's exports. Eventually, the pirates did become very wealthy, and they soley did what they did for pure wealth, as the pirates in Treasure Island had done. Also, the real pirates didn't have birds on their shoulders, wooden legs or eyepaches; and although some pirates used cannons, they mainly foucused on the usage of guns.

If real pirates were so different from the ones from Treasure Island, then why do you think Stevenson described his pirates the way he did in Treasure Island?


Bibliography:Piracy in the Caribbean. 12 Apr. 2010. Web. 15 Apr. 2010. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caribbean_pirate.

Researcher Post #3

After conducting a bit of research on various pirate movies, such as the Pirate of the Caribbean movies, I have found out that all of these movies have at least one connection to Treasure Island. Though I couldn't find any actual text stating that these movies obtained their ideas from Treasure Island, I can, however, show that in the movie Pirates of the Carabbean: Dead Man's Chest, not only did the protagonist, Jack Sperrow, recieve the black spot, but he also sailed to Dead Man's Chest. Although the storyline is completely different from that of Treasure Island's, It's shown that the geographical and physical features are both the same; especially the way those pirates act. Long John Silver is actually the most steryotypical version of a pirate because of the way he acted, talked, looked and because he had a parriot on his shoulder, just like the pirates in almost every pirate movie had. Back to the Pirates of the Caribbean topic, one piece of evidence that I think might help is the actual ride Pirates of the Carabbean. The reason is because there is a 31 star flag at the beginning of the ride, and I figure that because of this flag, this indicates that they may have gotten the idea of this ride from Treasure Island, but never really admitied it. What's your theory on all of this? Do you think these people actually made the ideas by themselves, or did they just rip off everything from Treasure Island. I may be wrong though, so if you can find some evidence of Disney actually admitting they used some ideas from Treasure Island, please post it under comments.


Pirates of the Caribbean (attraction). 13 Apr. 2010. Web. 14 Apr. 2010. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pirates_of_the_Caribbean_(theme_park_ride).

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest. 11 Apr. 2010. Web. 14 Apr. 2010. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pirates_of_the_Caribbean:_Dead_Man%27s_Chest.

Researcher Post #2

I have found something that I feel was very intresting to know about what influenced Robert Louis Stevenson's writing of the novel. Aparently, his step-son, Lloyd Osbourne (this is not related, but isn't that the name of Spider-Man's nemisis, Harry Osbourne?), enjoyed painting while it was raining. I found out that one day when he was doing so, Stevenson found Lloyd draying a map of an island, but Lloyd didn't know how to finish it. After that, Stevenson wrote the names of: Skeleton Island, Glasseye Hill, and the three red X's where there was treasure burried. Stevenson named the map Treasure Island and wrote three chapters, three days after the creation of the map. I feel that was very intresting about how he was inspired by his step-son's painting and was able to write an entire novel based on that. Also, if you want to see the map, it's right after the introduction. What are your reactions to this and give an example of a time something inspired you to do anything you thought you couldn't do. If you think I'm being too sappy, then too bad! I'm only kidding about that part; but seriously, you have to do this.


"Treasure Island." Treasure Island. 14 Apr. 2010. Web. 14 Apr. 2010. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treasure_Island.

Researcher Post #1

I was finally able to find out what the song "Fifteen men on the dead man's chest...yo ho ho and a bottle of rum!" means symbolically. According to Geographical, there was a part of the British Virgin Islands where it was said Blackbeard punished 30 crew members by putting them on a small area called the Dead Man's Chest. They were each given bottles of rum to drink, and Blackbeard assumed that they would kill eachother. When Blackbeard came to check on them, 15 survived out of the 30. This is why in the song, they say "15 men"; the fact that they were placed on Dead Man's Chest also explained that part of the saying: "on the dead man's chest..." Because they were all drinking rum on the island, it was put in the song as "yo ho ho and a bottle of rum." The song also continued in some occasions as: "Drink and the devil had done for the rest— Yo-ho-ho, and a bottle of rum!" This part meant that once they drunk, they would fall into temptation and eventually kill eachother.

If you don't believe me, look at these reference sites: http://everything2.com/title/Fifteen+Men+on+a+Dead+Man%2527s+Chest
http://mybroadband.co.za/vb/showthread.php?101072-quot-15-Men-on-the-dead-man-s-chest-quot-Explained.