Irmo Branch Library - Multimedia Book Club discussion

Hi Everyone,
As we near the end of the month, we still have time for more discussion of "Treasure Island" by Robert Louis Stevenson. I hope you've also had time to watch an adaptation, including the 2011 miniseries version, which is a dark, gritty adaptation for adults. Join in when you can (I'll still try to avoid spoilers in my questions, but all bets are off in the discussion!) and here are a few more questions to answer or think about as you finish.

1) Long John Silver is a perplexing character. While he is clearly the antagonist of the story, it's easy to want to root for him. The other characters are drawn in by his charm. How does Long John Silver strike you as a reader? Does he strike you differently in an adaptation, where an actor brings his own take to the character? How does he compare to the hero(es) of the story, like Jim Hawkins, his would-be protege?

2) Moral ambiguity is when something doesn't fall neatly into the category of either 'good' or 'bad' in a story. While the book, as children's lit, keeps things relatively 'black and white' through Jim's perspective, the story is not without some moral 'gray area.' In contrast, the adult adaptation (2011 miniseries) heightens the moral ambiguity by having characters on both side who are neither completely good or bad. Even Jim himself must wrestle with his inclination toward joining the pirates' side, while in the book his loyalty to the good side is mostly solid.
Let's talk about moral ambiguity in the book and in the movie. How much moral gray area do you think Robert Louis Stevenson puts into the story, and do you think it would be different if he had written it for adults rather than a younger audience? In the 2011 adaptation, what are some key differences that stand out? What about other adaptation you've seen?

3) If you've watched the miniseries, what did you think of the change in the story's ending, which sees one of the book's 'good guys' succumb to his greed, while the 'bad guy' finds redemption? What other liberties has this adaptation (or others you may have seen) taken with the story, and what do you think of these changes?

If you haven't watched the 2011 miniseries yet, I recommend it! It is available on Hoopla (hoopladigital.com), and I enjoyed it very much as a way of experiencing the story. It's not 100% faithful to the original, but I found it to be a fair representation of how the plot might actually have played out in an adult world of that era.

I also enjoyed Eddie Izzard's Long John Silver. Here is a an interview with him talking about his character: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Uelk...

Hello all!

I waited a while to add my input on "Treasure Island" because I wanted to have the novel completely finished to give a well-rounded opinion on the questions provided. However, Mr. Stevenson did not capture my attention as strongly as Jane Austen did with our previous month's reading. I regret to admit that I am still painfully far off from finishing this book and may have to pick it up at a later time when I am in the mindset to give it another go. However, I am happy to share my thoughts on what I have read thus far.

1) I am not a fan of violent or gritty films, so I stuck with a premiere of The Muppet Treasure Island. A good musical with legendary childhood characters are always right up my alley! In both the film and the novel, you see obvious charisma and charm in Long John Silver. This is portrayed wonderfully by the amazing Tim Curry in the Muppet film. He appears friendly, knowledgeable, trustworthy and caring when young Hawkins first meets him. Compared to Jim, he is quite shifty in that Jim makes his thoughts and motives apparent. Silver has a plan and has to get others on his side to pull the rug from under them in the end, hopefully without a chance to retaliate. Unfortunately for him in the film, it does not go as smoothly as planned thanks to Jim.

2) If Robert Louis Stevenson had written "Treasure Island" for adults, I feel that there would have been a much wider gray area as mentioned in the question. This would give adults more room to contemplate their own sense of morality. How bad does someone have to be before you decide to reject them, how much does good outweigh the bad of a human. In the Muppet film adaptation, there was compassion in Long John Silver for Jim Hawkins which makes him a more human and dimensional character. Whereas within the world of a children's novel, there is not much room for him to look loving or compassionate if he is the antagonist or "bad guy" for a child's very black and white way of viewing life.

3) Although I did not see the miniseries, I think it is important that the series showed that no one is "all good" or "all bad." We are imperfect beings and characters should reflect humanity. Even those who try to live with a strong sense of morality or what is viewed by most of society as "good," are just as capable of falling into the jaws of greed, jealousy, hatred and moral repugnance as anyone else. Alternatively, someone who has shown an extreme lack of good character and high values in the past, still has a desire inside, as most humans do, for good. Succumbing to negative temptations are easier for us naturally, but something deep down inside of us all has potential to push beyond what is comfortable for what is better. These characters show the complexity of life and morality as far as the miniseries is concerned.