Plot Overview
Jim Hawkins is a young boy
who lives at his parents' inn, the Admiral Benbow, near Bristol,
England, in the eighteenth century. An old sea captain named Billy
Bones dies in the inn after being presented with a black spot, or
official pirate verdict of guilt or judgment. Jim is stirred to
action by the spot and its mysterious, accurate portent of Billy's
death. Hastily, Jim and his mother unlock Billy's sea chest, finding
a logbook and map inside. Hearing steps outside, they leave with
the documents before Billy's pursuers ransack the inn.
Jim realizes that the contents he has snatched from the
sea chest must be valuable, so he takes one of the documents he
has found to some local acquaintances, Dr. Livesey and Squire Trelawney. Excited,
they recognize it as a map for a huge treasure that the infamous
pirate Captain Flint has buried on a distant island. Trelawney immediately
starts planning an expedition. Naïve in his negotiations to
outfit his ship, the Hispaniola, Trelawney is tricked into hiring
one of Flint's former mates, Long John Silver, and many of Flint's
crew. Only the captain, Smollett, is trustworthy. The ship sets
sail for Treasure Island with nothing amiss, until Jim overhears
Silver's plans for mutiny. Jim tells the captain about Silver and
the rest of the rebellious crew.
Landing at the island, Captain Smollett devises a plan
to get most of the mutineers off the ship, allowing them leisure
time on shore. On a whim, Jim sneaks into the pirates' boat and
goes ashore with them. Frightened of the pirates, Jim runs off alone.
From a hiding place, he witnesses Silver's murder of a sailor who
refuses to join the mutiny. Jim flees deeper into the heart of the
island, where he encounters a half-crazed man named Ben Gunn. Ben
had once served in Flint's crew but was marooned on the island years
earlier.
Meanwhile, Smollett and his men have gone ashore and taken shelter
in a stockade the pirates have built. Jim returns to the stockade,
bringing Ben with him. Silver visits and attempts a negotiation with
the captain, but the captain is wary and refuses to speak to him. The
pirates attack the stockade the next day, and the captain is wounded.
Eager to take action, Jim follows another whim and deserts his mates,
sneaking off to hunt for Ben's handmade boat hidden in the woods.
After finding Ben's boat, Jim sails out to the anchored
ship with the intention of cutting it adrift, thereby depriving
the pirates of a means of escape. He cuts the rope, but he realizes
his small boat has drifted near the pirates' camp and fears he will
be discovered. By chance, the pirates do not spot Jim, and he floats
around the island until he catches sight of the ship drifting wildly.
Struggling aboard, he discovers that one of the watchmen, Israel
Hands, has killed the other watchman in a drunken fit. Jim takes
control of the ship, but Israel turns against him. Jim is wounded
but kills Israel.
Jim returns to the stockade but finds it occupied by the
pirates. Silver takes Jim hostage, telling the boy that the captain
has given the pirates the treasure map, provisions, and the use
of the stockade in exchange for their lives. Jim realizes, however,
that Silver is having trouble managing his men, who accuse him of
treachery. Silver proposes to Jim that they help each other survive
by pretending Jim is a hostage. However, the men present Silver
with a black spot and inform him that he has been deposed as their
commander.
In a desperate attempt to gain control of his crew, Silver
shows them the treasure map to appease them. Silver leads Jim and
the men to the treasure site, but they are shocked to find it already
excavated and the treasure removed. The men are angered and near
mutiny again. At that moment Dr. Livesey, Ben Gunn, and the others
fire on the pirate band, which scatters throughout the island. Jim
and Silver flee, and are guided by the others to Ben's cave, where
Ben has hidden the treasure, which he had discovered months before.
After spending three days carrying the loot to the ship,
the men prepare to set sail for home. There is a debate about the
fate of the remaining mutineers. Despite the pirates' submissive
pleas, they are left marooned on the island. Silver is allowed to
join the voyage, but he sneaks off the ship one night with a portion
of the treasure and is never heard from again. The voyage home comes
to a close. Eventually, Captain Smollet retires from the sea, and
Ben becomes a lodge-keeper. Jim swears off treasure-hunting forever
and suffers from nightmares about the sea and gold coins.
