Robert Louis Stevenson Treasure Island

Robert Louis STEVENSON

Born in Edinburgh in 1850, Robert Louis Stevenson was the son of a prosperous civil engineer. His father had plans for Stevenson to follow his profession but his son's ill health and weak disposition meant that an alternative career had to be decided upon. Choosing law as a compromise, Stevenson attended Edinburgh University to study for the court, but his growing disillusion with the Presbyterian life of his parent's class led to frequent clashes. He became distanced from his family preferring instead to lead a bohemian existence.

His fascination for the city's low life and his bizarre characters - it was rich material for his later stories. By the time Stevenson was called to the bar. In 1875 he was already determined to become a professional writer.

While still in his early twenties he began suffering from severe respiratory problems, which the Scottish climate did nothing to alleviate. In an attempt to relieve his symptoms he spend much of his life travelling to warmer countries and it was while living in France in 1876 that he met his future wife, Mrs Fanny Osbourne, a woman ten years his senior. In France he wrote his first travel books. He followed her to California by emigrant ship and they later married after her divorce was finalized. With her he travelled widely in the US and described his experiences in several books. Stevenson wrote many romantic adventure novels, loved by the young and admired by critics for their style and presentation of moral conflicts.

His famous Treasure Island became popular only after it had been republished. Stevenson wrote it for his step-son, twelve-year-old Lloyd Osbourne. Writing to his friend about the new book he declared that 'if this don't fetch the kids, why they have gone rotten since my day'.

In 1888 he took his family to the South Seas, once more in search of climate better to his condition. Settling in Samoa he built a reputation as a story-teller, especially among the natives. He died only 45 years old. He was a recognised and widely read author in his day.
Readers may also find the publication of The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde and Kidnapped.

Treasure Island

Father of young Jim Hawkins kept the "Admiral Benbow" inn. Once upon a time came to the inn door a tall, strong nut-brown man, his sea-chest. In a hand-barrow - he was a rum-soaked old sea dog.

All day he sat in a corner next the fire, all day he was searching for a seafaring man with one leg. It was not very long after and the gang of captain Flint (dead in this time) has found him. After the fight with one of them his health make worse and after a few days he died.
Mother and young Jim lost no time and open the seaman's chest searching the money, because the seaman was in debt to them for a lodging. Mother took money and Jim picked up the oilskin packet and they run on. Later the pirates found nothing.

Jim gave the oilskin packet to the Doctor, and they found up that they had some clue to where Flint buried his treasure. Dr. Liesey bought the best ship and they got to sea. They promised to be silent as the grave. But Doctor had been talking and everybody in Bristol knew they are sailed for treasure. In the ship's crew was the pirate's gang in full, numbers. In the half of the voyage in was clear. The leader of pirates was one-leg Silver.

They got to the Skeleton Island. They allowed the pirates an afternoon ashore. Jim was going with the pirates. Here he met Ben Gunn the seaman living three years alone on the island.

While the pirates were on island the captain, doctor and others abandoned the ship and moved to the stockade. The first day of fighting started. After some pirates' attacks Jim was floating to Hispaniola and he took the Hispaniola away the pirates.

In the short battle they win. They loaded up the gold treasure and returned to home.