Treasure Island
Study Guide
For the novel by Robert Louis Stevenson
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by Joy Hardin
Grades 7–10
Reproducible Pages
#337
Treasure Island
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Study Guide
by Joy Hardin
For the novel by Robert Louis Stevenson
© 2010 Progeny Press
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Limited permission to reproduce this study guide.
Purchase of this book entitles an individual teacher
to reproduce pages for use in the classroom or home.
Multiple teachers may not reproduce pages
from the same study guide.
This is a Progeny Press Interactive Study Guide. Sale of any copy or any form of this study guide,
except on an original Progeny Press CD with original sleeve, is strictly and specifically prohibited.
Treasure Island Study Guide
A Progeny Press Study Guide
by Joy Hardin
edited by Rebecca Gilleland
cover art by Nathan Gilleland
Copyright © 2010 Progeny Press
All rights reserved.
Reproduction or translation of any part of this work beyond
that permitted by Section 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States
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Printed in the United States of America.
ISBN: 978-1-58609-524-6 Book
978-1-58609-525-3 CD
978-1-58609-526-0 Set
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Study Guide Author
Joy Hardin works with Paragon Cooperative Learning Academy, in Covington,
Georgia, as a facilitator and teacher of middle school Composition II, a course
designed to extend the writing process using skills learned in previous classes. She
enjoys writing and editing through many different venues, including local churches,
university classes, and freelance newspaper work. Joy is the mother of two grown children and currently lives in Loganville, Georgia.
© 2010 Progeny Press
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Table of Contents
Study Guide Author .................................................................................................3
Note to Instructor .....................................................................................................5
Synopsis ....................................................................................................................7
About the Novel’s Author .........................................................................................8
Prereading Activities ..................................................................................................9
Part I—The Old Buccaneer: Chapters 1–6 .............................................................12
Part II—The Sea Cook: Chapters 7–12 ..................................................................18
Part III—My Shore Adventure: Chapters 13–15 .....................................................24
Part IV—The Stockade: Chapters 16–21 ................................................................29
Part V—My Sea Adventure: Chapters 22–27 ..........................................................34
Part VI—Captain Silver: Chapters 28–34 ...............................................................40
Overview ................................................................................................................48
Essays .....................................................................................................................52
Additional Resources ..............................................................................................55
Answer Key .............................................................................................................57
*Answer Key is located in separate file.
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Note to Instructor
How to Use Progeny Press Study Guides. Progeny Press study guides are designed
to help students better understand and enjoy literature by getting them to notice and
understand how authors craft their stories and to show them how to think through the
themes and ideas introduced in the stories. To properly work through a Progeny Press
study guide, students should have easy access to a good dictionary, a thesaurus, a Bible
(we use NIV translation, but that is up to your preference; just be aware of some differences in language), and sometimes a topical Bible or concordance. Supervised access
to the Internet also can be helpful at times, as can a good set of encyclopedias.
Most middle grades and high school study guides take from eight to ten weeks
to complete, generally working on one section per week. Over the years, we have
found that it works best if the students completely read the novel the first week, while
also working on a prereading activity chosen by the parent or teacher. Starting the second week, most parents and teachers have found it works best to work on one study
guide page per day until the chapter sections are completed. Students should be
allowed to complete questions by referring to the book; many questions require some
cross-reference between elements of the stories.
Most study guides contain an Overview section that can be used as a final test,
or it can be completed in the same way the chapter sections were completed. If you
wish to perform a final test but your particular study guide does not have an Overview
section, we suggest picking a couple of questions from each section of the study guide
and using them as your final test.
Most study guides also have a final section of essays and postreading activities.
These may be assigned at the parents’ or teachers’ discretion, but we suggest that students engage in several writing or other extra activities during the study of the novel to
complement their reading and strengthen their writing skills.
As for high school credits, most Christian high schools to whom we have spoken have assigned a value of one-fourth credit to each study guide, and this also seems
to be acceptable to colleges assessing homeschool transcripts.
© 2010 Progeny Press
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Internet References
All websites listed in this study guide were checked for appropriateness at the time of
publication. However, due to the changing nature of the Internet, we cannot guarantee that the URLs listed will remain appropriate or viable. Therefore, we urge parents
and teachers to take care in and exercise careful oversight of their children’s use of the
Internet.
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Part II—The Sea Cook
Chapters 7–12
Vocabulary:
The synonym of a word is another word that has the same or nearly the same meaning
as the original word. Choose the word from the box below that completes each sentence. Not all words will be used. One or more synonyms for the missing word is
given in parentheses.
Word Box
agitated
avowed
congregated
anecdote
burnished
corruption
immortal
anticipations
calumnies
countenance
simultaneously
commentary
prosperous
indomitable
lament
mutiny
duplicity
1. “I lived on at the Hall under the charge of old Redruth, the gamekeeper,
almost a prisoner, but full of sea-dreams and the most charming
____________________ (expectations) of strange islands and adventures.”
2. “At that I gave up all attempt at ____________________ (remarks) and read
straight on.”
3. “They go the length of declaring that this honest creature would do anything
for money, that the Hispaniola belonged to him, and that he sold it to me
absurdly high—the most transparent of ____________________ (slander).”
4. “Long John Silver, he is called, and has lost a leg; but that I regarded as a recommendation, since he lost it in his country’s service, under the
____________________ (famous forever) Hawke.”
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5. “Between Silver and myself we got together in a few days a company of the
toughest old salts imaginable—not pretty to look at, but fellows, by their faces,
of the most ____________________ (unconquerable) spirit.”
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6. “I was half beside myself with glee; and if ever I despised a man, it was old Tom
Redruth, who could do nothing but grumble and ____________________
(grieve, bewail).”
7. “On our little walk along the quays, he made himself the most interesting companion, telling me about the different ships that we passed by, their rig, tonnage, and nationality, explaining the work that was going forward—how one
was discharging, another taking in cargo, and a third making ready for sea—
and every now and then telling me some little ____________________ (tale)
of ships or seamen or repeating a nautical phrase till I had learned it perfectly.”
8, “To me he was unweariedly kind, and always glad to see me in the galley, which
he kept as clean as a new pin, the dishes hanging up ____________________
(polished) and his parrot in a cage in one corner.”
9. “By a ‘gentleman of fortune’ they plainly meant neither more nor less than a
common pirate, and the little scene that I had overheard was the last act in the
____________________ (turning to evil) of one of the honest hands—perhaps
of the last one left aboard.”
10. “There all hands were already ____________________ (gathered).”
11. “A belt of fog had lifted almost ____________________ (together) with the
appearance of the moon.”
12. “I was surprised at the coolness with which John ____________________
(affirmed) his knowledge of the island. . . .”
13. “He did not know, to be sure, that I had overheard his council from the apple
barrel, and yet I had, by this time, taken such a horror of his cruelty,
____________________ (deceit), and power, that I could scarce conceal a
shudder when he laid his hand upon my arm.”
14. “The doctor changed ____________________ (expression) a little, but next
moment he was master of himself.”
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Treasure Island Study Guide
15. “I found them all three seated round the table, a bottle of Spanish wine and
some raisins before them, and the doctor smoking away, with his wig on his lap,
and that, I knew, was a sign that he was ____________________ (upset).”
Questions:
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1. Who helps Squire Trelawney find a crew for the ship and what does he do
regarding two of the crew already hired?
2. What is Jim’s overall impression of Long John Silver at the end of Chapter 7?
3. What changes does Captain Smollett demand before they sail?
4. The pirates are anxious to kill the doctor, squire, and the captain, but Long
John Silver answers they will wait “till I give the word. . . .” Why does Long
John Silver want to wait until they are half way back to kill Captain Smollett?
5. What is the one thing Long John Silver claims the right to do, when the time
comes to kill the captain, the squire, and the doctor?
6. What saves Jim from being discovered in the barrel and gives him the opportunity to escape and warn the captain, doctor, and squire?
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Thinking About the Story:
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7. In Chapter 10, with the voyage just underway and the true character of the
crew still unknown, how does Stevenson use the sea shanty, “Fifteen men on the
dead man’s chest,” as a type of foreshadowing?
8. After Jim tells the doctor, squire, and captain what he’s heard in the apple barrel, whom does the doctor say can help them more than anyone? Why? What is
Jim’s reaction?
9. Pace is the rhythm of a story or the speed of the action in a story. The pace of a
story varies depending on the story structure. For example, the climax of an
adventure narrative will unfold at a brisk pace. The writer deliberately creates
this pace with short, punchy sentences built on strong, transitional verbs. In
general, pace is a complex mix of word choice; length of sentences, paragraphs
and sections; transitions; and structure and sequencing.
A transition is a passage in a piece of writing that smoothly connects two topics or sections to each other. How does Stevenson use Jim’s time in the apple barrel
and the sighting of the island to transition and increase the tension and pace?
10. In literature, the term stereotype refers to a character with exaggerated characteristics intended to represent all members of his or her group. A stereotype is a
widely believed but unchanging and oversimplified image or idea of a particular
type of person or thing. How is the stereotypical pirate portrayed in common
culture? Choose one or two quotes from Chapters 7–12 to show what Long
John Silver is like. Is he stereotypical? Why or why not?
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11. Idioms are sayings that don’t literally mean what the words mean. If someone
says he is “really beat” we know that he means he is tired, rather than that he
has been beaten by someone, or to be “wet behind the ears” means to be inexperienced, not to actually have water behind your ears. When an author writes
using idioms, the language of the story sounds more true to life. Underlined in
the sentences below are some of the idioms found in the story. After each, write
what the words mean literally, and what we understand them to mean contextually, or in the context of the sentence.
a. I am afraid I led that boy a dog’s life; for as he was new to the work, I had a
hundred opportunities of setting him right and putting him down, and I
was not slow to profit by them.
Literal Meaning:
Understood Meaning:
b. You’re a lad, you are, but you’re as smart as paint.
Literal Meaning:
Understood Meaning:
c. Oh, I know’d Dick was square.
Literal Meaning:
Understood Meaning:
d. Long John’s eyes burned in his head as he took the chart; but, by the fresh
look of the paper, I knew he was doomed to disappointment.
Literal Meaning:
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Understood Meaning:
Dig Deeper:
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12. Other than finding a ship, what did Squire Trelawney’s letter reveal he’d done in
Bristol? Read Proverbs 17:28; Ecclesiastes 3:1, 7; and Proverbs 2:11. What do
these verses say? How might things have gone differently if Trelawney had done
what these verses teach?
13. When Jim overhears the mutiny plans while in the apple barrel, he immediately
goes to the doctor, the squire, and the captain. Read Proverbs 15:22 and 19:20.
What do these verses teach? How does this apply to this situation?
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Answer Key
Activities for Prereading
7. stroll—walk; forth—forward; hither—here; bade—requested; effectual—effective; whence—where; parlor—living
room; thither—there; shall—will; choicest—best
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Part I—The Old Buccaneer
Chapters 1–6
Vocabulary:
1. c; 2. d; 3. b; 4. c; 5. c; 6. b; 7. b; 8. a; 9. a; 10. atrocious—d, miscreant—a; 11. b; 12. c; 13. a
Questions:
1. It is isolated and receives very little company.
2. He asks Jim to look out for a seafaring man with one leg.
3. Billy Bones grows pale, looks as if he’s seen a ghost, and later has a stroke.
4. Flint was the bloodthirstiest buccaneer that sailed, Blackbeard was a child to Flint. It is rumored that Flint buried a
vast treasure.
5. Answers will vary, but may mention the following: Stevenson used a blind man as a contrast between strength and
weakness between Billy Bones, who has dominated the inn (strength), and a blind man (a symbol of weakness). Also, the
other pirates were afraid of Billy Bones and perhaps felt it less likely that he would attack a blind man.
6. The inn has been ransacked and the clock thrown down. The captain’s money-bag and the silver from the till were
taken.
7. Both her honesty in refusing to take more than was due her and her greed in insisting that they be paid and not simply
dismissing the debt, puts them in danger as the pirates grow close. Her foolhardiness is in the previous actions of timeconsuming plundering through the chest, and her weakness is in fainting at the nearness of the pirates.
Thinking About the Story:
8. Answers will vary but may mention some of the following: treasure; “Fifteen men on the dead man’s chest”; “a seafaring man with one leg”; stormy nights when the wind shook the four corners of the house; the surf roared; rum; wild seasongs; hangings; walking the plank; Dry Tortugas; and the Spanish Main. The mood seems dangerous, stormy,
anticipating adventure and pirates.
9. The doctor is afraid of Squire Trelawney, because he cannot keep a secret and the pirates are determined to get the map
and thereby the money. This hints that there may be trouble if the squire talks. The squire promises to be as silent as the
grave. Answers will vary.
10. Answers will vary but may mention: Jim’s father is seen only briefly at the beginning of the story and, due to his illness, remains an unknown character. When Jim’s father dies, Jim is so busy caring for the practical things, “the visits of
the neighbours, the arranging of the funeral, and all the work of the inn,” he has little time to deal with his emotions.
The captain’s death brought new problems, as well. Billy Bones had run up a debt and there appeared to be no hope of
recovering it. There were also additional funeral expenses. Also, the captain, though obnoxious and demanding, had
brought excitement into Jim’s life, which, at his death, appeared to be ended. It may also have been what is sometimes
called transference, which is transferring one’s feelings from the actual source of those feelings onto something else. In
other words, Jim may be transferring or releasing his sadness over his father’s death at Billy Bone’s death.
11. a. “You might/can call me captain.” b. “I have a son of my own,” said he, “identical to you and he’s the pride of my
heart.” c. “I’ll shake out/untie another strip of sail (to either catch more wind or catch less wind in a gale) and fool them
all again.”
12. People in crowds tend to act as a mob, fear spreads from one person to the next until the crowd is frightened.
Argument, if persuasive, can incite an entire crowd to anger and make them bold for action.
Dig Deeper:
13. The Lord sees all that happens throughout the world and all the good things and evil things people do. He hears our
cries. The Lord examines our lives and ways. We have no secrets from God.
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