Good Vs. Evil In Treasure Island Essay -- essays research papers

Throughout legion(predicate) works of literature, a prominent theme has been &8220 grave vs. Evil. Many authors base the plot of their novels nearly &8220good guys fighting the &8220villain.Robert Louis Stevenson contrasts good and evil through many of the characters thathe creates. In the story &8220The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Stevensoncontrasts the characters of Dr. Jekyll to Mr. Hyde to further the theme &8220Good vs. Evil. This theme is park to many of Stevenson&8217s other works. In TreasureIsland, Stevenson uses the character Long John Silver to bring out this identicalidea. Long John Silver in many ways can be viewed the classic villain. But, whilereading this novel, maven must be aware of the many other facets of Silver&8217spersonality that bring out his good nature. In Treasure Island and &8220The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Robert Louis Stevenson incorporates the theme &8220Good vs. Evil in both of these stories through the split personal ities of both Long John Silver, and Dr. Jekyll. Robert Louis Stevenson&8217s theme of &8220Good vs. Evil is prominent in the novel Treasure Island. This story begins by introducing the protagonist of the novel Jim Hawkins. Jim works at an inn, which his mother makes. An old buccaneer is staying there by the name of Billy Bones who possesses a mysterious sea chest, whichmany people seem to want. While he was staying at the inn, many people move to steal the chest from the buccaneer. Billy Bones is a very heavy drinker, which may have been the cause of his death while staying at the inn. After the death, Jim&8217s curiosity for the old chest overwhelms him. Jim opens up the chest and finds to his pleasure an old treasure map. Jim immediately brings the map toDr. Livesey, a friend of Jim&8217s family. Dr. Livesey and Jim decide to advance up a crew and sail to Treasure Island aboard the Hispanola to find the buried treasure. While looking for a cook, Dr. Livesey comes across a man by the name of Long John Silver. Because of Silver&8217s vast knowledge of the sea and his great cooking, he is named the head chef of the ship. Silver has other plans in head teacher though. Assoon as he boards the ship, Jim sees him as a nice, intelligent man. This all quickly changes as he ove... ...ry Jekyll to an end (Jekyll p62).Henry Jelkyll&8217s character is one full of uncanny genius, stubborn curiosity, and towards the end of the story unfortunately, despair. Hyde&8217s character is the complete opposite, one of malignancy and immorality. Jekyll&8217s genuine righteousness is exemplified by his own struggle with Mr. Hyde and eventually withhis self-destruction. He realizes that Hyde will not cease his continuous onslaught of crimes, and pays the ultimate price for the well being of his friends and community. While one may say that suicide is an act of selfishness, Jekyll&8217s suicide must be looked upon as an honorable discharge from his life of woe.These two stories discuss the continuous booking between right and premature which we encounter every day. Whether at work, school, or on a ship hunting for treasure, the choice between right and wrong will be made. Stevenson composed both of these pieces with that very idea in mind. The split personalities of Jekyll and Silver are fictional, but they represent the many daily temptations which all of us must resist every day of our lives.