Study Guide — Treasure Island, Chapter: “The Man of the Island”

Themes / Big Ideas (and how they connect to the novel)

Survival, isolation, and identity: Ben Gunn’s three-year marooning shows how isolation reshapes a person’s mind, speech, and values, echoing the novel’s tension between wilderness and civilization.
Trust, alliances, and betrayal: Jim gauges whether Ben Gunn is ally or threat, reflecting the book’s ongoing tests of loyalty amid shifting pirate and gentleman factions.
Greed and the lure of treasure: Gunn’s “I’m rich” and bargaining for a reward tie personal motives to the broader theme of how treasure corrupts, tempts, and endangers.
Coming of age and courage: Jim’s decision to face the “man of the island” with resolve marks his growing independence and moral agency.
Legend and fear (the shadow of Flint): Stories of Flint killing six men alone amplify the novel’s mythic pirate cruelty and the power of reputation to control the living.
Providence vs. chance: Gunn’s talk of “Providence” contrasts with the chaos of cannon fire, mirroring the book’s tension between fate, faith, and sheer luck.
Law, order, and social class: Gunn’s preference for a “gen’leman born” over “gen’lemen of fortune” underscores the novel’s contrast between legitimate authority and pirate “democracy.”
Justice and punishment: Marooning as pirate justice highlights moral ambiguity—pirate codes endure even as they brutalize.

Word/Phrase	Part of Speech	Definition
nondescript	adjective	Lacking distinctive features; hard to classify.
apparition	noun	A ghostly or startling appearance.
marooned	verb/adjective	Abandoned on a remote shore as punishment.
buccaneers	noun (plural)	Pirates, especially in the Caribbean (17th–18th c.).
accoutrement	noun	An item of dress or equipment.
tatters	noun (plural)	Torn, ragged pieces of cloth.
tarry	adjective	Smeared with tar; tar-like.
gaskins	noun (plural)	Loose sailor’s breeches/trousers (archaic).
supplication	noun	Humble, earnest pleading or prayer.
pious	adjective	Devoutly religious.
catechism	noun	A Q&A summary of Christian doctrine.
Providence	noun	God’s protective care; divine guidance.
clove hitch	noun	A simple knot for securing a rope to a post or spar.
quartermaster	noun	On ships, an officer/petty officer handling navigation/signals; among pirates, an elected second-in-command.
ringleader	noun	The chief instigator or leader of a rebellious group.
cutwater	noun	The forward edge of a ship’s bow that cuts the water.
liberal-minded	adjective	Generous; openhanded; tolerant.
to the tune of	idiom	Amounting to; in the amount of.
chaplain (“chapling”)	noun	A clergy member attached to a ship, unit, or institution (spelled “chapling” in Gunn’s dialect).
gentleman of fortune	noun phrase	Euphemism for pirate/privateer.
mastheaded	verb	Sent up to the masthead as punishment; used figuratively by Gunn to mean driven up into the heights.

“I… saw a figure leap with great rapidity behind the trunk of a pine.” — Suspenseful first glimpse of the “man of the island.”
“I’m poor Ben Gunn, I am; and I haven’t spoke with a Christian these three years.” — Isolation’s human cost; reentry into society.
“Nay, mate… marooned.” — Pirate justice and its cruelty.
“But it were Providence that put me here.” — Fate/faith thread that runs through the novel.
“I’m rich.” — Foreshadowing Gunn’s link to the treasure and the pull of greed.
“Now, Jim, you tell me true: that ain’t Flint’s ship?” — The enduring terror of Flint’s legend.
“Not a man—with one—leg? … ‘Silver?’” — Silver’s feared reputation; Jim’s knowledge becomes leverage.
“Ben Gunn’s the man to do it… Would your squire… come down to the toon of… one thousand pounds?” — Alliances built through bargaining; morality vs. reward.
“He puts… more confidence… in a gen’leman born than in these gen’leman of fortune.” — Class, legitimacy, and order versus pirate rule.
“It was battle, murder, and sudden death… him against six.” — Flint’s mythic brutality; the dark heart of the treasure’s history.
“The cannon-shot was followed… by a volley of small arms.” — War breaks out; shifts the chapter from encounter to conflict.
“I beheld the Union Jack flutter in the air above a wood.” — Symbol of lawful authority and a rallying point for Jim’s side.