Study Guide: Treasure Island — Chapter “Israel Hands”

A tense cat-and-mouse aboard the Hispaniola: Jim Hawkins must outthink and outmaneuver the wounded but deadly coxswain, Israel Hands, as he pilots the schooner into North Inlet and fights for his life.

Themes / Big Ideas

Coming of age and self-reliance: Jim takes the helm, makes tactical decisions (sneaking, re-priming pistols), and acts as “Cap’n Hawkins.” This episode marks a leap in his independence—central to the novel’s bildungsroman arc.
Moral codes: Christian conscience vs. pirate pragmatism: Jim invokes prayer and the soul; Hands answers with a brutal creed (“dead men don’t bite”). The chapter highlights the novel’s exploration of competing moral codes in a lawless space.
Deception and survival: Hands feigns weakness and asks for wine; Jim counters with stealth and observation. The island narrative repeatedly rewards cunning over brute force.
Authority and seamanship as power: Handling sails, tides, and the helm confers control. Nautical language (luff, larboard, capstan) underscores how command at sea equals command in conflict—echoing the book’s wider struggles for leadership.
Luck, fate, and chance: Hands toasts “Here’s luck,” yet it’s a sudden lurch of the ship that spares Jim. Stevenson juxtaposes fortune with preparation—luck favors the quick-thinking.
Death’s proximity: O’Brien’s corpse, the talk of spirits, and Hands’s plunge to his death reinforce the novel’s ever-present mortality amid treasure-seeking and mutiny.
Civilization vs. lawlessness: Jim’s call to “go to prayers” contrasts with pirate fatalism, echoing the book’s tension between social order and the pirates’ anti-order.

Vocabulary

Word/Term	Part of Speech	Definition
coxswain	noun	Crewman who steers a boat and oversees its handling.
lay the ship to	verb phrase	To bring a vessel nearly to a stop relative to wind and sea (heave to).
scuppers	noun	Deck drains/openings that let water run off a ship’s deck.
dirk	noun	A short dagger.
bulwark	noun	The protective side of a ship above the deck, forming a wall.
anchorage	noun	A sheltered area suitable for anchoring a ship.
estuary	noun	The tidal mouth of a river where it meets the sea.
luff	verb	To turn a vessel’s bow toward the wind.
starboard	noun/adj.	The right-hand side of a ship when facing forward.
larboard	noun/adj.	Old term for the ship’s left side (now “port”).
leeward	adj./adv.	On or toward the side sheltered from the wind; away from the wind.
capstan	noun	A vertical-axled winch used for hauling ropes/cables (e.g., anchors).
mizzen shrouds	noun	Rigging that supports the rear (mizzen) mast; used for climbing.
cross-trees	noun	Horizontal spars near the top of a mast that form a small platform/support.
priming	noun	The small ignition charge in a firearm that sets off the main charge.
fouled	adj./verb	Tangled or obstructed; figuratively, at cross purposes or mutually trapped.
sign articles	verb phrase	To sign a seaman’s contract; here, to come to terms or make an agreement.
strike	verb	To lower a ship’s flag in surrender; figuratively, to yield or give up.
cat’s paw	noun	A light puff of wind that ruffles calm water.
puncheon	noun	A large cask; used figuratively for a large quantity (e.g., “a puncheon of water”).

Quotes to Look For

“You can kill the body, Mr. Hands, but not the spirit; you must know that already.” — Jim’s moral rebuttal to pirate fatalism.
“Him as strikes first is my fancy; dead men don’t bite; them’s my views—amen, so be it.” — Hands’s ruthless code, a key statement of pirate ethics.
“Here’s luck!” — Hands’s recurring toast; the chapter’s motif of luck versus skill.
“Now, you’ve spoke up free… get me a bottle of wine, Jim—this here brandy’s too strong for my head.” — The pretext that reveals Hands’s deception.
“Now… we’ve had about enough of this foolery… You just take my orders, Cap’n Hawkins.” — The irony of Hands acknowledging Jim’s command.
“Now, my hearty, luff!” — The seamanship moment that foregrounds skill as survival.
“I let go of the tiller… and I think this saved my life.” — Chance and quick reflexes intertwined.
“I had been saved by being prompt.” — Jim’s credo of decisive action.
“One more step, Mr. Hands, and I’ll blow your brains out! Dead men don’t bite, you know.” — Jim turns the pirate’s maxim back on him.
“Jim… I reckon we’re fouled, you and me, and we’ll have to sign articles.” — The language of naval contracts applied to a standoff.
“I reckon I’ll have to strike… for a master mariner to a ship’s younker like you, Jim.” — Surrender and the inversion of hierarchy.
“Something sang like an arrow through the air… there I was pinned by the shoulder to the mast.” — The climactic betrayal and wound that end the duel.