Treasure Island — Chapter: “On Parole” Study Guide

Themes / Big Ideas

Honor and parole versus survival
- Jim gives his “word of honour” to Silver and refuses to flee, even under threat of torture. The chapter tests the gentleman’s code in a pirate world—a core novel-wide tension between personal honor and self-preservation.
Moral ambiguity and pragmatic ethics
- Silver pleads for mercy and plays both sides; Dr. Livesey treats the mutineers and even hints he’ll try to save Silver “short of perjury.” Treasure Island’s world is not simple good vs. evil; choices are strategic and morally shaded.
Leadership and power through language
- Silver’s talk (“volubility”) dominates the crew; Livesey’s calm authority tames the pirates. Words, not just weapons, govern power—echoing the novel’s repeated attention to persuasion and command.
Civilization (reason) versus wilderness (ignorance and disease)
- Livesey scolds the pirates’ swamp camp and treats their malaria, embodying Enlightenment order and knowledge against the island’s hazards and the crew’s superstition.
Coming of age and responsibility
- Jim faces the consequences of his “insubordinate and stealthy conduct,” accepts risk to keep his word, and confides key intelligence about the ship—a step toward adult judgment.
Justice and mercy
- Silver fears “the gallows,” and Livesey promises help “short of perjury.” The chapter weighs legal justice against humane mercy—a recurring balance across the book.
Fate and providence
- Livesey notes “a kind of fate” in Jim’s repeated rescues, highlighting chance, providence, and the unpredictable turns that propel the adventure.
Treaties, trust, and betrayal
- Silver insists they must “break the treaty when the time comes,” underscoring the novel’s continual renegotiation of trust among unreliable players.

Vocabulary

Word/Phrase	Part of Speech	Definition
sentinel	noun	A guard who keeps watch.
loophole	noun	A narrow opening in a fortification for observing or shooting.
stockade	noun	A defensive enclosure of posts or stakes; a palisade.
insubordinate	adjective	Disobedient to authority.
admixture	noun	A mixture; something added that changes the whole.
supercargo	noun	A ship’s officer responsible for cargo and commercial matters.
mutineers	noun (plural)	Sailors who rebel against lawful authority.
pestiferous	adjective	Dangerous or unhealthy; disease-spreading.
slough	noun	A swampy, muddy place; a bog.
arrant	adjective	Complete or utter (usually negative), e.g., “arrant asses.”
deuce	noun	(Informal) The devil; great trouble (“the deuce to pay”).
gallows	noun	A structure for hanging criminals.
gammon	verb	To deceive; to trick; also “nonsense.”
volubility	noun	The quality of talking fluently, readily, or at length.
squall(s)	noun	A sudden strong gust of wind; a brief, violent storm (also metaphorical trouble).
halloo	verb	To shout or call out, especially to get attention.
perjury	noun	Lying under oath.
holus bolus	adverb	All at once; in one go.
chuck-farthing	noun	A coin-tossing game; figuratively, a trivial gamble or reckless risk.
home-thrust	noun	A sharp, telling remark that hits the mark.
before the mast	phrase	Among the common sailors (not officers).
deposed	verb (past participle)	Removed from a position of power.
slip your cable	idiom	To cast off and leave suddenly; to run away.
steer near the wind	idiom	To take risks by going close to the limits of safety or law.
wolf-trap	noun	A trap for wolves; metaphor for a deadly predicament.
parole	noun	Release based on a promise of good conduct; here, the idea of a pledged word.

Quotes to Look For

“I remembered with confusion my insubordinate and stealthy conduct…”
- Jim’s shame frames his coming-of-age reckoning.
“…he rattled on to his patients as if he were paying an ordinary professional visit in a quiet English family.”
- Livesey’s calm, civil authority in a den of pirates.
“Since I am mutineers’ doctor… I make it a point of honour not to lose a man for King George (God bless him!) and the gallows.”
- Duty and irony; medicine, law, and loyalty intersect.
“That comes—as you call it—of being arrant asses… and the dry land from a vile, pestiferous slough.”
- Reason vs. ignorance; the island’s dangers are real, not superstitious.
“Hawkins, will you give me your word of honour… not to slip your cable?”
- The chapter’s core: a pledged word as a kind of parole.
“It’s us must break the treaty when the time comes; and till then I’ll gammon that doctor…”
- Silver’s strategy of calculated betrayal and manipulation.
“I’ll own up fairly, I’ve the shakes upon me for the gallows.”
- Silver’s humanity and fear beneath the bravado.
“…when Captain Smollett was well… it was downright cowardly!”
- Dr. Livesey’s hard truth spurring Jim’s moral growth.
“Silver trusted me; I passed my word, and back I go.”
- Jim’s choice of honor over safety.
“There is a kind of fate in this… Every step, it’s you that saves our lives.”
- Fate/providence thread; Jim as unlikely savior.
“Look out for squalls when you find it.”
- Foreshadowing trouble tied to the treasure itself.
“If we both get alive out of this wolf-trap, I’ll do my best to save you, short of perjury.”
- Justice tempered by mercy; Livesey’s ethical boundary.
“Keep the boy close beside you, and when you need help, halloo. I’m off to seek it for you…”
- Hidden alliances; quiet setup for rescue and reversal.