Adventure texts always teach us something

Over the years there have been many wonderful adventure tales written by various talented authors. The Mysterious Island by Jules Verne, Coral Island by R.M. Ballantyne and later on, Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome are only a few. These particular adventure texts have one thing in common; islands. The books tell of how humans cope when forced to survive away from civilization.

The following piece will look into another three texts that fit this brief. Lord of the Flies by William Golding, Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson and the feature film Cast Away directed by Robert Zemeckis and starring Tom Hanks.

Each of these three texts will be analysed in agreement with the following statement: ‘That all adventure stories teach us something’

The focus will be upon the techniques used to teach lessons and morals. Six techniques have been chosen. Firstly the use of characters and symbolism in Lord of the Flies, secondly camera work and dialogue in Cast Away, and finally plot and first-person narration in Treasure Island.

Lord of the Flies, written in the early 1950s by William Golding, has long been a heavily studied text, partly for the per

For instance when Noland is forced to become resourceful so he can survive, the camera follows his movements as he collects water and figures out how to open coconuts. We also watch his feeble attempts to go spear fishing.

Over all, director Robert Zemeckis uses both emotive dialogue and effective camera work to make several main arguments. Firstly, that while material culture is not necessarily bad it shouldn’t be taken for granted. Secondly, that humans need other human company to function properly. Thirdly, that time is valuable and powerful and finally, that above all the survival instinct and resilience of the human spirit is astounding when called upon.

Biblical references can be extracted on several different occasions. Simon (the small, reclusive, dark haired boy with epilepsy) can be seen as a Christ like representation. Simon sees beneath the surface of the issues faced by the boys and is eventually killed trying to bring them good news. On the other hand, the ‘beast’ (an imaginary creature of which all of the boys are afraid) is a symbol of both the devil and the immorality of society.

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