Ben Gunn (Treasure Island)
Encyclopedia
Benjamin "Ben" Gunn is a fictional character
in the Treasure Island
novel by Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson
.
's who has been marooned
three years on the Treasure Island by his crew mates, after his failure to find the treasure without the map. He first appears in the novel when Jim Hawkins encounters him. Ben Gunn treats Jim kindly in return for a chance of getting back to civilization.
Jim leaves Ben Gunn behind, but escapes the Hispaniola on Ben Gunn's coracle. Ben Gunn appears later making ghostly sounds to dissuade Long John Silver
's rivals from continuing their search for the treasure, but Silver forges ahead and locates the place where Flint's treasure was buried. The pirates discover that a cache has been rifled and all of the treasure is gone.
The enraged pirates turn on Silver and Jim, but Ben Gunn and several others attack the pirates by surprise, killing two and dispersing the rest. Silver surrenders to Dr. Livesey, promising to return to his duty. They go to Ben Gunn's cave home, where Gunn has had the treasure hidden for some months. The treasure is divided amongst Squire Trelawney
and his loyal men, including Jim and Ben Gunn, and they return to England, leaving the surviving pirates marooned on the island. Silver escapes with the help of the fearful Ben Gunn and a small part of the treasure.
Once in England, Ben Gunn manages to spend all his part of the treasure in just a few days and becomes a porter for the rest of his life.
. The story follows Ben Gunn from parson's son to pirate and is narrated by Jim in Gunn's words.
and the scriptwriters, in which she is written as Captain Smollett's former fiancée who was jilted at the alter and later became romantically involved with Capt. Flint before being marooned and made queen of the native wild boars on the island. By the end of the film she and Smollett rekindle their relationship and she helps him against Silver's pirate crew.
In Disney's animated film Treasure Planet
, Ben Gunn is portrayed as B.E.N. (voiced by Martin Short
), an abandoned, whimsical robot who claims to have lost most of his memory. Jim and his group meet B.E.N. while exploring the Treasure Planet's forest, and the robot invites them to his house to care for the wounded Captain Amelia. When Silver's pirates corner the group here, using a back-door, Jim and B.E.N. return to the ship in an attempt to recover the map. B.E.N., working to sabotage the ship's artillery, accidentally turns off the artificial gravity, whereupon Jim and Scroop, who were fighting, threaten to float off into space. Later, Jim and B.E.N. obtain the map. Upon their return, they are captured by Silver, who has already captured Doppler and Amelia. In the stash of treasure, Jim comes across the skeletal remains of Flint himself, holding a missing part of B.E.N's cognitive computer. Jim replaces this piece, causing B.E.N. to remember that the planet is set to explode upon the treasure's discovery. After narrowly escaping the explosion of the planet, B.E.N. joins Jim and is finally seen working in Jim's mother's inn.
For a time, in London there was an annual production at the Mermaid Theatre
, originally under the direction of Bernard Miles
, who played Long John Silver
, a part he also played in a television version. Comedian Spike Milligan
would often play Ben Gunn in these productions.
The Ben Gunn Society album released in 2003 presents the story centered around the character of Ben Gunn, based primarily on Chapter XV "Man of the Island" and other relevant parts of the book.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
in the Treasure Island
Treasure Island
Treasure Island is an adventure novel by Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson, narrating a tale of "pirates and buried gold". First published as a book on May 23, 1883, it was originally serialized in the children's magazine Young Folks between 1881–82 under the title Treasure Island; or, the...
novel by Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson
Robert Louis Stevenson
Robert Louis Balfour Stevenson was a Scottish novelist, poet, essayist and travel writer. His best-known books include Treasure Island, Kidnapped, and Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde....
.
Treasure Island
Ben Gunn is an ex-crewman of Captain FlintCaptain Flint
Captain J. Flint was the fictional captain of a pirate ship, the Walrus, in the novel Treasure Island of the Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson...
's who has been marooned
Marooning
Marooning is the intentional leaving of someone in a remote area, such as an uninhabited island. The word appears in writing in approximately 1709, and is derived from the term maroon, a word for a fugitive slave, which could be a corruption of Spanish cimarrón, meaning a household animal who has...
three years on the Treasure Island by his crew mates, after his failure to find the treasure without the map. He first appears in the novel when Jim Hawkins encounters him. Ben Gunn treats Jim kindly in return for a chance of getting back to civilization.
Jim leaves Ben Gunn behind, but escapes the Hispaniola on Ben Gunn's coracle. Ben Gunn appears later making ghostly sounds to dissuade Long John Silver
Long John Silver
Long John Silver is a fictional character and the primary antagonist of the novel Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson. Silver is also known by the nicknames "Barbecue" and the "Sea-Cook".- Profile :...
's rivals from continuing their search for the treasure, but Silver forges ahead and locates the place where Flint's treasure was buried. The pirates discover that a cache has been rifled and all of the treasure is gone.
The enraged pirates turn on Silver and Jim, but Ben Gunn and several others attack the pirates by surprise, killing two and dispersing the rest. Silver surrenders to Dr. Livesey, promising to return to his duty. They go to Ben Gunn's cave home, where Gunn has had the treasure hidden for some months. The treasure is divided amongst Squire Trelawney
Squire Trelawney
Squire John Trelawney is a supporting character from Robert Louis Stevenson's novel Treasure Island. He is a bombastic and excitable landowner who is sought out by the book's heroic protagonist, Jim Hawkins as a sanctuary from pirates who seek the treasure map that has fallen into Hawkins's...
and his loyal men, including Jim and Ben Gunn, and they return to England, leaving the surviving pirates marooned on the island. Silver escapes with the help of the fearful Ben Gunn and a small part of the treasure.
Once in England, Ben Gunn manages to spend all his part of the treasure in just a few days and becomes a porter for the rest of his life.
The Adventures of Ben Gunn
Ben Gunn is the main character in The Adventures of Ben Gunn, a prequel to Treasure Island written by R. F. DelderfieldR. F. Delderfield
Ronald Frederick Delderfield was a popular English novelist and dramatist, many of whose works have been adapted for television and are still widely read.-Childhood in London and Surrey:...
. The story follows Ben Gunn from parson's son to pirate and is narrated by Jim in Gunn's words.
Film portrayal
| Actor | Version |
|---|---|
| Treasure Island (1934 film) Treasure Island (1934 film) Treasure Island is a 1934 movie adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson’s famous 1883 novel Treasure Island. Jim Hawkins discovers a treasure map and travels on a sailing ship to a remote island, but pirates led by Long John Silver threaten to take away the honest seafarers’ riches and... |
|
| Treasure Island (1950 film) Treasure Island (1950 film) Treasure Island is a 1950 Disney adventure film, adapted from the Robert Louis Stevenson's novel Treasure Island. It starred Bobby Driscoll as Jim Hawkins, and Robert Newton as Long John Silver... |
|
| Treasure Island (1972 film) Treasure Island (1972 film) Treasure Island is a 1972 film starring Orson Welles as Long John Silver that is based on the novel Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson.... |
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| Treasure Island (1985 film) Treasure Island (1985 film) Treasure Island is a 1985 Chilean-French adventure film directed by Raúl Ruiz. It was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1991 Cannes Film Festival.-Cast:* Melvil Poupaud - Jim Hawkins* Martin Landau - Old Captain... |
|
| Return to Treasure Island Return to Treasure Island Return to Treasure Island is a Disney mini-series, starring Brian Blessed as Long John Silver.Disney Channel contracted the UK ITV broadcaster HTV Wales to actually produce the series, and it was shot in Wales, Spain and Jamaica... |
|
| Treasure Island (1988 film) | |
| Treasure Island (1990 film) Treasure Island (1990 film) Treasure Island is a 1990 film adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson’s famous 1883 novel Treasure Island. It was filmed in 1989 on location in Cornwall, England, and in Jamaica, and also at Pinewood Studios in Buckinghamshire, England.... |
|
| (as Miss Piggy Miss Piggy Miss Piggy is a Muppet character who was primarily played by Frank Oz on The Muppet Show. In 2001, Eric Jacobson began performing the role, although Oz did not officially retire until 2002.... ) |
Muppet Treasure Island Muppet Treasure Island Muppet Treasure Island is a 1996 American musical film based on Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island. It is the fifth feature film to star The Muppets and was directed by Jim Henson's son Brian Henson.... |
| Treasure Island (1999 film) Treasure Island (1999 film) Treasure Island is a 1999 film adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson's novel Treasure Island. It was directed by Peter Rowe, and starred Kevin Zegers as Jim Hawkins and Jack Palance as Long John Silver in his final film appearance.... |
|
| Treasure Planet Treasure Planet Treasure Planet is a 2002 animated science fiction film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios, and released by Walt Disney Pictures on November 27, 2002... |
|
| Pirates of Treasure Island Pirates of Treasure Island Pirates of Treasure Island is a 2006 American comedy-drama film produced by The Asylum, loosely adaptated from Robert Louis Stevenson's novel Treasure Island.... |
Other media
In the 1996 Disney film Muppet Treasure Island, this character was feminized as Benjamina Gunn (Miss Piggy) by Brian HensonBrian Henson
Brian Henson is an Academy Award-winning puppeteer, director, producer, and technician. The son of puppeteers Jane and Jim Henson, Brian was born in New York City, New York....
and the scriptwriters, in which she is written as Captain Smollett's former fiancée who was jilted at the alter and later became romantically involved with Capt. Flint before being marooned and made queen of the native wild boars on the island. By the end of the film she and Smollett rekindle their relationship and she helps him against Silver's pirate crew.
In Disney's animated film Treasure Planet
Treasure Planet
Treasure Planet is a 2002 animated science fiction film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios, and released by Walt Disney Pictures on November 27, 2002...
, Ben Gunn is portrayed as B.E.N. (voiced by Martin Short
Martin Short
Martin Hayter Short, CM is a Canadian actor, comedian, writer, singer and producer. He is best-known for his comedy work, particularly on the TV programs SCTV and Saturday Night Live...
), an abandoned, whimsical robot who claims to have lost most of his memory. Jim and his group meet B.E.N. while exploring the Treasure Planet's forest, and the robot invites them to his house to care for the wounded Captain Amelia. When Silver's pirates corner the group here, using a back-door, Jim and B.E.N. return to the ship in an attempt to recover the map. B.E.N., working to sabotage the ship's artillery, accidentally turns off the artificial gravity, whereupon Jim and Scroop, who were fighting, threaten to float off into space. Later, Jim and B.E.N. obtain the map. Upon their return, they are captured by Silver, who has already captured Doppler and Amelia. In the stash of treasure, Jim comes across the skeletal remains of Flint himself, holding a missing part of B.E.N's cognitive computer. Jim replaces this piece, causing B.E.N. to remember that the planet is set to explode upon the treasure's discovery. After narrowly escaping the explosion of the planet, B.E.N. joins Jim and is finally seen working in Jim's mother's inn.
For a time, in London there was an annual production at the Mermaid Theatre
Mermaid Theatre
The Mermaid Theatre was a theatre at Puddle Dock, in Blackfriars, in the City of London and the first built there since the time of Shakespeare...
, originally under the direction of Bernard Miles
Bernard Miles
Bernard James Miles, Baron Miles, CBE was an English character actor, writer and director. He opened the Mermaid Theatre in London in 1959, the first new theatre opened in the City of London since the 17th century....
, who played Long John Silver
Long John Silver
Long John Silver is a fictional character and the primary antagonist of the novel Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson. Silver is also known by the nicknames "Barbecue" and the "Sea-Cook".- Profile :...
, a part he also played in a television version. Comedian Spike Milligan
Spike Milligan
Terence Alan Patrick Seán "Spike" Milligan Hon. KBE was a comedian, writer, musician, poet, playwright, soldier and actor. His early life was spent in India, where he was born, but the majority of his working life was spent in the United Kingdom. He became an Irish citizen in 1962 after the...
would often play Ben Gunn in these productions.
The Ben Gunn Society album released in 2003 presents the story centered around the character of Ben Gunn, based primarily on Chapter XV "Man of the Island" and other relevant parts of the book.