The Coral Island - Influence

Influence

Robert Louis Stevenson's 1882 novel Treasure Island was in part inspired by The Coral Island, which Stevenson admired for its "better qualities". William Golding's 1954 novel Lord of the Flies was written as a counterpoint to (or even a parody of) The Coral Island. Despite having enjoyed the book many times as a child, Golding strongly disagreed with the views that it espoused, and in contrast Lord of the Flies depicts the English boys as savages themselves, who forget more than they learn, unlike Ballantyne's boys. Golding described the relationship between the two books by saying that The Coral Island "rotted to compost" in his mind, and in the compost "a new myth put down roots".

The Coral Island was adapted into a children's television series in a joint venture between Thames Television and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation in 1980, first shown on British television in 1983. The novel was also adapted into a four-part children's television drama by Zenith Productions, broadcast by ITV in 2000.

Read more about this topic:  The Coral Island

Famous quotes containing the word influence:

    “Cultural expectations shade and color the images that parents- to-be form. The baby product ads, showing a woman serenely holding her child, looking blissfully and mysteriously contented, or the television parents, wisely and humorously solving problems, influence parents-to-be.”
    —Ellen Galinsky (20th century)

    “If the contemplation, even of inanimate beauty, is so delightful; if it ravishes the senses, even when the fair form is foreign to us: What must be the effects of moral beauty? And what influence must it have, when it embellishes our own mind, and is the result of our own reflection and industry?”
    —David Hume (1711–1776)

    “The private life of one man shall be a more illustrious monarchy,—more formidable to its enemy, more sweet and serene in its influence to its friend, than any kingdom in history. For a man, rightly viewed, comprehendeth the particular natures of all men.”
    —Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)