The Isle of Pines

The Isle of Pines

"The Isle of Pines" is a book written by Henry Neville in 1668.

The book explores the fictional adventures of George Pines and four women fellow survivors who are shipwrecked on an idyllic island. Pines finds that the island produces food abundantly with little or no effort, and he soon enjoys a leisurely existence, engaging in open sexual activity with the four women.

Each of the women gives birth to children, who in turn multiply to produce distinct tribes, by which Pines is seen as the patriarch. One of the women, a black slave girl, gives rise to a tribe called the Phills, who increasingly reject the impositions of laws, rules, and bible readings which are established in an effort to create some form of social order. They eventually rebel completely, and revolt against the white tribes, causing a civil war. At this point some Dutch explorers arrive, bringing with them guns which are used to quell the uprising.

The narrative is written from the viewpoint of the Dutch explorers and begins with their arrival and the discovery of a primitive white English-speaking native race. The explorers discover that the islanders are the grand and great-grandchildren of George Pines, and that in just three generations the islanders have lost the technological and industrial advantage of their British origins. They later discover that they possess an axe which lay blunt and never sharpened. The island itself is so productive in terms of food and shelter that the islanders leave newborn babies exposed to the elements with no harm.

While the island is bounteous and abundant the narrative begs questions over the morality of idleness and dependence on nature. Questions also exist over the status of the piece as utopian literature; elements of utopian writing are apparent, but there are inversions of the usual pattern. Instead of finding an advanced society from which the travellers can learn, the explorers discover a primitive island race in need of rescue from the brink of civil war. In may terms, though initially a paradise of sexual freedom and idyllic plenty, the story is one of dystopia, a devolution into a primitive and crucially unproductive state. The lack of creativity and industry are heightened by the fact that the islanders themselves reproduce in great numbers, leaving in three generations a large population with no scientific or artistic development.

Some critics have pointed to the possibility of Pines deriving from an anagram of penis, alluding to the sexual preoccupation of the early settlers.

The book also has political overtones. Neville was an anti-Stuart republican, and as a political exile he was clearly conscious of the socio-political concerns of the end of the early modern period. The island narrative is framed by the story of the Dutch explorers who are more organized and better equipped than the English voyage of three generations earlier, and who are needed to rescue a small English colonial nation-state from chaos. It is interesting to note that the book was written at the end of the Second Anglo-Dutch War.

External links

* [http://www.gutenberg.org/files/21410/21410-h/21410-h.htm#2H_4_0003 e-Text at Project Gutenberg]


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Isle of Pines, New Caledonia — The Isle of Pines (French: Île des Pins ; Kanak name: Kunyié ) is an island located in the Pacific Ocean, in the archipelago of New Caledonia, an overseas territory of France. The island is part of the commune (municipality) of L Île des Pins, in …   Wikipedia

  • Isle of Pines — The name Isle of Pines can refer to more than one thing:* The former name for the Isle of Youth, Cuba * The Isle of Pines, an island off New Caledonia * The Isle of Pines (1668), a book by Henry Neville …   Wikipedia

  • The Mole (Australia season 4) — The Mole in Paradise Country of origin  Australia No. of episodes 10 Broadcast …   Wikipedia

  • The New Moon — is the name of an operetta with music by Sigmund Romberg and book and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, Frank Mandel, and Laurence Schwab. The show was the third and last in a string of Broadway hits for Romberg (after The Desert Song (1924) and… …   Wikipedia

  • The New Moon (film) — The New Moon is the name of film versions of the operetta with music by Sigmund Romberg and book and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and others. The stage version premiered on Broadway in 1928. Both film versions were produced by MGM. The 1930… …   Wikipedia

  • Isle of Palms, South Carolina — Infobox Settlement| official name = Isle of Palms, South Carolina settlement type = City nickname = imagesize = image caption = image mapsize = 250px map caption = Location of Isle of Palms in South Carolina incorporated= 1938 as a town and 1957… …   Wikipedia

  • Pines — [[t]paɪnz[/t]] n. geg Isle of former name of the Isle of Youth …   From formal English to slang

  • The Red Mill — Infobox Musical name= The Red Mill subtitle= caption= Sheet music cover music= Victor Herbert lyrics= Henry Blossom Forman Brown book= Henry Blossom Victor Herbert basis= productions= 1906 Broadway 1945 Broadway revival awards= The Red Mill is an …   Wikipedia

  • Pines — /puynz/, n. Isle of, an island in the Caribbean, south of and belonging to Cuba. 1182 sq. mi. (3060 sq. km). * * * …   Universalium

  • Pines — /paɪnz/ (say puynz) noun Isle of, an island in the Caribbean, south of and belonging to Cuba. 3061 km2 …  

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”