evidence: The islet, known today as Tromelin Island, is 300 miles east of Madagascar. The terrain is dry and sandy; only scrub grows there. It lies so low that ships can barely see it until they are on top of it, and visitors say it feels more like being on a raft than on land. With a permanent breeze and the crash of the waves, you can practically feel the ocean beneath your feet. It is a lonely and desolate place. [...] It is interesting to note that France’s social norms — and the sailors’ ability to leave the enslaved people for dead — resembled "Lord of the Flies" far more than the individuals fighting for survival, who organized and cooperated to an impressive degree. "The survivors used the few resources available to survive, then rebuilt a small society with determination, method, and a vital force that must be admired," Guerout writes in his book "Tromelin: Memories of an Island." "In the process, they reclaimed their dignity and humanity, almost in defiance of those who had denied them." [...] This is even more tragic because Tsasiavo was the only one of the 200 enslaved people who stepped onto L’Utile whose name has survived in the history books. Meanwhile, the island came to be known as Tromelin Island, after the captain who led the rescue mission, not after its brave and tenacious inhabitants. Whether the survivors had given their new home a name remains a mystery.