Island of the Blue Dolphins (SparkNotes Literature Guide)

By SparkNotes

Island of the Blue Dolphins (SparkNotes Literature Guide) by Scott O'Dell
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• Language: English
• Publisher: SparkNotes
• Release date: Aug 12, 2014
• ISBN: 9781411475939

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Cover of SparkNotes Guide to Island of the Blue Dolphins by SparkNotes Editors

Island of the Blue Dolphins

Scott O'Dell

© 2003, 2007 by Spark Publishing

This Spark Publishing edition 2014 by SparkNotes LLC, an Affiliate of Barnes & Noble

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ISBN-13: 978-1-4114-7593-9

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Contents

Context

Plot Overview

Character List

Analysis of Major Characters

Themes, Motifs, & Symbols

Chapters 1

Chapters 2-3

Chapters 4-5

Chapters 6-7

Chapters 8-9

Chapters 10-11

Chapters 12-13

Chapters 14-15

Chapters 16-17

Chapters 18-19

Chapters 20-21

Chapters 22-23

Chapters 24-25

Chapters 26-27

Chapters 28-29

Author's Note

Important Quotations Explained

Key Facts

Study Questions and Essay Topics

Review & Resources

Context

Scott O'Dell was born in Los Angeles on May 23, 1898. He attended Occidental College in 1919, the University of Wisconsin in 1920, Stanford University from 1920 to 1921, and the University of Rome in 1925. Before O'Dell began writing children's novels, he wrote eight books for adults. O'Dell is best known for the historical novels he wrote for children. Among his works are The King's Fifth, The Black Pearl, The Captive, The Feathered Serpent, and The Amethyst Ring. Island of the Blue Dolphins was O'Dell's first children's book, written in 1960.

Island of the Blue Dolphins is based on the true story of The Lost Woman of San Nicolas. From 1835 to 1853, a Native American woman lived alone on an island off the Californian coast known as La Isla de San Nicolas. Discovered by Sebastian Vizcaino in 1602, the island had been inhabited by indigenous peoples since around 2000 B.C. In 1835, when Captain Hubbard carried these people away from the island they called Ghalas-at, a girl jumped from his schooner into the sea. Eighteen years later, Captain Nidever landed on Ghalas-at, and discovered that the woman was still living there. She lived in a hut on the headland with her dog. She was later befriended by Father Gonzales of the Santa Barbara Mission, though the two could only communicate using signs, since no one could understand the woman's language. Father Gonzalez learned from the woman that her brother had been killed by wild dogs. The Lost Woman of San Nicolas is buried on a hill near the Santa Barbara Mission.

In Island of the Blue Dolphins, Scott O'Dell has tried to re-create the story of The Lost Woman of San Nicolas from the facts that he was able to gather about her life.

Plot Overview

As Island of the Blue Dolphins opens, Karana and her brother, Ramo see a ship approaching their island. When the ship lands, the chief of their village (also their father), Chowig goes to meet the visitors, along with a number of his warriors. The representative of the strangers is Captain Orlov, a Russian, who has come with a native American tribe known as the Aleuts to hunt otter on the island of the blue dolphins (known to its inhabitants as Ghalas-at). There is disagreement between the two, for the Aleuts had caused trouble on the island some years before. Finally, Chowig and Orlov reach an agreement, and the people of Ghalas-at let the Aleuts hunt otter on their island in return for half of their profits in the form of jewelry and iron spearheads. The Aleuts set up camp at one end of the island, and the Aleuts and the people of Ghalas-at keep close watch over on another, suspicious of being double-crossed. When the Aleuts start getting ready to leave, Chowig and his warriors ask for their payment. The sum is unsatisfactory, however, and the two parties disagree. A fight breaks out. When the battle is done, the Aleuts have escaped, and many of the men of Ghalat-at have been killed, among them Chowig.

A new chief, Kimki, comes to power, and after a dreary and sad winter, he decides his tribe should leave Gahlas-at. He sets off alone to prepare a way for them in a new county he had visited as a boy. He is gone for a long time, but one day a ship with white sails comes to Ghalas-at. It carries a group of white men who say they were sent by Kimki to take the islanders away. The day is stormy, so the villagers need to board the boat quickly before the ship runs aground on the rocks of the island. In the confusion, Ramo forgets his hunting spear. Karana tells him there is no time to go back for it, but once Karana is on the ship, Ramo is nowhere to be found. As the ship pulls away from the island, Karana sees Ramo, with his spear, back on the beach. Though others on the boat try to restrain her, Karana jumps into the water and swims back to the island.

Back on the island, Ramo and Karana work hard to provide for themselves. They gather food and prepare to stay for some time on the island—at least until the ship returns to take them away. Though Ramo is young, he is very confident and tries to do many things on his own. One morning, Karana awakes to find that Ramo is gone. She goes out to look for him, only to find him dead, killed by the wild dogs of the island.

After Ramo is killed, Karana decides to leave her village forever. She burns it and sets up camp on a rock near the headland. She makes tools to defend herself, although the laws of her tribe bar a woman from making weapons. She watches everyday for the ship that will take her away, but it never comes. One day, she takes a