Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Island of the Blue Dolphins, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
The Natural World
Solitude
Friendship
Gender Roles and Survival
Colonialism, Violence, and Indigenous Culture
Summary
Analysis
Karana doesn’t enter the cave or take the necklace. She sleeps at the headland and, at dawn, hides on a ledge in the ravine where she can see the cave. As the sun gets higher, Karana studies the necklace. She wants to count the stones and see if there are enough to make two loops around her neck. Finally, when the sun is high, Tutok emerges from the brush, singing. She stops when she sees the necklace, looks around, and then turns to leave.
Karana is curious about the necklace and seems to want to trust Tutok—but given that Tutok is Aleut, this isn’t an easy thing to do. When Tutok appears, though, it’s impossible to ignore that she’s just a girl, much like Karana herself, and that she’s trying to treat Karana with respect and dignity.
Themes
Karana leaps up and calls for Tutok. Tutok turns around and watches Karana loop the beads three times around her neck. Tutok says her word for “pretty,” and then Karana gives Tutok her word. The girls laugh. They exchange words for the necklace, the spring, a gull, Rontu, and the sun. They spend hours laughing, and then Tutok gets up and waves. Karana introduces herself as Won-a-pa-lei, keeping her secret name a secret. Once Tutok is gone, Karana brings her baskets back to the cave.
Having not spoken to a person in so long, Karana doesn’t want to miss out on this opportunity to make Tutok happy and accept this gift. And this leap of faith pays off: Karana seems to love spending the day like this, learning new words. Bringing her baskets back to the cave shows how much Karana trusts Tutok. Tutok could easily bring Aleuts here to ambush Karana—but Karana trusts Tutok not to do this.
Themes
Tutok visits again the next day, and the girls spend the day sitting in the sun, trading words and laughing. At the end of the third day, Karana shares her secret name with Tutok. That night, she starts to make a gift for Tutok to thank her for the necklace. Since Tutok’s ears aren’t pierced, Karana makes her a circlet for her hair with abalone and olivella shells. It takes five days and, when it’s complete, Karana ties it around Tutok’s head. Tutok loves the circlet.
It's a mark of how much Karana trusts Tutok that she’s willing to share her secret name with her. Especially since Karana no doubt remembers that her father died because he shared his secret name, this indicates that Karana fully trusts Tutok not to betray her. And making this circlet for Tutok also allows Karana to demonstrate how much she appreciates her new friend.
Themes
Tutok visits the cave often—until one day, she doesn’t come. At dusk, Karana becomes afraid that the men will come for her, so she sleeps on the ledge. Tutok doesn’t return the next day, either, so Karana wonders if the Aleuts have left. She creeps to the headland to look and sees that the men are loading the ship. They’ll probably leave the next morning. Karana returns to her cave and, since it’s cold and she’s not afraid of the Aleuts now, she builds a big fire and cooks enough supper for her, Rontu, and Tutok. She knows Tutok won’t come, but she saves food for her anyway.
Karana might trust Tutok, but the other Aleuts are a different story. Still, when Karana discovers that the Aleuts are preparing to leave, her fear seems to dissipate—there’s no reason now, she decides, for them to care about her at all. Cooking this grand supper for herself, Rontu, and Tutok seems to be wishful thinking—Karana wants to be able to hold a goodbye feast of sorts to thank Tutok for her friendship and show the girl how much she means to Karana.
Themes
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Karana goes to the headland the following morning. It’s no longer windy, but it’s foggy. When the fog finally burns off, the red Aleut ship is gone. At first, Karana is thrilled to be able to move back to her house. But then she thinks of laughing in the sun with Tutok. Rontu is chasing gulls and barking at them, pelicans are chattering, and a sea elephant is bellowing. But the island seems quiet as Karana thinks of Tutok.
After spending time with another person, Karana finds her solitude is once again difficult to deal with. While it’s nice to be able to move around the island without fear, the fact remains that Karana is also alone again. And because she’s so lonely, Rontu and the other animals that have been her constant companions don’t quite cut it anymore.
Themes
