PinkMonkey Literature Notes on . . .

http://monkeynote.stores.yahoo.net/

Sample MonkeyNotes
Note: this sample contains only excerpts and does not represent the full contents of the booknote.  This will give you an idea of the format and content.
Island of the Blue Dolphins

by

Scott O'Dell
1960
 
MonkeyNotes Study Guide by Jane Johnson

http://monkeynote.stores.yahoo.net/

Reprinted with permission from TheBestNotes.com Copyright  2005, All Rights Reserved. 
Distribution without the written consent of TheBestNotes.com is strictly prohibited.

KEY LITERARY ELEMENTS
SETTING
The Island of the Blue Dolphins is named after the island which is its setting.  This island is also …..
 
CHARACTER LIST
Major Characters
Karana - A twelve year old Ghalas-at Indian girl at the beginning of the story. She is really the only main character.  Through much of the tale she is the only person on the island.  She has another name, Won-a-pa-lei.  That means "The Girl with the Long Black Hair."  Karana is her secret name, not often used.  Although it is not often used in her community, it is the name the author uses as he relates to us her story.
 
Minor Characters
Chief Chowig  - Karana's father.  He is also chief of the Ghalas-at.  The Ghalas-at is the tribe to which the people on the Island of the Blue Dolphins belong.
 
Captain Orlov - The Russian captain who arrives with the Aleuts to hunt for sea otters at the beginning of the story.
 
Ulape - Karana's sister.  She is unmarried.  She is two years older than Karana.
 
Kimki - The man who replaced Chief Chowig as the leader.  He is very old, but respected.  
 
Matasaip - Took Kimki's place leading the Ghalas-at when Kimki left to get ……..
 
Minor characters – “The underworld”
Tumaiyowit - One of two gods that ruled the world and quarreled.  He wished people to die.  He went……. 

Character Groups
The Ghalas-at - The tribe that inhabited the island at the beginning of the story.  It was Karana’s tribe.  She thought of it as her tribe even when, at the end of the book, she was heading toward the mainland,…….. 
 
CONFLICT
Protagonist - The protagonist of a story is the main character, who traditionally, undergoes some sort of change.  The protagonist of the story is Karana.  

Antagonists - The antagonist of a story is the character that provides an obstacle for the protagonist. The antagonists are the Aleuts and the forces of nature.  Early in the story, Rontu is an antagonist.  At one point in the story, the devilfish is an antagonist.  
 
Rising Action/Falling Action - The rising action is the massacre followed by the rescue of the tribe from the island. The falling action is the nine days that the rescue ship lays anchored in Coral Cove.  The outcome is Karana’s rescue………. 

Climax - The climax of a story is the major turning point that determines the outcome of the plot.  The arrival and hurried departure of a rescue ship followed several years later by its return. 

Outcome - also known as the resolution or denouement, this is the place in the plot where the action is resolved or clarified.  The outcome is Karana’s decision not to kill any more devilfish.  

SHORT PLOT/CHAPTER SUMMARY (Synopsis)
Karana’s tribe lives on the Island of the Blue Dolphins. At times they are bothered by Aleuts who come to take otter from the island.  

As the story begins, the Aleuts, with a Russian captain, return.  They agree to pay the islanders for being allowed to take more otter.  But, when it is time to leave, there is a disagreement and a fight.  Many of the men on the island are killed.  A ship comes to take the tribe to the mainland.  At the last moment, as the ship is departing, Karana sees her brother, Ramo, still on shore, jumps into the water and swims for shore.  Ramo is soon killed by wild dogs on the island.  Karana tried to follow her tribe by using one of the canoes, but has to return to the island because the canoe leaks too badly.  

Karana realizes that she will be on the island indefinitely and builds a permanent shelter.  She injures the leader of the wild dogs, but does not kill him. Instead, she cares for him until he is healthy.  They become friends.  The Aleuts return.  Karana and an Aleut girl from the ship become friends, but she leaves and Karana is ……. 
  
THEMES
Also see Themes Analysis in Overall Analyses section for more detail.
 
Respect for all life, Forgive enemies, Adapt to the situation, Live and let live, ……..
 
MOOD
Stoic when difficulties are described, but overall, happy.  Karana has a “cup half full” or…….. 
 
BACKGROUND INFORMATION - BIOGRAPHY
Scott O’Dell was born in Los Angeles, California on May 23, 1898.  He attended Occidental College in 1919, the University of Wisconsin in 1920, Stanford University from 1920-21, and the University of Rome in 1925.  He was not focused on graduating and did not.  Instead he took courses that were interesting to him and that he felt would help him in a writing career.  After college, he worked as a technical director for Paramount Studios, and as a cameraman for MGM Studios.  He also worked as a book editor and columnist for Los Angeles newspapers.  He became a full-time writer in 1934, writing both fiction and non-fiction.  During World War II, he served in the Army Air Corps.  In the late 1950s he began writing young adult books.  He wrote twenty-eight young adult books before his death in 1989, though some were published after his death.  Island of the Blue Dolphins (published in 1960) was his first book intended for a younger audience.  

He received many awards for his writing over the years.  They include: the Newbery Medal in 1961 for Island of the Blue Dolphins, the Lewis Carroll Shelf Award im 1961, Zur Errinnerung an die 2000-Jahrfeier der Stadt Mainz in 1962, and the William Allen White Children's Book Award in 1963, the Newbery Medal in 1967 for The King's Fifth, the Newberry Medal in 1968 for The Black Pearl, the Newberry Medal in 1971 for Sing Down the Moon, Hans Christian Anderson Award in 1972, the University of Southern Mississippi Silver Medallion in 1976, the Regina Medal in 1978, Parents' Choice Award for Alexandra in 1984 for Streams to the River, River to the Sea: A Novel of Sacagewea in 1986.  O'Dell was a very highly acclaimed and decorated writer in comparison to his peers.  Two of his books have been made into motion pictures, the first was Island of the Blue Dolphins in 1963, followed by the Black Pearl in 1976.

Scott O'Dell continued to write young adult books until he died on October 15, 1989 in Mt. Kisco, New York. 

Los Angeles is near the island on which the story of Island of the Blue Dolphins is set.  He first heard the story of The Lost Woman of San Nicholas in 1920.  At the time he wrote the story, almost 40 years after first hearing about the Lost Woman, he was upset with hunters.  He believed, as Karana did in the latter ……
LITERARY / HISTORICAL INFORMATION
This book tells the story of "The Lost Woman of San Nicholas."   She was a real person.  There are records of her existence, but there are not records of everything in the book.  Some of what is in the book is based on the author's knowledge of the area along with research that he did.  
 
The Aleuts originated on islands off the coast of Alaska called the Aleutian Islands.  Russians…….
 
CHAPTER SUMMARIES AND NOTES
CHAPTER 1
Summary
The story begins when Karana, gathering roots with her brother, Ramo, first sighted an Aleut ship heading toward the island where she lived with the rest of the Ghalas-at Indians.  Soon the men and women of the island headed toward where the ship would land, toward Coral Cove.  The men carried weapons.  Soon, a small boat was lowered from the ship.  Aleut men with black hair and bone ornaments in their noses rowed the boat.  Directing them was a Russian with a yellow beard..  They soon heard that his name was Captain Orlov.  Karana's father, Chief Chowig, also introduced himself.  There was consternation among the islanders because their chief had told the foreigner his secret name.  They knew that could weaken their chief.   The captain and the chief discussed the plans of the new arrivals.  They were there to hunt sea otters.  The islanders had had bad experience in the past with sea otter hunters.  At first the captain wanted two thirds for himself and his hunters, but finally he agreed to split half and half.   
 
Notes
It is difficult to understand what half and half meant.  What the islanders were to receive was to be in the form of goods, not sea otter skins.  How much goods equaled how many skins?  We are not told.
 
At the end of chapter 4, the subject of Chief Chowig’s secret name returns.  The topic of secret names is revisited in chapter 22, when Karana makes a decision regarding whether or not to give her secret name.  
 
The Aleuts came from the Aleutian Islands which are located off of Alaska.  The Russians used them because they were good hunters.  
 
If you have access to a computer, you can search for web sites that have much information about the Aleutian Islands and the history of the Aleuts.
 
CHAPTER 2
Summary
Chief Chowig warned the villagers to not socialize with the Aleuts.  The villagers did as their chief told them.  But, they did watch the Aleuts from afar.  And, all activity was reported back to the group.  The Aleuts also observed the Ghalas-at.  

Ulape, Karana' sister, reported that there was a girl with the Aleuts.  The girl dressed like the men and she kept her long hair under her cap.  No one believed this.
 
One day Ulape discovered that a school of large white bass had been stranded on a rocky ledge.  There was enough for everyone to feast on for two days.  The second day, two Aleuts came to the village wanting to share the abundance.  Karana's father decided not to share with them.  They were capable of doing their own fishing, Chief Chowig rationalized.  The two left, planning to tell Captain Orlov.  They were not happy.
 
Notes
The Aleuts who came to ask for a share of bass only numbered two.  But, there were many more at the ship who also would be unhappy.
 
CHAPTER 3
Summary
This chapter describes the hunt for sea otters.  Karana thought of the otters as her friends and did not like the idea of trading their lives for things, even for beautiful or useful things.  
 
The chief told Karana that soon the hunters would be leaving.  He had some of the young men staying near the ship on the pretense of building a canoe.  There were others watching the ship and the hunters from a longer distance also.  Karana's little brother, Ramo, saw the ship captain having his beard trimmed.  Everyone waited and wondered when they would leave and whether there would be trouble.        
 
Notes
Karana seems to mirror the author's beliefs regarding respect for nature.  
 
The Indians were taking a chance waiting until the hunters were ready to depart before expecting to receive what they were owed………
 
OVERALL ANALYSES 
CHARACTER ANALYSIS 
Karana - Karana is not only the major character of the story; she is nearly the only human character in the story.  At the age of twelve, she finds herself alone on the island where she was…….
 
PLOT STRUCTURE ANALYSIS
The author describes the adventures that Karana experiences, the arrival of the Aleuts and Russians, the massacre endured by her tribe, the departure of the tribe in a ship that was sent to rescue them,  the expectation that those who leave her and her brother on the island will return for them, the death of her brother by dogs, her trip in a canoe which ends when she realizes that the canoe is leaking too badly to make the journey, her acceptance of the fact that she will be on the island indefinitely, her building of a permanent…… 
 
THEMES ANALYSIS
Respect for all life - Her life on the island leads Karana to the conclusion that all animals are important.  Those that are our friends are surely important.  Those that are useful are important.  But, also those……
 
Forgive enemies - Karana displayed an ability to forgive her enemies.  She showed this when she made friends with Rontu, the former leader of the wild dogs who had killed Ramo, her brother.  She also showed……
 
Adapt to situation - Karana was able to adjust to whatever life on the island brought.  She adapted……
 
Live and let live - This is similar to having respect for all life.  If Karana did not understand …….
 
POINT OF VIEW
The story is told as a narrative.  We know only what Karana knows.  We see things the way that…….

IMPORTANT QUOTATIONS / QUOTES
The pages given are from Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O’Dell, illustrated by Ted Lewin, published by Houghton Miffin Company, Boston, text copyright 1960 by Scott O’Dell, Illustrations copyright 1990 by Ted Lewin.
 
1. “‘The Aleuts come from a country far to the north,’ he said.  ‘Their ways are not ours nor is their language.  They have come to take otter and to give us our share in many goods which they have and which we can use.  In this way shall we profit.  But we shall not profit if we try to befriend them.  They are people who do not understand friendship.  They are not those who were here before, but they are people of the same tribe that caused trouble many years ago.’”  (p. 10-1)
From statements like this, Karana developed her early view of others.  But, as time passes, she becomes wiser and realizes that individuals can be different than the groups to which they belong.  She also realizes that groups and individuals that at first seem to be bad, may not be.  

2. “… I never went to the cove and whenever I saw the hunters with their long spears skimming over the water, I was angry, for these animals were my friends.  It was fun to see them playing or sunning themselves among the kelp.  It was more fun than the thought of beads to wear around my neck.”  (p. 16)
At this point Karana has a fondness for animals that are not a danger to her.  As she has more experiences, we will see her learn to care about even those animals that are a danger to her………
 
SYMBOLISM / MOTIFS / IMAGERY
SYMBOLISM / SYMBOLS
Secret names - Karana’s tribe usually indicated whether or not they trusted someone by…….
 
Thin line of blue clay on face - A thin line of blue clay on her face indicates that a woman in Karana’s tribe, the Ghalas-at, is unmarried.  In a larger sense it also means that the woman is a member ……
 
Dolphins - Dolphins symbolize good fortune to Karana.  Toward the end of chapter 10, she says…… 
 
MOTIFS
No repetition of unhelpful actions - Karana turned away from courses of action that were not helpful.  This occurred when she decided not to make a second attempt to “look for the country that lay………
 
IMAGERY
The trees on the island - Karana’s description of the trees on the island gives us an idea of how …..
 
Red - The author uses the color red for the sail of the Aleut/Russian ship because it brings……
 
Fog - Scott O’Dell uses fog to convey to us the image of spirits at the beginning of ……
 
Sunless sky - At the beginning of chapter 4, the chapter in which the massacre ……
 
Smells - At the end of chapter 11, the author uses our memories of smells to take us……
 
ANIMALS AS FAMILY
As Karana gathers more animal members into her family, we are aware that she really wants a family of her own.  

IMPORTANT / KEY FACTS SUMMARY
Title:  Island of the Blue Dolphins
Author:  Scott O’Dell
Date Published:  1960
Meaning of the Title:  Island of the Blue Dolphins refers to San Nicholas Island, which is 61 miles off the coast of California, near Los Angeles.
Setting:  San Nicholas Island, one of the Channel Islands off the coast of California, near Los Angeles, during the years 1835-1853…….
 
STUDY QUESTIONS / QUIZ
1.  What was the nationality of the captain of the Aleut ship?
2.  What is your opinion of Chief Chowig’s negotiations with the ship’s captain?  If you had to negotiate as Chief Chowig did, what would you say to the captain?
3.  What has happened to Karana’s mother?……..
 
Answers:
1.  Russian
2.  (give your own opinion)
3.  She died a few years before the story began. (p. 27)…….
 
ESSAY TOPIC IDEAS / BOOK REPORT IDEAS
1. The Aleuts – From where did they come?
2.  Russian explorers – What was their relationship with the Aleuts?
3.  California missions – Who lived there?  What did they do?…….

END OF SAMPLE MONKEYNOTES EXCERPTS

http://monkeynote.stores.yahoo.net/

Copyright ©2005 TheBestNotes.com.
Reprinted with permission of TheBestNotes.com. All Rights Reserved. Distribution without the written consent of PinkMonkey.com and TheBestNotes.com is strictly prohibited.