Zia

Karana is Zia’s aunt, her mother’s sister, a Nicoleño woman who lived isolated for 18 years on the Island of the Blue Dolphins. Karana was the protagonist of O’Dell’s first novel and is based on a real-life character. In this novel, however, Karana remains a silent and tragic character. 

Through Karana, O’Dell explores the impact of displacement on Indigenous people due to colonization. Her portrayal also encompasses traits of the “noble savage” stereotype, a common trope in Indigenous representation. Long isolated from people, Karana is portrayed as a person uncorrupted by civilization and as one with the natural world. This is further emphasized by Karana’s marginalization in the Mission. Karana prefers to sleep in the courtyard with her dog Rontu-Aru as a constant companion. Her speech is “strange” and nobody understands her. She only communicates with Zia with gestures. She is considered absurd by others, and even Mando dislikes her because he cannot understand her. For Zia, though, Karana resembles her mother. 

Karana spends most of her time on the beach with her dog and rescues animals, something that indicates her profound connection to nature. The rigidity of the Mission system precipitates her demise, pressuring her to live within a strictly imposed structure that directly contrasts with her traditional lifestyle. She prefers living alone on the beach to remaining confined in the Mission. Karana’s death emphasizes the devastating impact of colonialism on Indigenous people through the disruption of their culture and way of life. Although she does not find healing, her death is a catalyst for Zia, reinforcing her decision to return to her homeland.

Mando is Zia’s younger brother, a boy who is also marked by loss and grows up in the Santa Barbara Mission. Like Zia, Mando is disconnected from his tribe and culture. He spends time with his sister gathering clams on the beach and loves fishing. 

As a young boy, he’s eager to prove his manhood which often puts him in conflict with Zia. Although he helps his sister throughout the narrative, Mando seeks freedom from the Mission through individual achievement. He is primarily concerned with escaping the Mission system rather than reconnecting with Karana or his tribe. He and Zia clash during their time being forced into labor by whalers. Zia believes they are “captives of the white men” (59). Despite his rage over their exploitation, Mando also feels exploited in the Mission. He considers his time on the ship an opportunity to escape the Mission and leave for Boston. However, he helps Zia return to the Mission for Karana, postponing his wishes. After escaping from the ship toward the Mission on their boat, though, Zia understands that Mando is “torn between the shore and the ship” (67), constantly looking back and fixated on leaving. 

After Karana’s arrival, Mando does not seek to connect with her and considers her strange and alien. Zia and Mando deeply love one another, but a distance grows between them. After living conditions in the Mission deteriorate, Mando joins the people who organize a rebellion and leaves. Longing for freedom, Mando hopes to find a job that “suits [his] talents” (170).

Stone Hands is an Indigenous man working in the Mission as a steward of the Indigenous tribes. He is also named Gito Cruz in Spanish. Stone Hands organizes a rebellion in the Mission, galvanizing the people to protest against their exploitation and urging them to leave. His portrayal incorporates elements of the stereotype of the Indigenous stoic man. As Zia describes, Stone Hands is a strong and proud man who has “fists like stones” and also “a heart that […] was stone” (90). Despite this, Stone Hands demonstrates sociopolitical consciousness and the ability to unite Indigenous people to claim their freedom, making their exploitation and oppression visible in the text. 

Stone Hands’s first uprising is unsuccessful due to a lack of food and water, amid people’s complaints that he intended to become their chief. However, after the new priest arrives, imposing strict rules that make Indigenous people’s lives even harder, Stone Hands continues protesting for their rights. He organizes a new rebellion, encouraging the group— including Zia’s brother—to leave the Mission permanently.

Father Vicente is a Catholic priest at the Santa Barbara Mission. Zia describes him as a kind man with “a bony face and eyes the color of chocolate” (6). Father Vicente is a benevolent figure, a “small, thin, young man, pale and not very strong” (79). Zia likes him and the two have a good relationship. Throughout the novel, Father Vicente defends and supports Zia and strives to help her at every opportunity, like guaranteeing her release from prison. His role is key to Karana’s arrival at the Mission. As Zia cannot travel to the Island of the Blue Dolphins, Father Vicente joins Captain Nidever to help him locate Karana. Father Vicente returns with her to the Mission, fulfilling Zia’s wish. 

Father Vicente often argues with military officers and opposes violence against Indigenous people. For example, when Captain Cordova threatens to punish Stone Hands, Father Vicente impedes him. He negotiates with Stone Hands and promises to improve working conditions for Indigenous people. Under his temporary management in the Mission as a Father Superior, Father Vicente establishes new laws, providing small salaries for the workers, allowing trading, and sheltering Karana and her dog in the courtyard to help her adjust. The new priest, though, sends him away to another Mission. After his departure, Indigenous people’s oppression intensifies. Ultimately, Father Vicente’s efforts remain bound by the oppressive Mission system and could not provide justice to the tribes.