# Under the Artu Tree explained — The Blue Lagoon

> Chapter companion for The Blue Lagoon by H. de Vere Stacpoole.

## What happens

The chapter introduces Emmeline Lestrange, a beautiful fifteen- or sixteen-year-old girl living in a small bamboo house on a tropical island with her companion Dick. She is shown feeding a tame bird named Koko, and the description emphasizes her transformation from a plain child into a striking young woman over the past six months.

## Themes in this chapter

### Nature vs. Civilization

The house is built from natural materials and blends into the tropical landscape, contrasting with the civilized world.

### Innocence and Loss

Emmeline's peaceful, naked existence with the bird evokes a state of innocence, yet her recent physical transformation hints at impending change.

## Character check-ins

### Emmeline

The girl of fifteen or sixteen, naked except for a kilt, with long black hair and blue-grey eyes, feeding the bird Koko.

### Dick

Mentioned as the one who found and tamed Koko two years ago; Emmeline asks where he is.

### Koko

A tame bird with blue plumage and coral-red beak, fed by Emmeline and named for its vocal sound.

## Key lines

> On the edge of the green sward, between a diamond-chequered artu trunk and the massive bole of a breadfruit, a house had come into being.

A small house was built on the grassy area between an artu tree and a breadfruit tree.

_Describes the setting of the chapter._

> The girl was Emmeline Lestrange.

The girl's name is Emmeline Lestrange.

_Introduces the main character._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_blue_lagoon_se/chapters/part-i-i-under-the-artu-tree
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_blue_lagoon_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_blue_lagoon_se/chapters