Pearl Diving

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Pearl Diving
Pearl diving is an ancient trade that has been practiced since early times. In The Pearl, by John Steinbeck, pearl diving is very important to the city, La Paz, where the story takes place. The history of La Paz is rooted in pearl diving. Pearl diving, although it is a dangerous profession, shaped the history of La Paz and the writing of The Pearl.
Pearls are the only gems that are produced by a living organism. Pearls are formed when a tiny substance, usually a small organism enters into a mollusk. The substance irritates the mollusk, causing it to produce a substance called nacre, or mother of pearl. The nacre coats the substance until it becomes a beautiful pearl. (Pearl Guide) There are many different types of pearls. There are akoya pearls, which are perfectly spherical and the most valuable of all of the pearls. There are mabe, pearls which are hemispherical. There are seed pearls which, are shaped like seeds. These pearls are very small and invaluable. There are blister pearls which are hollow and look like blisters. There are also baroque pearls which are misshapen. (Roxana Pearls)
Pearl diving is incredibly dangerous, with hazards around every corner. There are dangerous fish, such as sharks, poisonous jellyfish, and saw fish to look out for. Saw fish have been known to cut divers completely in half. There is also the risk of drowning, hypothermia, and ships getting destroyed by powerful winds. The most dangerous danger of them all, perhaps, is decompression sickness. Decompression sickness, also called the bends, is a serious and sometimes fatal condition that divers get. During a dive, the body tissues absorb nitrogen proportional to the pressure being exerted on the diver. As long as the diver remains ...

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