The Evil in Fortune

The Pearl is a book that demonstrates that wealth does not always mean prosperity, but that it can also mean grief and loss. In an effort to demonstrate the evil behind the love of money John Steinbeck creates Kino, a man who chooses the possible riches of the world over his family’s well-being. Kino is a poor man who has nothing, except for his wife, Juana, and baby, Coyotito. The family lives in poverty, yet they are a content little family that seeks to have nothing more. On an ordinary day, Kino and Juana are struck by disaster when a scorpion stings Coyotito. Juana’s first thought after doing what she can for her child is to take Coyotito to the doctor. However, the doctor is a cruel man who does not take patients, infants or adults, who cannot pay. Devastated, Kino and Juana go in search of pearls and have the fortune of finding a huge magnificent pearl that could be the key to a better life. What first seems like a blessing quickly turns into misfortune, for the love of money destroys what once was a happy family.

The roots of evil can first be seen in the town, when the news of Kino’s pearl is being spread. The town’s envy and maliciousness is demonstrated when the narrator states “Kino’s pearl went into the dreams…of everyone, and only one person stood in the way and that was Kino, so that he became curiously every man’s enemy” (23). The pearl opens many new doors to Kino and Juana, doors that the rest of the town desires. Therefore there is not a single person happy for Kino and Juana; instead the town reproaches their wealth and out of pure jealousy, which is born out of their love and lust for money, the towns’ people commit many undignified acts. Out of blind love for money a group of persons is capable of destroying...

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...l evil, which can cause serious problems. The characters choose what actions to take and what decisions to make, thus some could argue that people are the root of all evil. Even though the characters are aware of what they are doing, it is still the love of money that drives the characters to commit the evil actions, as is shown by the narrator when he states, “that humans are never satisfied, that you give them one thing and they want something more” (25). Loving money in many cases means being driven into breaking rules and consequently the outcome of loving money is evil.

The love of money can truly be described as the root of all evil, for in this short book it was capable of destroying the lives of a loving family. Money may mean prosperity in some cases, but that is not always the case.

Works Cited

Steinbeck, John. The Pearl. New York: Penguin, 1992. Print.