Imagine discovering something that is supposed to bring hopes and dreams but it is actually a curse that brings misery and death. John Steinbeck’s fiction novella, The Pearl, is a story about a small society that craves to have wealth and fortune by looking for a magical pearl. The story focuses on Kino and his family. His family consists of his wife, Juana, and their son, Coyotito. Fortunately for Kino, he finds the pearl. He plans to use the pearl to help his family have a better life, but his dedication to creating a higher quality life for his family is what causes his downfall. He was so focused on getting what he did not have that he eventually lost possession of his original things. Kino’s downfall started the moment he found the pearl …show more content…
Before Kino found the pearl, he “was a well-liked [strong, independent] man and people admired him because of his leadership qualities (Steinbeck 43). He was a “quiet sensitive man” before his mind was corrupted by the pearl (Cox 110). Everything changed when he found the pearl. Initially, it gave Kino high “ambitions for his son,” however, the overwhelming thoughts soon turned into “an agent of disaster” (Morris 95). The transition from being someone that everyone admired to an enemy was the major change in his character. The hunger for something greater in life made him feel “a shell of hardness drawing over him” and warped his sense of reality (Steinbeck 36). His goal was to improve the lifestyle of his family, but the numerous times that people “[schemed] to get the pearl away from Kino” made him nervous and suspicious of his surroundings (Sugrue 4). After all the time he spent hidden in fear from society, “the light made him afraid” because the pearl took over his actions and made his do unrealistic things that drew danger towards his family. (Steinbeck 63). Kino was paranoid to the point where he could not even trust his own wife or his own judgment on the pearl being a curse to his …show more content…
Within the epigraph, Steinbeck had already mentioned the reality of how there are only “good and evil things and no in-between.” This shows how the pearl gave good to the family first by giving false signals to made Kino believe that he and his wife “will be married” or “will have new clothes” or have Coyotito, their son, “sitting at a little desk in a school” (Steinbeck 25). Having the pearl alongside the family, Juana begins to believe that Kino is “trapped by his own ignorance” because of how the pearl made Kino determined to get a better price for the pearl so that he could bring fortunes to his family (Cox 110). The good from the pearl begins to change as Kino and society begins to succumb to their greed. As time goes on, the bad luck rises and Juana claims that ‘this pearl is like a sin” and will destroy the family, as well as society, if it is not destroyed first (Steinbeck 38). The pearl slowly revealed the true actions of society through their greed for a better life showing Kino that “the town is the obvious enemy” to him and his family (Levant 103). As the town begins to go after the pearl, his luck with the pearl vanishes because by the end of the book Kino “lost his home, his child, and his happiness” which was what the pearl was suppose to bring him in the first place showing that the pearl had it’s
In The Pearl, Kino wants to sell the pearl for money, for several reasons. One of which is to help his dying baby, Coyotito. Kino ended up getting more greedy and wanted more and more from the pearl, that a bad ending was sure to happen. The author includes several bad events that happen, due to Kino's greed and attempts to mess with fate. For example, his baby died. This is sort of ironic because he wanted the pearl so he could make Coyotito better, but... A couple other examples of how Kino meets with disaster when his house burnt down and his canoe was trashed. On page 29 of this, Novel it says, “He knew that the gods don't take their revenge on a man if he be successful through his own efforts.” This shows that Kino knew what was going to happen, but didn't care because his greediness got the best of him. Likewise, in “The Monkey's Paw” Mr.White was careless, which ended up with him finding himself in the middle of a disaster. On pg 187, it says “...And that those who interfered with it did so to their sorrow.” Mr. White didn’t care, he was warned by the sergeant, when he said to him “Better let it burn.” because the sergeant knew it was bad and would bring great pain and sorrow and problems to Mr.White and his family, but he paid no attention to the sergeants
He is one of the most greedy person in this book.Kino Was perfectly fine in the beginning of the book, but then he found the pearl and turned his life upside down.Kino had a perfect relationship with his wife, but then “he struck her in the face,he cluched her with his fist and she fell among the boulders,and he kicked her in the side.Kino looked down at her and his teeth were bared.He hissed at her like a snake, and Juana stared at him with wide UN frightened eyes,like a sheep before the butcher(59)”.Kino even got worse “When Juana tries to hid the pearl and Kino goes crazy and almost attacks her like a crazy man(38)”.But then there is this side of Kino when he first gets the pearl”When Kino thinks of all the things that the pearls wealth and money will do for them but not for anyone else(36)”.This is greedy because he only thinks of himself for the pearl.But Kino am greedy Most of the
“You had become so wrapped up in the pearl’s worth, that you were willing to hurt me, your own wife, in order to protect it! Greed surely played a role in this, as no right-minded man would ever assault his wife for the fun of it.” Kino spoke softly, unable to meet my gaze, “I am a man. I must never show weakness.” I didn’t believe Kino’s excuses, and I am pretty sure he didn’t either.
He is driven by greed, so much so that he could even see dreams form in the pearl. Kino is the head of a modest household and until he finds the pearl he lives a satisfied life with all he needs for his family to be happy. As soon as Kino finds the pearl he starts to want possessions he never wanted before. He dreams of education for Coyotito, marrying Juana in a Catholic church, purchasing new clothing for his family, and getting a harpoon and a rifle for himself. “It was the rifle that broke down the barriers . . . for it is said that humans are never satisfied, that you give them one thing and they want something more” (Steinbeck 32). Located within a small poverty-stricken community, a pearl diver named Kino finds “the Pearl of the World” and becomes suddenly rich, he begins to want items that he thought were impossible before. As Kino thinks more and more of what the pearl can do for him, he starts to think that it will raise his social status as well. This is only the beginning of Kino’s greediness, for the more he gets, the more he will want, and this begins to dehumanize him. Kino focuses on the wealth of the pearl and causes him to change his values about life. In the beginning, Kino is only focused on his family, once Kino finds the pearl he becomes more focused on the pearl, rather than his family. Kino cares a lot more about losing the pearl rather than something bad happening to his loved
Kino, a family man with a dream, transforms into something not human but quite opposite. Juana and Kino both lived in poverty until coming across the pearl. Though the pearl was a miracle, it soon converts Kino into an animal to a machine. John Steinbeck, the author, dehumanizes Kino using figurative language.
For all of these reasons, Kino is a fool. The death of his son, the destruction of his house and canoe, and the loss of his pearl is all his fault. He easily could have avoided all 3 of those things by never even taking that pearl and just throwing back into the ocean when he knew and could sense that it was evil. If I was in Kino’s place I would have sold the pearl as soon as I could to have to the highest bidder just to get rid of it and to make some money since the pearl was evil. THat way my family would still be alive and my canoe and house would still be
At first, the pearl symbolized aa amazing providence. With the discovery of the great pearl, Kino began to have hope for Coyotito’s future and thought of the different possibilities that lead before him. However, as the town found out about ‘“the Pearl of the World”’(Steinbeck, 1947, p. 23), it began to have an injurious effect into Kino’s simplistic life (SparkNotes Editors, 2002). Juana and Kino’s brother began to seek the pearl as a threat rather than a blessing as the pearl began to symbolize and associate more materialistic desires. With Kino’s desire to acquire wealth from the pearl, he altered from a happy and content father into a savage criminal. By Kino’s demonstration of the destruction of innocence from greed and desire, the pearl soon became a symbol of human destruction. Kino’s gluttony shortly leads him to violently mistreat his wife and also to the death of his only son, Coyotito (SparkNotes Editors, 2002). SparkNotes Editors (2002) believed that his greed ultimately isolated Kino from his cultural customs and society. Overall, according to Wheeler (2008), the parable’s moral lesson was that “money cannot buy
In The Pearl, by John Steinbeck, evil transforms certain humble citizens into envious savages. Evil was exhibited by the doctor who refused to treat Coyotito because his parents had no money. When the doctor heard of Kino and Juana's fortune in finding "the pearl of the world" (722), he boasted that they were patients of his while thinking of a better life for himself in Paris. Coyotito was healed when the doctor finally came to their straw hut. He deceived Kino by giving the baby a white powder that made him go into convulsions. An hour later he came and gave Coyotito the remedy and immediately wanted to know when he was getting paid. The evil in the pearl had reached the heart of the doctor. The pearl's evil did not restrict itself to infecting Kino's peers; it also affected Kino himself. He wanted to sell the pearl and use the money to better his family's standard of living. He had dreams and goals that all depended on the pearl.
To me, John Steinbeck’s, The Pearl, doesn’t really relate to me or my lifestyle in many ways. However, there are a couple of things I found that were similar in my lifestyle. I wake up every morning and strive to reach the best I can be. I go to school, work hard, and try to reach my best in all that I do. I have found this to be similar to Kino. Kino wakes up every morning and tries to give his family everything possible. He works very hard in finding his pearls and always tries to look for the best in his family. However, when Kino found the pearl and after many tries of getting rid of it, his life turned upside down. Juanita warned Kino many times, but he didn’t listen. Kino encountered many hardships including his son’s death, his house burning to ashes, and his family falling apart. From this, I have learned that when a person finds something that he think can bring something good into a family, he might be wrong because it might actually destroy his family and his life. Clearly, family relationships are very important and in this case, Kino was too late and realized this after his son Coyotito died.
The aspect of the John Steinbeck novels, The Pearl and Of Mice and Men, that is most comparable is how, in both books, Steinbeck denies the main characters of each book, Kino and George and Lennie to change their role in life or to beat fate. Steinbeck’s grim outlook of life was perhaps brought on through his early failures and poverty, because all three of the pre-mentioned characters had opportunities to change their fate or role but failed. The elements of discussion are Kino, George and Lennie, a comparison and a contrast.
Readers can tell from the statement that many of the people Kino encounters after finding the pearl become bitter “friends”. At this point, Kino and Juana begin to realize that the pearl is bringing bad luck upon them. They are taken advantage of by the doctor and he decides to visit them after knowing they have the pearl. “This pearl is like a sin”(56). Juana begins to realize the pearl is bringing them bad luck, but Kino still trusts that it’s a gift. Readers can also assume that people are trying to take the pearl when Kino is suddenly attacked during the night. “Blood oozed down from his scalp and there was a long…”(56). Readers can now confirm that the pearl has changed and now represents evil. The pearl also begins to destroy Kino and Juana’s relationship as they have different opinions on what to do with the pearl. After Kino wakes up and follows Juana when she wakes up and walks out, readers know he has started to lose full trust in her. “He rolled up to his feet and followed her silently as she had gone” (58). Through the symbolism of the pearl and what it brings upon Kino and Juana, the author emphasizes how the pearl is not what it first appears to be, which was
On page 89 it states, "He looked into its surface and it was gray and ulcerous. Evil faces peered from it into his eyes, and he saw the light of burning. And in the surface of the pearl he saw the frantic eyes of the man in the pool. In the surface of the pearl he saw Coyotito lying in the little cave with the top of his head shot away. And the pearl was ugly; it was gray, like a malignant growth." In the end, Kino had finally realized that the pearl was nothing but a waste. Nothing good has come out of his journey to the rich life. He just suffered. The pearl held nothing but horrible memories. Now the pearl meant evil and
In “The Pearl” by John Steinbeck, the theme of “greed as a destructive force” has been shaped strongly throughout the entire book. My thesis statement is that if Kino had the ability to change himself, his life could have also been changed. As written in the book, “The sun was behind them and their long shadows stalked ahead, and they seemed to carry two towers of darkness with them.” (Steinbeck,
“It is wonderful the way a little town keeps track of itself and of all its units.” (41) In The Pearl, by John Steinbeck, a poor fisherman named Kino and his family find the pearl of the world and must defend themselves from jealous attackers. They then go on a life changing journey to seek the right payment for their newfound treasure and encounter many obstacles along the way. Through the use of characterization and symbolism, the author demonstrates that greed and obsession lead to downfall. Steinbeck uses the pearl buyers, the aristocrats, and Kino to illustrate this message.
The Pearl by John Steinbeck is a classic novella. Steinbeck is a classic author that also wrote The Grapes of Wrath and Of Mice and Men. “This long story (or short novel) follows five momentous days in the life of an Indian pearl diver living in La Paz, a small port on the Gulf of California,” (Gunn 1) . Kino is the pearl diver, and his son, Coyotito, gets stung by a scorpion, but the doctor will not see him because of race and status. That is until Kino goes pearl diving and finds a pearl the size of a gull’s egg. After that everything changes for Kino, his family, and the whole village. This novella is set up a lot like a parable in which it is an earthly story with an heavenly meaning. This story has many symbols that point to the overlying