The story The Pearl has many people facing challenges. Many people in the story are punished for stepping out of their place in society. The author conveys throughout the story that bad things happen to those who step out of place in society.
Every year, this was the priest's sermon. Every priest was a white Spaniard; part of their duty was to help keep the natives in their place. The religion was forced on the natives, and they were forced to practice it. However, many of them still believed in their traditional religion. Scaring the natives by telling them they will be punished by God worked well. The natives in Kino's town were not educated and found it hard to tell whether they were being tricked. No one stepped out of place in fear of being noticed.
The village Kino and Juana lived in seemed nice in the beginning, but once kino found the pearl he always had to watch his back. Everyone started acting suspicious and watching Kino's every move. Now that they were different than everyone, they were noticed. Juana wanted to go back to how they were, but Kino, having the chance to be rich, wants to take it. His decisions were made out of desperation and not over what would be best for his family. The author makes it clear that the town is
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As a woman back in this time, she does not have much freedom. She does all the housework and takes care of the child. She is first punished for stepping out of her place when she disobeys her husband and tries throwing out the pearl. Kino, being the man in the family, decides what will be done with the pearl. It is not Juana's choice, as a woman to decide what is to be done with it. Juana also disobeys Kino and does not split ways with him. He tells her to take Coyotito and go to the city and let him lead the trackers into the mountains. For her actions, she is punched and beaten by her husband, and her child is
outcome of Juana's loyalty to Kino. Her loyalty caused her to lose all that was
Juana showed greed in the beginning quote “Juana’s eyes were on him and she could not wait, she put her hand on Coyotito’s covered head. Open it, she said softly” (p.19). Later on she realized what the pearl had been doing to Kino, turning him into an evil man. She also saw that everyone was going to try to steal the pearl from Kino and knew what would happen to the family if they held onto the it, for example when she said “Kino, the pearl is evil. Let us destroy it before ti destroys us. Let us crush it between two stones. Let us throw it back in the sea where it belongs” (p.56-57). This made Juana want to throw away the pearl and return to the old way of life where Kino and herself appreciated the little, enjoyable parts of life.
At first we learn Kino only wants the best for his family and gets the pearl only for medicine. Then, as the story continues he starts wanting more for himself and for his family. For example, he says he wanted a gun and wanted to get married, even though they are happy as they are. Not only does he start wanting more, but starts acting differently. Juana starts to see these changes in her husband, so she tries to throw the pearl away. The way Kino reacts to this is by Sprinting after Juana and to stop her he punches and kicks her. This shows how he hit his own wife just to stop her from throwing a material. Then he doesn't even have to kick her, but he does out of greed and frustration. Then later in the story he starts to care again for the family, but as long as he has the pearl he still is ready to fight or even kill for it. Two trackers and a rifleman are after Kino because they want the pearl for themselves. Kino, Juana, and Coyotito hide in a cave thinking that the three men will walk right past
“Her arm was up to throw when he leaped at her and caught her arm and wrenched the pearl from her. He struck her in the face… He heard the rush, got his knife out and lunged at one dark figure and felt his knife go home,”pg 59. In the previous quote, Kino’s wife Juana steals the pearl and tries to throw it into the ocean but is beaten and punished by Kino. Soon after this two mysterious figures try to steal the pearl from Kino and he violently stabs one of them. The only reason that this happens is because humans love attention, and if somebody has something that you do not have you want it. Juana wishes that Kino would quit worrying about the pearl so much, and focus more on his family. This pushes her to try to steal the pearl and return it back to its rightful home. Whereas, the unknown figures are jealous of Kino’s pearl and they wish that they had it for themselves, this is why they try murdering Kino, and stealing the pearl. This is not the only instinct shown through this quote though, humans are very protective of there stuff and often times violence can ensue if people try stealing what is rightfully yours. Kino is very protective of his pearl and when everybody tries taking it from him he becomes violent and chaos comes soon after. Being protective is why you have to teach babies how to share, and why many wars break out.
For example, in the story, it says “ He struck her face with his clenched fist and she fell among the boulders, and he kicked her in the side” (59). This quote shows that Kino put the pearl above Juana when he mistreated her for getting rid of the pearl. Nobody should mistreat family members just because they want something. Another example from the story is “Hush, said Kino. “Do not speak any more”(39). This quote shows that Kino treats Juana like she is not equal to the pearl and like she is not equal to Kino. He treats the pearl better than he treats Juana. He demands her to do stuff to protect the pearl and to make sure it is not harmed. Kino does not listen to Juana when she says it is evil because he only sees satisyfing things in the pearl and he only trusts what he sees in it not what his family tells him. These pieces of evidence are connected to the theme because they show how Kino treated the Pearl better than his own wife
When Kino finds the pearl he believes it is a new dawn, a good thing. To him, “It was the greatest pearl in the world,” but Juana sees otherwise. And when Juana attempts to fling the pearl out to sea, Kino “strikes her in the face with his clenched fist” and “kicks her in the side.” Kino harms Juana, whom he loves, because of attachment to the pearl. Kino refuses to let Juana destroy the pearl because, “"This pearl has become my soul," says Kino.
For Kino and Juana, their primary responsibility is taking care of their family, and keeping each other safe. In the story, both of them fail to meet either of these expectations, making it painfully clear that they are to blame for Coyotito’s death. Kino is responsible for Coyotito’s death because he refuses to get rid of his great pearl. When Coyotito is stung by a scorpion, Kino contacts the town doctor to come and cure his child. After much refusal, the doctor finally agrees to help his child, but only after hearing that Kino possessed a great pearl. The doctor, a greedy and terrible person, sends a thief to rob Kino of his pearl when he can not get Kino to give up his pearl. After Kino fights off the unwelcome guest, Juana tells him, “‘This thing is evil… This pearl is like a sin! It will destroy us,’ and her voice rose shrilly. ‘Throw it away, Kino. Let us break it between stones. Let us bury it and forget the place. Let us throw it back into the sea. It has brought evil. Kino, my husband, it will destroy us´” (Steinbeck 65). Kino’s responsibility is to take care of his family and keep them safe. By disregarding Juana’s words, he puts all of them in danger, therefore, he is responsible for the result this decision, which is the death of his son. Juana tells Kino this multiple times, but each and every time, he refuses to give up his pearl, believing that the pearl is
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
The discovery of the "magnificent" pearl changed the lives of Kino and Juana severely because they were not used to this kind of wealth. Before they found the pearl, Kino and Juana lived a happy, humble and quiet life. "Kino heard the little splash of the morning waves on the beach. It was very good - Kino closed his eyes again to listen to his music."(Pg. 1-2) Kino loved the simple life; nevertheless whenever things were beginning to look good and simple something went wrong.
Kino goes to sell his pearl, accompanied by his neighbors, but the pearl dealer only offers a thousand pesos when Kino believes that he deserves fifty thousand. Although other dealers inspect the pearl and give similar prices, Kino refuses their offer and decides to go to the capital to sell it there. That night, Kino is attacked by more thieves, and Juana once again reminds Kino that the pearl is evil. However, Kino believes that he will not be cheated, because he is a
In chapter 4 Kino starts talking to the pearl buyers and grows greedy. The pearl starts to turn him and shows power, evil, and greed, “she too could hear the Song of Evil” (Steinbeck). In this sentence Juana sees the pearls temptation. Steinbeck shows it is changing Kino by adding detail to the scene, “He could feel the dark creeping waiting for him” (Steinbeck). This shows he hasn’t fully taken in the pearls temptation. Juana and Juan Tomás seem to guide Kino to make sure he does not turn fully evil like those in the past who have stolen pearls. Kino may have the
Juana, the wife to fisherman Kino, is one of the main characters in The Pearl. Coming from poverty, Juana and her husband live a minimalist life, as her simple clothes show (a battered blue head shawl and skirt, and a green ribbon knotted in her braids). Many themes in the story revolve around her. Although Juana understands her role to be a subservient and passive wife, she is smart, brave, and determined throughout the novella. Symbolizing the power and strength of women, Juana gradually becomes dominant over her husband. Juana’s second role in The Pearl is to be the protective mother of her son, Coyotito. Last, she is wise and logical in troubling times and acts as the voice of reason. Juana’s words and actions emphasize her various roles in The Pearl.
Initially, Kino was seen as an all around good guy. He provided for his family, was in love with his wife, and had a desire to do anything for his child. Before the pearl, Kino was family oriented and content. In the first chapter evidence of his satisfaction were evident. Music played a large role in this. The novella states that the mixture of Juana’s singing, the Song of the Family, and the ultimate peace was described to Kino as the “Whole”, which meant that everything was in place and that Kino needed nothing else. Kino’s first act of honorable violence was when Coyotito was stung by the scorpion. Throughout the time Kino was killing the scorpion, Juana was tending to Coyotito. While Kino was hesitant, he acquiesced when Juana insisted
It is early morning, the morning after the day of visiting the pearl buyers, when Kino attacks his wife Juana, is attacked by a group of men, and than proceeds to kill one of those men. According to his neighbors, this is the event that shows his changed personality and his changed system of values. They said they believed he would have never hurt anyone especially his wife, but he did it because he wanted money, he did it because money was now more important than family. This demonstrates the evil that the pearl brings into his life because it makes him more evil and especially more violent. He doesn’t only kill this one person, but he kills three other men that were hunting him.
Juana is resourceful at multiple encounters in the story; specifically, when her child was exposed to the venom of a scorpion at the beginning; she was the one to take action and suck the venom out of the bite that would kill her son, compared to her husband who “was helpless” and “in the way” (Steinbeck 6). She is strong-willed through her actions afterwards to request the selfish doctor for her child; his chances to aid the family were certainly not likely since the family’s lack of wealth, but she decided to request him anyways. Demonstrating these traits once again, had Juana not stayed with Kino as faced with the danger of trackers who “were sensitive as hounds,” (Steinbeck 73) and armed, he would have died. Though it was Juana’s responsibility to silence Coyotito, his baby’s cries led him to execute his enemies that had been expected to kill mercilessly. Juana’s abilities are oppressed in that her responsibilities require her to simply cook for her family and clean their home instead of contributing to her