John Steinbeck 's The Pearl

In the book The Pearl by John Steinbeck the main character Kino finds a pearl while pearl diving. The pearl could buy Kino and his family the stuff they need, but it also could bring danger. What the author is trying to say is money brings greed then greed brings danger. Such as when kino was beaten up and the people who beat him up burnt his house down in chapter five page 63 “He saw a little glow ahead of him, and then without interval a tall flame leaped up in the dark with a crackling roar, and a tall edifice of fire lighted pathways”(Steineck pg 63).

Kino in The Pearl creates the theme of greed and power can make one’s downfall. In the book Juana (Kino’s wife) hears evil music with the pearl and fears it will tear apart the family and the village. So she sneaks out in the early morning with it and tries to get rid of it to free her family from evil but gets caught in the action by her husband who goes savage. “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 with his clenched 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…”(page 58-59) This shows how greed and power can make one’s downfall because the greed of the pearl and the idea of what riches it could bring to the family and the whole village which makes Kino fill with rage when he sees Juana trying to get rid of

Kino no longer saw the pearl as “beautiful, rich and warm and lovely” (19), but rather “gray and ulcerous” (89). The melody that was “glowing and gloating and triumphant” (19) was now twisted, “distorted and insane” (89). Because of people imposing their selfish desires on the pearl, it was ugly to Kino. He, through the death of his son, understood that the people of his village had corrupted the pearl with what should have been a beautiful, elegant means for a better future. However, once Kino and Juana threw the pearl back into the gulf, it “settled into the lovely green water…the waving branches of the algae called to it and beckoned to it” (90). The pearl becomes destructive and dangerous when it is entangled with notions of material value. However, it is returned to its original beauty only after it is thrown into the gulf. Kino’s action of throwing it back into the ocean represents him finally rejecting the greed that consumed him.

Biblical references act as focal points throughout Foster’s ‘How to Read Literature Like a Professor’ and are discussed in chapter seven’s ‘...Or the Bible.’ Ideas stemming from themes such as greed, sin, and sacrifice can be traced within Steinbeck’s ‘The Pearl’ as Kino, a poor man, is desperate to reap the riches of “The greatest pearl in the world (pg 34)” and save his only son from imminent death. At first glance the pearl can be recognized as a symbol for greed----Which is true, because Kino goes to severe lengths in order to preserve the pearl’s worth. Consequently, this results in the gruesome demise of his child and the disposal of the pearl. The idea of greed surrounding the pearl also applies to minor characters. An example of this can be identified with the beggars of the church as they heard the news of the pearl, “For they knew that there is no alms giver in the world like a poor man who is suddenly lucky.” (pg 11) However, the pearl’s symbolism goes further beyond a simple theme.

Greed is perhaps one of the most destructive forces in this world, it breeds anger, hate, jealousy, and more. The novella “The Pearl” is based on how the finding of a pearl causes greed to be awakened in the hearts of people and cause them to commit evil. During the Novella, Steinbeck develops the theme that greed left unchecked can cause immoral behavior and that is show in the doctor, the attackers, and Kino. All of them are forced by greed to commit sins that they otherwise would not do.

Many people in the world today grow crazy and mad when surrounded by even the slightest bit of wealth and good fortune. Even a strong person who recognizes their priorities can still become corrupt with too much power. There is no better example of a person falling into the path of evil and corruption than in a novel written by John Steinbeck. In the novel The Pearl, by John Steinbeck, the author writes about a poor Indian man named Kino who becomes corrupt from the wealth of a magnificent pearl. Steinbeck uses the motifs of music, light and dark imagery, and values to develop the theme that good fortune, wealth, and prosperity steer even the most innocent of people towards a path of evil and corruption. The reader learns that one

Just like in real life, the characters in literature tend to be faced with very tough decisions in one way or the other. During these times, our decisions can turn us into heroes or make us look like big fools. The choices can thus affect our lives positively or negatively. ‘The Pearl’ is a 1947 novella by John Steinbeck where he tells the story of Kino, a pearl diver. Through the story, he tries to explore the nature of man of evil, greed, and defiance to the norms of society. He tells the story of how Kino found and lost the pearl. In this paper, the argument will be made from the point of Kino as a hero.

“Perhaps a rifle.” ” (Pg. 30). This quote from the book shows how even though Kino is a good, honest, generous man, the pearl was making him want things even though he didn't need them. Like the rifle, the rifle was always known to be a white man's tool, so when he had a taste of wealth, he started seeing all of these things that he didn't need and just wanted in the pearls reflection. Greed touched the doctor and Kino the same way, although they are two very different people with very different personalities and different desires, greed touched them both. Greed touches every character, big and small, in the book The Pearl. The theme greed brings out everyone's true character and shows what they will do to make their hopes and dreams come true.

We all know the pearl, from the novel “The Pearl” was very deceiving. The pearl was suppose have a good impact on Kino’s life. However, the pearl turned out to have many negative effects on Kino’s life. The many different effects of the pearl eventually changed Kino’s life forever. However, the pearl had different stages and meanings in the novel, which includes the different symbolisms of the pearl, what the pearl meant Kino in different stages in the novel, and what it meant to the community.

The pearl's evil infects Kino like a ravaged disease and consumes his mind. He starts off with good intentions, but they become twisted. He wants to sell the pearl and use the money to better his family's lifestyle. He has dreams and goals that each depends on the pearl selling for a good price. Juana sensing the evil and greed coming from Kino attempts to destroy it. Kino beats her unmercifully. "He struck her in the face and she fell among the boulders, and he kicked her in the side...He hissed at her like a snake and she stared at him with wide unfrightened eyes, like a sheep before a butcher." Juana sees through the outer beauty of the pearl and knew it would destroy Kino and herself. Kino's vision from the soul becomes blurred by the possible prosperity the pearl will bring. The evil invades Kino's life as well as everyone he knows and loves.

Another example of greed is shown when Juana takes the pearl from Kino to throw back into the sea. Kino realizes what she is doing and goes after her. Just as Juana is about to discard the pearl, Kino grabs her arm and wrenches the pearl from her. He punches her in the face and when she falls on the boulders, he kicks her in the side. The following quote establishes the violence that Kino unleases on his wife in order to protect his precious pearl from harm, due to his greediness of what the pearl will bring to him and his family: “…Rage surged in Kino. He leaped at Juana and wrenched the pearl from her…with clenched fists, struck her in the face…kicked her in the side…Greedy fingers went through his clothes” (58-59).

Kino a loving father and husband whom had dreams for his family, as shown in steinbeck’s The Pearl. But fate led him to a pearl of exqwizit magnificence. This pearl assured the dreams he wanted for his family, to marry ied to his wife Juana, and for his son Coyotito to get a proper education. But because of Kino’s obsessive attitude over the pearl it doomed his family to a different path, one with fear, death, and corruption. Juana his loving wife whom was spectacle of what Kino was doing and questioned him “Who do you fear?” (35) Kino answered with “Everyone”(36). You may argue that Kino’s actions are being based on greed therefore greed is responsible for the death of Coyotito and the destruction of the family, I invalidate that argument because greed is an emotion. Greed, is an emotion and emotions cannot control you, you have the ability control your emotions. DO NOT READ THE RED “In my target essay, I argued that emotions can be controlled, in the sense that we can shape or influence which emotions we have, when we have them, and how we experience and express these emotions.”

In the novel the fishing village is quiet and everyone works hard and stays positive. Then everything changes when Kino finds the pearl. The word spreads quickly and everyone starts to think of how they can benefit from the pearl. This is the reason why I decided to draw a hand reaching out because I wanted to illustrate how everyone wanted the pearl and how people in the village are motivated by self interest rather than concern for others. The different appearances of the pearl portray a theme of good vs. evil that reveals that things and people are not always what it seems and that wealth brings evil.

In literature, a tragic hero is a character of noble birth with heroic qualities. This character is usually fated by some supernatural force to great suffering, destruction, and even doom. Often, the hero struggles mightily against this fate and in the process, wins the admiration of the reader. The character of Kino in John Steinbeck’s novella, The Pearl, while not of “noble birth,” is indeed a tragic hero. He suffers from the tragic flaw of greed after he finds a pearl of great value. Steinbeck, through the use of an omniscient narrator, reveals the human weakness of Kino’s actions in order to teach a moral lesson. At the same time, however, the narrator often shows a certain respect and admiration for the fact that Kino strives to realize his ambitions. He will stop at nothing to make sure he gets a fair price for

All of the village people suddenly sparked an interest in Kino once he discovered the pearl, “people with things to sell and people with favors to ask. Kino had found the Pearl of the World. . . .Every man suddenly became related to Kino's pearl, and Kino's pearl went into the dreams, the speculations, the schemes, the plans, the futures, the wishes, the needs, the lusts, the hungers, of everyone, and only one person stood in the way and that was Kino, so that he became curiously every man's enemy” (Steinbeck 23). The pearl does not result in an immediate change in Kino’s personality, but rather how others view him. The pearl symbolizes hope, a trait that Kino previously possessed, but somewhat lost after the incident involving Coyotito’s illness. Kino’s “eyes and voice [became] hard and cold and a brooding hate was growing in him” (Steinbeck 38). At the beginning of the novel, Kino is very optimistic and positive. Therefore, when this hate begins to consume him, it is very unusual, leading us to believe that the pearl has an influence on Kino.