The Pearl Greed

“And to Kino the secret melody of the maybe pearl broke clear and beautiful, rich and warm and lovely, gloating and glowing in triumph.” (Steinbeck 20). This is one of many memorable quotes from John Steinbeck’s classic, The Pearl. While this story is composed of only eighty-seven pages, the author packs the book with more meaning and teaching than many authors have been able to in hundreds. Set in a small village in La Paz, Mexico, the tale deals with many topics, themes, and issues.

In addition to the constitution protecting the right to equality, it also protects the freedom to express your religion. This falls under the fundamental freedoms in the Canadian Charter of Rights. In the case of Ontario Human Rights Commission and Harbhajan Singh Pandori v. Peel Board of Education (1991), Pandori, a Sikh teacher was required to wear a kirpan wherever he went. As the Peel Board of Education developed a no-weapon policy, they stated that it also applied to kirpans which meant that Mr. Pandori would not be permitted to wear his on school grounds. He took this case to the Ontario Human Rights Commission where they ruled that the policy discriminated against Khalsa Sikhs. They had ruled that Pandori is able to wear his kirpan

“Kino could see Juana in a shawl, stiff with newness and a new skirt, he could see himself dressed in new white clothes with a new hat, holding a new harpoon better than the one he had previously broken. He could see Coyotito, he wore a blue sailor suit from the United States and a little yachting cap, these are all things he wanted, that he could now have.” Kino states everything he wants and can now get in life which makes him more arrogant, leading him on a path of destruction. This also gives Kino something to look back on after it's too late. “In the moonlight he could see the frantic, frightened eyes, and Kino aimed and fired between the eyes. Suddenly he heard the keening, moaning, rising hysterical cry from the little cave in the side of the stone mountain, the cry of death. He hastily scaled the mountain and entered the cave to bear the sight of a small limp heavy bundle. The shawl was dried with blood, and the bundle swayed a little swayed a little as it was held.” Kino has sacrificed the one thing he cares most in the world about for a simple pearl which again proves the point that Kino is truly a tragic hero. Kino believes that if he can come out safely with both his family and the pearl intact that he can live happily ever after, but with the pearl comes evil and death. Later in the novel when Kino is forced to choose between his family and

In the end of the story, Kino realized after Coyotito died because of getting shot, the pearl is worth nothing to him. “If it’s a coyote,this will stop it.” The watcher said as he raised his gun. Kino was in mid-leap when the gun crashed and the barrel-flash made a picture on his eyes.”(pg. 86) He knows the pearl can buy many materials that can support the family but it won't matter because the pearl will not be able to replace their son Coyotito.

In order to sell his pearl for the highest price possible, Kino was forced to go to the capital. This was due to being cheated by the local pearl buyers. “I have been cheated,” Kino cried fiercely. “My pearl is not for sale here. I will go perhaps even to the capital.” By doing so, Kino wasn’t only risking a long journey, but also putting his family in harm’s

Kino, who attains the pearl the day after this dramatic episode takes place, is eager to shed his skin of poverty, heal his son, and then begin a new life as a rich man, one who is freed from ignorance by knownledge he imagines his son will partake to them

This quote shows the greed in Kino is getting greater and greater. The reader can tell this because Kino is willing to hurt the person who he loves the most, and who loves him the most, just to keep his pearl safe.

The framework of modern American politics and political identification largely revolves around the Democratic and Republican parties. Rarely do third-party candidates, like Libertarians or the Green Party, become mainstream candidates. Occasionally people identify as independents, but in terms of political elections, the United States primarily functions on a two-party system. During the 2016 presidential election, people were not only divided by party, but by their strong dislike and appreciation of candidates. Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump were able to create a following that arose above the political party alignment. They created the dialogue that went against the establishment. Voters were drawn to the message and to the promised future.

In the novella, The Pearl, Kino is faced with many decisions that later impact his life in ways that he could never image. The Pearl tells the tale of a great pearl that could change the life of any man. Kino happened to be this man, but this great pearl caused nothing but havoc and harm to come upon his family. When they were running from all of the trouble the pearl had caused them, Kino’s son died, their hut burned down in the attempt to get away, and Kino had become a man of anger and violence.

Rather than wanting to do so as an act of kindness, the priest is motivated by Kino’s newfound treasure. He visits Kino and as he discusses the pearl, Kino begins to believe that wealth can fulfill all of his needs. Thus, he grows more attached to the pearl, and holds on to his desires more strongly. When attempting to sell his pearl, Kino’s wishes cause him to reject the low offers of the pearl buyers:

Kino is beginning to realize how at first the pearl seemed to have brought fortune and good to his family, but it really had only brought evil to the family. By the end of the story, Kino and Juana have lost their son, Coyotito, and they wish things were back to the way they were before they found the pearl. Kino then throws the pearl back out into the ocean where he had found it: “And the music of the pearl drifted to a whisper and disappeared” (90). The music disappearing as the pearl sink back into the ocean symbolizes the evil leaving the family: now that the pearl has left, so has the evil. Kino now understands that their “wealth” has brought nothing but evil and has destroyed both himself as well as his family. Not only does Steinbeck use the motif of music to express the theme that good fortune, wealth, and prosperity steer even the most innocent of people towards a path of evil and corruption, but he also uses the motif of light and dark imagery.

Money, Education, and Equality are major oppressions Kino and the town faced. Kino has experienced a lot in his life, but only one thing has kept him from losing his mind, his family. His family is why he is fighting for the pearl and why he needs it to survive. He feels various emotions throughout the book but he always goes back to why he is doing all the pain and suffering in the first place, his family. Kino is an honest man with good intentions to help his family's needs over his own needs. With or without all the problems Kino faced, he still would chose his family in the

In a small fishing village by the name of La Paz, live a simple, content, and calm family. The family consists of a child, Coyotito, and husband and wife, Juana and Kino. Kino is a poor fisherman and pearl diver that is simply working to support his family that he cares for very much. In the novel, Kino eventually acquires a pearl that he hopes will change his life around. As a result, the whole of his village despises Kino. They envy him for the rarity that is the pearl. Kino envisions an education for Coyotito, a rifle, and a marriage in a church, but realistically, the pearl shows death and more morbid outcomes such as Juana being beaten, and Coyotito being ill. Throughout the novel, the pearl noticeably has an impact on Kino's

Kino knows right from wrong, he knows being obsessive over a pearl is wrong because it puts too much at stake, majorly the whole as is referred to as the way of life in The Pearl. You may also debate that It 's the pearl’s fault for Coyotito’s death because if Kino

Kino has been ambushed during the night and has killed someone. Juan Tomas recommends him to get rid of it because it has caused a lot of trouble. “"I was attacked in the dark," said Kino. "And in the fight I have killed a man." "Who?", asked Juan Tomás quickly. "I do not know. It is all darkness – all darkness and shape of darkness." "It is the pearl," said Juan Tomás. "There is a devil in this pearl. You should have sold it and passed on the devil. Perhaps you can still sell it and buy peace for yourself."” (Steinbeck 64) Yet, Kino’s actions still don’t convince him to take Juan Tomas’s advice, as a result Kino faces the biggest tragedy he has experienced which is losing his son, Coyotito.