John Steinbecks The Pearl is a novel that was published in 1947 that retells an old Mexican tale. It is a story of a poor Indian pearl diver, named Kino who lived in La Paz with his wife, Juana, and his son Coyotito. At first, the family is seen to be contented with their lifestyle despite the challenges Kino has to face to provide a meal for his family. However, things begin to change when Coyotito is bit by a scorpion, and his parents begin to find ways to treat him.
The only doctor that is capable of treating Coyotito refuses to treat him because Kino is not able to pay for the treatment. In the pursuit for money to treat his son, Kino discovers an enormous pearl that will forever be referred to as the pearl of the world . This paper explores the greed, and evil portrayed by the indigenous Indians in John Steinbecks The Pearl.
As the title of the book suggests, the story is based on the enormous pearl Kino finds, and the events that took place as people tried to hunt Kino for possessing the pearl. From their way of life, it is evident that the Indians living in La Paz lead a poor lifestyle, and have accepted their role in life. Kino who is the central character in the novel owns a boat that he inherited from his father and grandfather. Other than this, he only owns the hut they live in, and a couple of clay cooking utensils.
The fact that The Pearl is seen as an object that could change ones position in life, it changes people from being idyllic to cheaters, murderers, and traitors. In the beginning, Kino and his wife, Juana are contented with the few possessions they have, but after discovering the pearl, they irreparably change; they become ambitious, greedy, and violent. Kinos family even plans to spend the money by improving their lifestyle once they sell their fortune.
Basically, the great pearl is a tool used to bring change among the peaceful Indian people living in a foreign country. The doctor and the pearl buyers represent the hypocrisy and exploitation facing the Indians in La Paz. This is seen when the doctor heartlessly refuses to treat Coyotito just because his father could not afford it; he does not care whether the boy lives or dies, all he cares about is the money he gets from people.
On the other hand, the pearl buyers propose a very low price with the aim of exploiting Kino, once they noticed that he desperately needed the money. Using songs in literal works is a cultural tradition that is traced from Indians; in this case, Kino tends to hear songs playing in his head every time he has a strong feeling about something.
A story that started in an idyllic environment, it unfortunately ends in a violent atmosphere, where people turn against each other just for the sake of a Pearl that ends up destroying their lives. For a community that lived peaceful before the discovery of the pearl, the loss of innocence is a theme that is widely explored by the author. The believe that the pearl had the power to change ones status in the community saw many people resulting in violence in order to fulfill their ambitions. Poverty is a degrading issue facing the people of La Paz, and it is because of their desperation to improve their lifestyles that they resulted in cheating and violence.
John Steinbecks The Pearl is a novel that was published in 1947 that retells an old Mexican tale. It is a story of a poor Indian pearl diver, named Kino who lived in La Paz with his wife, Juana, and his son Coyotito. At first, the family is seen to be contented with their lifestyle despite the challenges Kino has to face to provide a meal for his family. However, things begin to change when Coyotito is bit by a scorpion, and his parents begin to find ways to treat him.
The only doctor that is capable of treating Coyotito refuses to treat him because Kino is not able to pay for the treatment. In the pursuit for money to treat his son, Kino discovers an enormous pearl that will forever be referred to as the pearl of the world . This paper explores the greed, and evil portrayed by the indigenous Indians in John Steinbecks The Pearl.
As the title of the book suggests, the story is based on the enormous pearl Kino finds, and the events that took place as people tried to hunt Kino for possessing the pearl. From their way of life, it is evident that the Indians living in La Paz lead a poor lifestyle, and have accepted their role in life. Kino who is the central character in the novel owns a boat that he inherited from his father and grandfather. Other than this, he only owns the hut they live in, and a couple of clay cooking utensils.
The fact that The Pearl is seen as an object that could change ones position in life, it changes people from being idyllic to cheaters, murderers, and traitors. In the beginning, Kino and his wife, Juana are contented with the few possessions they have, but after discovering the pearl, they irreparably change; they become ambitious, greedy, and violent. Kinos family even plans to spend the money by improving their lifestyle once they sell their fortune.
Basically, the great pearl is a tool used to bring change among the peaceful Indian people living in a foreign country. The doctor and the pearl buyers represent the hypocrisy and exploitation facing the Indians in La Paz. This is seen when the doctor heartlessly refuses to treat Coyotito just because his father could not afford it; he does not care whether the boy lives or dies, all he cares about is the money he gets from people.
On the other hand, the pearl buyers propose a very low price with the aim of exploiting Kino, once they noticed that he desperately needed the money. Using songs in literal works is a cultural tradition that is traced from Indians; in this case, Kino tends to hear songs playing in his head every time he has a strong feeling about something.
A story that started in an idyllic environment, it unfortunately ends in a violent atmosphere, where people turn against each other just for the sake of a Pearl that ends up destroying their lives. For a community that lived peaceful before the discovery of the pearl, the loss of innocence is a theme that is widely explored by the author. The believe that the pearl had the power to change ones status in the community saw many people resulting in violence in order to fulfill their ambitions. Poverty is a degrading issue facing the people of La Paz, and it is because of their desperation to improve their lifestyles that they resulted in cheating and violence.
This research paper goes in depth of the factor(s) they may allow temptation to alter one’s character. The research that was compiled for this paper was pulled from mainly primary sources such as documentation of experiments conducted by scientists and neurologists, and also reports by scientists that go into detail about their findings on the brain as well as the findings of their colleagues. The research is also backed by two stories of John Steinbeck, which shows how this real-world issue is displayed in works of fiction and how it alters the character of the main subjects in those specific works. Most of the prior research that has been done on the factors of temptation only focus on one potential side that may influence one’s character. This research paper displays most of the factors that have been previously researched on and focuses on the argument of the most significant factor that alters one’s character. The evidence presented shows how the economical side of this argument is arguably the most significant factor in what alters one’s character.
In the life of being a human, one of the major consistencies that one will face is temptation or seduction. Temptation and seduction have been prevalent in the lives of humans since the time of Adam of Eve. When confronted with temptation or seduction, humans tend to have an internal battle with themselves on whether or not to accept or deny the seduction. These seductions can be seen as something positive such as a specific college that would benefit one the most, or it could be see seen as something negative like a candy bar for someone that is on a diet. Sometimes humans can move past the seduction, and there are many times when humans can’t move past it because the “grip of seduction” is too strong. With this is mind, the research question that would be proposed by the audience would be “What factors allow temptation to alter one’s character?” The research to this question would be important because one should know what causes themselves to fall under the “spell” of temptation and how they could further resist it and make better choices in life. This is relevant and relates back to the audience because everyone faces temptation at some point, but they don’t know what factors usually influence that temptation to change their character. When looking at what factors influence one’s character, some argue the psychological and the emotional factors to be the most influential, however the economical factors such as one’s financial status and the idea of economic opportunities are the most significant in what allow temptation to alter one’s character.
One economical factor that allows temptation to alter one’s character would be their financial situation. When one (and their family) has a rough financial situation, they can’t necessarily have everything they may want or need. Whenever something comes along that could be something they want or need, the chances of this temptation to alter their character is very high since they crave this specific item like Kino and his family in The Pearl by John Steinbeck. Kino and his family had a really poor financial situation until Kino came into possession of a valuable pearl. Even though Kino didn’t need the pearl anymore, it’s “great value” gave him too much hope for a better financial situation for him and his family (Steinbeck, 1947, The Pearl). However, if one (and their family) has a great financial situation, then they should have everything they’ll need, and most of the time, the things they want. Whenever something comes along that a family with a “poor financial situation” would need, it wouldn’t tempt a “better-suited” family as much, because whenever one has a poorer financial situation, they tend to crave something more because they usually don’t have the leisure of being able to have that specific item. Therefore, the seduction of temptation would take root with those who have less and not as much as those who have more.
Even though some professionals (and the main argument of the paper) side with the economical factors, there are professionals who side with the psychological factors such as self-regulation and self-control or the emotional factors such as wanting to fulfill an urge because it makes them feel good and it makes the act feel more justified. The psychological factors of self-regulation and self-control are the inhibitory controls in the brain that tell the body what the right thing is to do and what the wrong thing is to not do. Both self-regulation and self-control feed each other and impact one’s actions, not just when facing temptation, but also anything that one may come across in their normal daily life. One could also learn from these sources that with a lack of these specific factors, they will highly impact one’s choices in a negative light, due to the fact that one would not have the right mindset for making major life choices because they would act on impulse rather than being cognitively aware of the effects (Duckworth & Mrazek, 2016 & 2018). If one always acts on impulse, then how can one be sure that the decision they are making is the right one? If one is more cognitively aware of the situation that lies in front of them, then one can make a more logical choice as to what benefits the situation the most. The emotional factors of wanting to fulfill an urge because it makes them feel good and it makes the act feel more justified are what most struggling people maintaining goals face everyday. These emotional factors can relate to something as serious as an addiction to obesity/overweight or fixing something because it may bother one on being out of place. In some cases, some people hide away and they fulfill whatever desire they want because they feel they won’t be judged that way (Kennedy, 2017, A Point of View: Why people give in to temptation when no-one’s watching). It’s also possible that those who are on a diet trying to lose weight struggle a lot because of the fact they are surrounded by their main temptation all day: food (Lopez & Petit, 2016 & 2016). This constant cycle of being stuck around the main temptation all day, really provokes the mind to fall into temptation and step out of what the normal character does. By some audiences and professionals, these factors are what they argue to be more significant in altering one’s character. However, the financial factors such as economic opportunities have a more sustainable impact than the other two categories of factors.
With the economic opportunities one may come across, it could show professionals how one’s financial well-being may stay in a good position or could turn for the worst (Strömbäck, 2017, Does self-control predict financial behavior and financial well-being?). Professionals believe that one’s spending history can determine how financially stable they will be in the years to come. This data can also be used for business models to learn what goods to produce more for the consumers to spend more money. There are many people who don’t know how to effectively spend their money to be able to buy the stuff they want, but also more importantly, the things they need. The items that become more valuable to one, tend to be those that fulfill their urges to satisfy themselves and not the importance of satisfying more important things in their life. There are professions who believe that if one identifies that they have a problem with being able to control their spending, then it promotes more cognitive activity to be more cautious of what they spend so they can save more money and have a better chance of having great financial well-being (Ozaki, 2018, Counteractive control over temptations: Promoting resistance through enhanced perception of conflict and goal value). With one being more cognitive to what they spend, that promotes a greater financial situation for one and their family. With a better financial situation, one wouldn’t have to face temptation as much since they now have the leisure to afford the things they want, but more importantly the things they may need in life.
When it comes to the topic of temptation and what factors allow it to alter one’s character, one would comes across psychological factors, economic factors, and emotional factors. Out of these factors, economic factors are the ones that take hold and effect one’s character the most by one’s specific financial situation, and the economic opportunities that become available to one at a given time. The economy is what makes the world go ‘round, and unfortunately that can affect the character of one and how they may act. Sometimes greed can become a problem and could make one not have a good financial well-being, which then lowers their financial situation and could hinder them for the rest of their life. Even though there are audiences that argue the psychological and emotional factors over the economical factors, the emotional factors are what affect people the most. If one messes up their economical status because of temptation, it’ll could ruin one’s life
References List
Duckworth, A. (2016). The Significance of Self-Control. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 108(No.7), 2639–2640. Retrieved from www.pnas.org/cgi/doi/10.1073/pnas.1019725108 PNAS
Kennedy, A. (2017, September 23). A Point of View: Why people give in to temptation when no-one’s watching. BBC News. Retrieved from https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-24165872
Lopez , R. (2016). Motivational and neural correlates of self-control of eating: A combined neuroimaging and experience sampling study in dieting female college students. Consumer Psychology and Portion Size: Making Smaller Better, 192–199. doi: 10.1016/j.appet.2016.03.027
Mrazek, A. (2018). Expanding minds: Growth mindsets of self-regulation and the influences on effort and perseverance. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology , 164–180. doi: 10.1016/j.jesp.2018.07.003
Ozaki, Y. (2017). Counteractive control over temptations: Promoting resistance through enhanced perception of conflict and goal value. Self & Identity , 16(4), 439–459. doi: 10.1080/15298868.2016.1269668
Petit, O. (2016). Pleasure and the Control of Food Intake: An Embodied Cognition Approach to Consumer Self-Regulation. Psychology & Marketing , 33(8), 608–619. doi: 10.1002/mar.20903
Steinbeck, J. E. (1947). The Pearl. New York City, NY: The Viking Press.
Strömbäck, C. (2017). Does self-control predict financial behavior and financial well-being? Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance , 30–39. doi: 10.1016/j.jbef.2017.04.002
Steinbeck repeatedly uses repetitive images throughout the Pearl to help convey the theme of how luck can lead to negativity and evil. On the first night, when Kino took possession of the pearl, he seemed to be worried about what was about to happen. Then, suddenly, an intruder entered the house, and “Kino held his breath to listen, and he knew that all the dark things in his house also held their breath to listen. Kino may have thought he imagined a sound. But Juana’s hand crept up to him with a warning, and then the sound came again! A whisper on dry ground and a scratch on fingers on the ground.
Darkness universally symbolizes evil and the enemy. It seems that Kino knows that something bad can happen because of how the attacker is described as a “dark thing”. Potential value the pearl lured the enemy into the house of Kino. The next day, Kino and his brother, Juan Thomas, went to sell the pearl of Kino. The narrator claims that “Kino stared into the darkness of the small office because his eyes were clamped from the outside view. But the buyer’s eyes became as steady, cruel and unblinking as the eyes of a hawk, and the rest of his face smiled in greeting ” Although the face of the pearl buyer seemed friendly and hospitable, in the depths of his eyes the darkness and evil of the enemy are transmitted. The pearl shopper’s shop is also darker inside than outside, as it is described as dim. Kino knows that pearl buyers may try to cheat and use it to their advantage. The negative power of the pearl brought Kino to evil buyers. Early in the morning, Kino catches Juan going to the ocean with a pearl. Kino hits Juana and takes the pearl from her before she can throw her into the ocean. Then he meets more people who are after a magnificent pearl. Steinbeck writes: “He heard a rush, pulled out a knife and rushed to one dark figure, felt his knife go home, and then he was lifted to his knees and piled to the ground again. Greedy fingers passed over his clothes, insane figures searched him, and the pearl, knocked out of his hand, winked after a stone on the path . The enemy was attracted to a pearl, a pearl that was supposed to bring good fortune to Kino and his family, but in fact brought only evil and darkness. Dark figures symbolize enemies who chased Kino for a pearl. This is how Steinbeck uses imagery to illustrate a topic that luck can bring well-intentioned people to the path of evil and negativity.
Steinbeck continues to develop the theme that luck can inadvertently bring evil and negative, using symbolic values in many places in history. When Kino and his family return to their modest shrubs, finding a magnificent pearl
In the world of Kino begins to imagine what he is going to use the wealth of pearls. Kino believes that all his hopes and dreams can now become a reality thanks to his new wealth. The narrator claims “But Kino’s face shone with prophecy. Son My son will read and open books, and my son will write and will know how to write. And my son will make the numbers, and these things will make us free, because he will know – he will know, and through him we will know. ” And in the pearl, Kino saw herself and Juana squatting by a small fire in a hut when Coyotito was reading from a great book. “This is what a pearl will do,” said Kino . Kino plans to use the money from the pearls to pay for Coyotito education, which in turn will help the social status of the whole family. He is also planning a wedding for himself and Juana, a rifle, new clothes and a better life. At this point in history, Kino’s intentions that come from the value of a magnificent pearl are strictly principles that are meant for the good of his family. His plans for a pearl are all his family needs, not what they want. Kino and Juana get married because it makes their family official. Their son needs a good education so that he, like Kino and Juan, can have a social status associated with higher education. Kino needs a rifle so that he can protect and provide food for his family. New clothes may seem less important, but for them it is a question of cleanliness, because in the Kino family there are only rags for clothes. Later in this story, Kino, Juana and Coyotito hurriedly head for the city, and Kino thinks about his plans for living with pearl money.
Steinbeck writes: “He looked into his pearl to find his vision. “When we finally sell him, I’ll have a rifle,” he said, and he looked at the shiny surface of his rifle, but he saw only a dark body on the floor, with shiny blood dripping from his throat. And he quickly said, ‘We will be married in the great church. ‘ And in the pearl he saw Juana with her battered face crawling home all night. “Our son must learn to read,” he said passionately. And there on Coyotito’s pearly face, thick and febrile with drugs ”
At this stage in the story, Kino realizes his gloomy forecast for the future very well and begins to think about all the good ideas that he intended to bring to life, for pearls, but now he cannot see them clearly. Kino is trying to remember all those good things that he was so excited that the pearl did for his family, but while he looks at her, he can only see all the evil and misfortune that the pearl brought to his poor family. Using the lens of New Formalism, this is how Steinbeck uses images to develop symbolism to convey the theme that good fortune can lead people with good intentions to the path of evil and negative.
Steinbeck illustrates the theme that luck and wealth can lead to evil through music. At the beginning of the novel, Kino finds the greatest pearl in the world, and at this very moment it seems that the luck of his family is established. “Kino held a large pearl in his hand, and in his hand it was warm and alive. And the music of the pearl merged with the music of the family, so that one decorated the other. The neighbors looked at the pearl in Kino’s hand, and they wondered how such luck could come to anyone ”(Steinbeck 29). The music symbolizes how Kino and his family feel happy and happy in their search for the pearl and what this can mean for their future. Kino is glad to have found the magnificent pearl of the world. Kino cannot believe that he was lucky to find a pearl, and he feels that nothing could be better for his future. He thinks about how this pearl will help his family. Later in the story, Kino looks at the pearl, trying to see his original good intentions that came with him, but now he sees only the negative and unhappiness that the pearl has brought. The narrator states: “And Kino thrust the pearl back into his clothes, and the music of the pearl became ominous in his ears, and it was interwoven with the music of evil ”.
Music symbolizes how a pearl really is a negative force and brought nothing but evil to Kino and his family. Kino is beginning to realize that, although the pearl seemed to bring good luck to his family, she really did bring only evil. Although it takes almost the whole story to get there, Kino finally realizes that his wife Juana tried to explain. Now they both want their lives back to how they were before they found the magnificent pearl. Kino ends up throwing the pearl back into the ocean, from where it came from, “and the music of the pearl reached for a whisper and disappeared” . The music disappears and then disappears when the pearl plunges back into the ocean, symbolizing evil and darkness leaving the family. In other words, the pearl is gone from their lives, like the evil that tormented them. For Kino, it becomes clear that his luck in finding a big pearl really only brought misfortune and caused physical and emotional damage to himself and his family. Steinbeck uses music to express a theme that good luck can lead well-intentioned people to the path of evil and negativity.
Often in modern society, people endanger their good values and can make bad decisions when they get lucky. Many people think that they will be able to control themselves and stay on their principled path even in the face of newfound wealth. However, even if they are a person who has a clear understanding of their true priorities, they can still deviate from the path of good intentions. In the novel “The Pearl” by John Steinbeck, the author uses images, symbolism and music, which generally convey the theme of the story that luck can bring the most innocent people to the path of evil and negative. From the author, you can learn that it is important to work diligently so that materialism does not affect personal values and integrity.
The setting of the story is the area of La Paz, a pearl fishing town in Mexico on the coast of the Gulf of Mexico, around the year 1900. The pearl fisher Kino is a native Mexican whose son gets bitten by a scorpion and needs help urgently. To afford a doctor, Kino dives for pearls and finds the largest pearl the people have ever seen. The other Indian people in his village of natives become jealous, and the whole town knew directly that Kino had found the “Pearl of the World”. Kino sees his dreams come true, because he now could afford all the things he never could pay for. He could pay the doctor, he could get married, he could buy new clothes and wear shoes, and he could send his son Coyotito to school.
One of the main themes is colonialism and the oppression of the natives. Mexico is still a colonial society in the 20th century, because the native Mexicans are not treated the same way as the colonizers, which were the Spanish and other Europeans. Kino is a native Indian and feels the superiority of the colonists. At the beginning, he is treated badly by the town doctor who refuses to treat Coyotito because Kino had no money to pay him. The doctor said: “Have I nothing better to do than cure insect bites for ‘little Indians’? I am a doctor, not a veterinary” (Steinbeck, p.14). The doctor is arrogant and compares Indians to animals by saying he is not a veterinary. He already assumed that Kino had no money anyway to pay him, so he doesn’t even look at the baby. This shows how the natives are treated in colonial societies.
Colonizers think that they are better than the natives, believing that the Indians are stupid and poor and don’t know anything. They don’t realize that it is because of the oppression that the natives can’t escape their situation. They can not go to school and are always seen as inferior. They are not given a chance. In the story, Kino has no chance to sell his pearl for the real price that it is worth, because the colonists, who buy the pearls, want to take advantage of his weakness. The colonists are also hypocrites, because when they heard about the pearl and knew they could get money, the doctor suddenly came to see the child and the priest came to bless them. Throughout the story, Kino never gets a real chance to use his fortune. He feels betrayed and in danger, because some people, which were probably sent by the pearl dealers, try to steal the pearl several times and even try to kill him. They destroy his boat because they wanted to destroy his spirit. When he left to sell the pearl in the capital, some men follow him to take it from him.
He has always been the loser and the higher class wants him to to stay small and unimportant. Steinbeck describes natives as innocent and uncorrupted. However, the greed of people and the hope of a better life force Kino to lose his innocence and to become a murderer. The society doesn’t give natives a chance to rise to a higher level, but always wants to look down at them. Kino feels angry and frustrated when the doctor finally suddenly comes to see the baby. But he let him in because he saw him as a man with more knowledge and he was scared for his son “He was trapped as his people were always trapped…” (Steinbeck, p.39). This quote shows that the natives will always rely on the colonists because they don’t have the chance to learn or become anything. Kino is full of hope at the beginning of the story, but at the end he is worse off than before. All his dreams are shattered, because his society doesn’t accept natives to become one of them.
The following article is a study that explores the group activity pattern in the novel by John Steinbeck, The Pearl. Individuals from Steinbeck show group behavior that has a major influence on others. We are the basis of human survival in the long span. The group-man theory of Steinbeck is based on the view of human psychology and the Darwinian interpretation of cultural evolution. Steinbeck says as part of a group, there’s a difference between the member. He says the group is often a unit with a move, an intent, an end, a process. Steinbeck makes some assumptions about the actions of the man, both as a person and as an individual. In the writer’s opinion, the ideal team structure is one in which the participants behave as individuals while creatively contributing to the creation of a harmoniously integrated whole. This essay discusses the group activity impact in The Pearl by John Steinbeck.
In’ The Pearl’ Steinbeck explores the potential of constructive and destructive group behaviors. Steinbeck says that while building group activity elevates human nature, destructive group behavior leaves only man with devastation, conflict, chaos, hate, and fear. Therefore, Steinbeck saw a powerful force above individual men, rendering them components of a greater entry.
The message from the Pearl is universal, identifying in it the danger of materialism. The research examines the group actions of the characters in the novel as positive group behavior and negative group behavior. Neighbors and beggars are studied under positive group behavior while under the analysis of destructive behavior the physician and the priest are examined. Tracing the group conduct trend in the’ pearl’ kanchana devi of John nadu, Indian international English newspaper Steinbeck’s
La Paz village portrays a world where people form their own destinies for the most part. They are caring for themselves, fulfilling their own wishes, and making their own plans. With anticipation for divine blessings, the pearl divers plunge under the waves. The people of Kino are depicted as sweet, simple yet helpful beings.
Everyone comes to learn about it very soon when Kino discovers the pearl. Steinbeck gives the various individual reactions in addition to the general reactions evoked by the pearl’s discovery. Next, if Kino is going to contribute to the parish, the priest wonders. The doctor is worried about his past life in Paris and what he can do with the money now.
The beggars remember a newly wealthy man. Each of the pearl buyers thinks about the pearl and wants to get it to make a new beginning in life. Generally speaking, the pearl affects the entire city and becomes the center of all or the vision of greatness of all. With overwhelming joy, Kino’s brother Juan Thomas and all the neighbors are gathering in his room. The story points to the family of Kino, which due to voracious people is completely cut off from his house. Kino’s development is seen throughout the novel throughout the course of the story. It can be defined as an achievement. He knows the human beings ‘ dark ability. It also speaks of the group behavior of the characters in Steinbeck’s novels that are fully involved in attainin.
He is a poor but simple man with his mother, Juana, and their infant son, Coyotito, both of whom he loves very much, living in a brush house. As a husband and father, he’s happy and happy with what he got. When Kino discovers a great pearl, in his quest to break free from the tyranny of his colonial society, he becomes increasingly greedy and desperate.
He wants Coyotito to go to work, second, he wants to give Juana in church a proper wedding, and fifth, he wants a gun. His behavior changes after he gets the pearl because of his wishes. To order to protect his interests, he is coldhearted and even kills people. Kino’s material ambition ultimately drives him to a state of animal violence, and his life is reduced to a fundamental struggle for survival. When the pearl opens his eyes to a larger world, he wants to be a good husband and father as a complete man. Heavelin observes Practically all Steinbeck heroes distinctive personal mark is their leadership and total participation in a community action. Steinbeck depicts Kino as an innocent pearl diver who in the beginning is content with his simple life. Yet two events, the scorpion sting of Coyotito and the discovery of the pearl by Kino bring Kino into the civilized world. When Kino starts to covet his son’s material wealth and education, covetousness, tension, and aggression complicate his simple existence.
Therefore, the universe of Kino can be likened to Paradise, a place of contentment and innocence. Kino fulfills his mother, his child, his ship, and the energy taken from the rising sun so that he seems to have no yearning beyond his simple existence.
Once Kino discovers the pearl, his discovery moves rapidly. Everyone in the city knows he’s found’ the world’s gem even before Kino comes back to his brush home. From the beggar to the businessman’s dream of how Kino’s perl can help them, people from every group in the city. Ignorant of the envy of others, Kino and Juana enjoy their good fortune. Through their newfound treasure, they invite their family and friends to share their happiness. All the neighbors are looking at the mighty pearl with a combination of hope and fear at the huge changes ahead. Juana revives the fire, and even when the dusk arrives, the neighbors survive. Steinbeck’s accent is used to convey the doctor’s view of the beggars.
I also say that he gave sparingly for alms for his botched abortions and his little pennies. They saw his bodies entering the church. As Kino was about to sell the pearl, neighbors and beggars were eager to join the procession. Even his brother Juan Thomas takes great care of Kino and wants to protect him from the evil world with his wife Apolonia and children. Steinbeck’s Destructive Team Behavior portrays both the doctor and the priest’s protagonists, somewhat unsympathetically in the pearl. The doctor has no good qualities, and his actions show him to be the most terrifying, heartless person one can encounter.
Steinbeck’s Destructive Team Behavior portrays both the doctor and the priest’s protagonists, somewhat unsympathetically in the pearl. The doctor has no good qualities, and his actions show him to be the most terrifying, heartless person one can encounter. His name’s mere mention triggers fear among the villagers. So Kino causes him to see his brother with absolute fear when he comes to see Coyotito. But there was a trap set. He was unwilling to seize the opportunity.
He never cares for others and never indulges in an His name’s mere mention triggers fear among the villagers. So Kino causes him to see his brother with absolute fear when he comes to see Coyotito. But there was a trap set. He was unwilling to seize the opportunity. He never cares for others and never indulges in anything about other people’s welfare thing about other people’s welfare.
He offers something to the baby when he attends Coyotito so that the doctor can come back in an hour and claim to treat the scorpion bite’s son. Juana already applied the poultice of the seaweed and took care of the scratch. So the conduct of the doctor and the operation are only pretence and acts of inhumanity that are totally contrary to his profession’s ethics. He then slyly tries to get Kino to give him the pearl to kee.The priest comes to give a blessing. He asks Kino to thank and give his blessing for the pearl. The priest tells Kino to recall the newly thriving church after being drawn by the pearl’s beauty. Juana says that they want to marry in the church, and the priest leaves them with a kind phrase. After the priest arrives, a sense of evil overcomes Kinop him safe. This shows in its full extent the greed of the doctor and his evil.
The neighbors are scattering and Juana is beginning to cook a baked bean dinner. The priest is not portrayed as evil as the psychiatrist, but as a person who is not really involved in his people’s spiritual well-being. He’s not acting as a representative of the church. He doesn’t even know who Kino is at the beginning, but thinks about the repairs that the church needs and that can be done if he can get the pearl of Kino. He’s not acting as a representative of the church. He doesn’t even know who Kino is at the beginning, but thinks about the repairs that the church needs and that can be done if he can get the pearl of Kino. Because his village visits are so unusual, the villagers know why he comes to visit Kino. The doctor does not have any redeeming qualities, and his actions demonstrate that he is the most despicable, heartless individual that one might find. Steinbeck claims this is the life style of the village’s poor pearl divers.
The simplicity and suffering of the fishing village’s life is abused by the civilized people’s group behavior. Although they are aware of the evil doctor, the priest, and the well-organized and disho.Therefore, the section discusses the group actions in The Pearl by John Steinbeck. The novel introduces the powerful characters to aim for a perfect end and to aspire to illuminate the path of humanity, step by step, finding the perfect combination of strength and love to ensure an innovative, egalitarian society for all nest pearl divers, the village community welcomes them as their lives within the coastal region are limited.
Steinbeck set his sights on the refugees who were poor and dispossessed and gave common people a deep compassion. The characters show in the novel both positive and negative group behavior. Even when they come across the precious gem, the primitive people of La Paz still retain their invaluable qualities. Steinbeck encourages readers to see the migrants as he saw them people with integrity and grace who, with gritty will, moved forward. In this book, which brings Steinbeck’s masterful messages over the decades, the powerful representation of group-man is seen.
Work cited
Burkhead, Cynthia. Student Companion to John Steinbeck. Westport: Greenwood Press, 2002.
Heavelin, A.Barbara. The Critical Response to John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2000.
Shuman, R.Baird. Great American Writers: Twentieth Century – Vol 11. New York:Marshall Cavendish Corporation, 2002.
For Steinbeck, Mexico was everything America was not. It possessed a primitive vitality, a harsh simplicity and a romantic beauty – all of which are found in “The Pearl”. No reader would expect such a lovely place to be the setting for a tragedy in which Kino found a pearl that would result in the loss of much that meant to him.
Analysis
The main protagonist o John Steinbeck’s novella “The Pearl” is a young Mexican Indian pearl diver named Kino. He lives with Juana and they have a baby named Coyotito. They live a somewhat peaceful, uneventful life until their baby gets bitten by a scorpion. When Juana tells her partner to fetch the doctor, he and the neighbors tell her that the doctor will never come to such an impoverished place as theirs. Juana then sets off for the doctor’s residence while Kino and a crowd of villagers follow her.
At the doctor’s house, Juana is informed that the doctor is not in. The truth is that he refuses ot help the couple for two reasons: they cannot afford to pay the doctor’s fee and also because the doctor is prejudiced against Kino’s race.
Kino goes back to work, diving for oysters from his canoe. Juana, in turn, treats her baby whose shoulder has become swollen from the scorpion’s bite. She does this by applying brown seaweed to the wound until the swelling subsides. Meantime, Kino discovers an unusually large oyster. Upon opening it, he beholds a pearl as large as the egg of a seagull. He shouts his good fortune to his fellow divers, and before he reaches home, the news is already known to the inhabitants of the village and the town, including the priest and the doctor. The priest advise Kino that he needs to give thanks for his good luck; while the doctor prevails upon Kino to have his baby treated. Actually, the doctor does something to make the child sick so that he could then heal him and get paid for it.
That night, the couple is victimized by robbers who hit Kino on the head, but are unsuccessful in stealing the pearl. By this time, Juana is convinced that the pearl is a harbinger of evil and pleads with her husband to throw the pearl back into the sea. Kino refuses, for he feels that it will give them better lives than they presently have.
On the day Kino ventures to sell the pearl in the town, the pearl buyers have already planned on a ruse by which they could purchase it at the least amount of money. The pearl remains unsold and that night the couple are beset by thieves. Again Kino is bloodied and beaten and the attackers have escaped. Juana begs him anew to throw the pearl back into the sea; but Kino still refuses, envisioning the pearl being sold to provide Coyotito with an education. Undercover of darkness, Juana takes the pearl, aiming to throw it herself into the sea. Kino follows her and saves the pearl from going under water; but then he is attacked by robbers he fails to identify.
The pearl is knocked away but he manages to stab to death one of his assailants before he is hit to unconsciousness. Juana retrieves the pearl, returns it to him and tells him they must flee the village for he has killed a man. Checking on his canoe, Kino finds it smashed and as they approached their hut, they find it in flames. Juana is completely convinced that the pearl brings them evil but Kino, because of his love for his family, continues to believe otherwise. For him, it offers a promising future.
The little family leaves the village at night and head for the high mountains. During their escape, Kino discovers some trackers following them and leads them away. Higher up in the mountains, Kino finds a stream and a cave where he hides his family. The trackers camp by the stream and plans to attack them before they do. One of the trackers aims his gun and fires in the direction of a cry he has heard. Kino jumps on him and kills him with his knife. He grabs the attacker’s gun and shoots another tracker. The third tracker is also shot to death. But Kino hears the sound of Juana’s crying for Coyotito has in turn been killed by gunfire.
There is no other recourse but for the couple to return to the beach and offer the pearl back to where it came from. Kino cocks his arm and throws the pearl as far out to the sea as possible. It sinks to the sandy bottom, nevermore to see the light of day. Truly it had been a “pearl of great price”.
Kino is young and at the peak of his physical powers. He has black, unruly hair, keen, dark eyes and a course, ragged mustache. He is lithe and strong, able to gather oysters underwater for two minutes without coming up for air and to move catlike in the dark and on rough terrain. He loves his wife, Juana, dearly and idolizes his infant son, Coyotito. He is proud of his role as head of the family and strongly adheres to the traditions of his race.
However, it is due to his ambition, great love and devotion to his family that he encounters ruin when in the course of his trade, he discovers an unusually large pearl. After this discovery, “he quickly becomes more aware of his people’s powerlessness and ignorance as he encounters contempt, deceit, greed and brutality in the bigger world where he goes to sell his glorious treasure. As the threats to the pearl and the family’s safety become more pressing, Kino’s serenity and innocence are replaced by rage, fear and cunning, and the instinct to kill. In the end, having murdered four men and lost his hut, his beloved inherited canoe, and above all, his precious infant son, a stone-hearted Kino hurls the malignant pearl back into the sea” (Rollins, 1998).
In the story, Steinbeck creates Kino, an unwed father whose chief concern are to marry Juana, the mother of his child, Coyotito in a church wedding and to provide for his family and ensure Coyotito’s education. It was a typical middle-class value aspired to by Kino.
Kino and Juana rejoice in their excitement over finding the pearl, but their jubilation soon turns to distrust in the brokers to whom Kino must sell the gem in order to benefit from it. They claim that the pearl is so big that it has no commercial value. The doctor who denied his services at the start, no proffers the best of services to be paid later when the pearl is sold.
“Kino, essentially peace-loving, is forced to kill three men. Worst of all, his adored Coyotito is killed by pursuer’s who shoot recklessly and strike the boy. The pearl comes to represent all that is bad in life, all that is, in the eyes of the superstitious peasant – unlucky. Finally, at Juana’s urging, Kino, like the Indian boy in the legend, heaves the jewel into the sea. He has made nothing form his find, and he has lost a great deal that is precious to him” (Shuman, 2007).
The characters of Steinbeck in “The Pearl” are real people in a real world. However, they are also universal types. Kino, the Indian Mexican is a namesake of an early Jesuit explorer. Kino, his partner, Juana and the baby are an archetypal family – like the Holy Family that figure in an medieval morality play. Kino’s ambitions are no different from the universal dream of bettering oneself and family. This symbolic family most struggle once and for all against an uncaring natural order and a corrupt social order. Unfortunately, Steinbeck would never again achieve the fusion of parable and realism which are strengthened in “The Pearl”.
Conclusion
No writer has better expressed the underside of the American Dream, but few writers have so successfully celebrated the great hope symbolized in that dream – the hope of human development. Steinbeck’s best fictions picture a paradise lost but also posit a future paradise to be regained in spite of his faults and failures. John Steinbeck’s best literary works demonstrate a greatness of heart and mind found only rarely in modern American literature” (Millichap, 2000).
Works Cited
Millichap, J.R., “The Pearl”, Critical Survey of Long Fiction, Salem Press, 2000.
Rollins, J., “The Pearl”, Cyclopedia of Literary Characters, 1998.
Shuman, R.B., “The Pearl”, Magill’s Survey of American Literature, 2007.
I read The Pearl by John Steinbeck. I liked it very much, except the ending was too sad. I think Steinbeck used language very well and made the characters very real. It was a good story.
This was an exciting story at the beginning. This really poor family seems to have a chance to rise above their beginnings. First their little boy is stung by a scorpion and the doctor will not treat him, because the parents have no money. Then Kino finds the pearl, the largest he has ever seen. This beautiful pearl should make them rich. Kino and his wife begin to plan how they will educate their son. However, the townspeople begin to plan to cheat the family of money and the pearl dealers agree to fix the price on this pearl. He refuses to sell it.
Kino plans to travel to another city to sell this pearl, but his brother warns that the pearl is evil and he should just sell it. Many people try to steal this pearl and even attack Kino looking for it. The family leaves and they are followed. Kino goes in the night to kill the trackers, but the baby cries and the trackers shoot him because they think he is a coyote. Kino kills them all, but their son is dead. They return home and Kino throws the cursed pearl into the sea.
I think this story is how people really are. I also think it is sad that they did not find some way out of the trouble. But the way Steinbeck describes everything is so real that this book is as good as any television show. It is easy to read, but still very full of beautiful pictures for the head. The couple are very real and I understand how they feel. However, I think their brother should have helped them more, especially when the boy was stung. Families should work together.
I was surprised that they did not have more friends. I thought that poor people usually were more helpful, especially in villages where everyone knows everyone else. I think there was a racial thing going on here also, because I think this family was part Indian or something. It just seems that they were not accepted by many people. I think it has to be more than just being poor.
This story seems to be also about humanity, like how we treat each other. It also talks about how money is not everything. However, the terrible things that happened to this family only happened because of greed. Kino’s brother would say it was their fault for trying to get a fair price, for trying to raise their status, but I think that this great pearl was too big, not too big to be valuable, but too valuable. So many people wanted it. Kino and his wife should have decided to share it with some of their friends, and maybe even some with the whole village, and then maybe all of this would have happened. They did make a lot of plans to spend the money and did not ever talk about sharing it, not even to give some to the church.
I would have preferred that Kino and his wife would succeed in getting to the other city and sell the pearl for more than what the pearl buyers offered, but this was not the story that the author wanted to tell. I have seen some movies based upon his stories and they are more real than happy. We get to know these two characters very well, but it seems that their lives were meant to be hard. Steinbeck likes to tell stories about poor people and about how people can treat others badly and without understanding. He also seems to really know why people react like they do. Even when Juana tried to throw the pearl into the sea earlier, and Kino beats her, it shows how he has changed.
One of the most interesting things in this story is the parts that Kino thinks, especially about the songs. I think maybe this is more than just a personal thing about Kino. I think it is cultural. It sounds like something he might have learned as a child. John Steinbeck seems to understand this way of thinking too as he tells us about it. It is right somehow that there would be something more to their lives than just the day to day work.
This book was like the pearl that Kino found. I had a hard time to put it down. I kept wanting to read more. I felt like I was there with Kino and Juana. I felt their joy when they thought that the pearl would make their lives better. I felt their fear when they were running. I felt Kino’s anger, and I felt their grief. I don’t think this would be a good movie, because most of the good parts are inside somebody’s head. There are action parts, like the fire and the attack and the final killings, but the story is not about that. It is about how they feel and that does not make a good movie.
But as a book, liked it a lot, and I would recommend this book to anyone over 16 or maybe a little younger. I think maybe the story is not good for young children and I would not read it to my young children, but it is wonderful writing that really pulls the reader into the story.
John Steinbeck’s The Pearl is a novel that was published in 1947 that retells an old Mexican tale. It is a story of a poor Indian pearl diver, named Kino who lived in La Paz with his wife, Juana, and his son Coyotito. At first, the family is seen to be contented with their lifestyle despite the challenges Kino has to face to provide a meal for his family. However, things begin to change when Coyotito is bit by a scorpion, and his parents begin to find ways to treat him.
The only doctor that is capable of treating Coyotito refuses to treat him because Kino is not able to pay for the treatment. In the pursuit for money to treat his son, Kino discovers an enormous pearl that will forever be referred to as “the pearl of the world”. This paper explores the greed, and evil portrayed by the indigenous Indians in John Steinbeck’s The Pearl.
As the title of the book suggests, the story is based on the enormous pearl Kino finds, and the events that took place as people tried to hunt Kino for possessing the pearl. From their way of life, it is evident that the Indians living in La Paz lead a poor lifestyle, and have accepted their role in life. Kino who is the central character in the novel owns a boat that he inherited from his father and grandfather. Other than this, he only owns the hut they live in, and a couple of clay cooking utensils.
The fact that The Pearl is seen as an object that could change ones position in life, it changes people from being idyllic to cheaters, murderers, and traitors. In the beginning, Kino and his wife, Juana are contented with the few possessions they have, but after discovering the pearl, they irreparably change; they become ambitious, greedy, and violent. Kino’s family even plans to spend the money by improving their lifestyle once they sell their fortune.
Basically, the great pearl is a tool used to bring change among the peaceful Indian people living in a foreign country. The doctor and the pearl buyers represent the hypocrisy and exploitation facing the Indians in La Paz. This is seen when the doctor heartlessly refuses to treat Coyotito just because his father could not afford it; he does not care whether the boy lives or dies, all he cares about is the money he gets from people.
On the other hand, the pearl buyers propose a very low price with the aim of exploiting Kino, once they noticed that he desperately needed the money. Using songs in literal works is a cultural tradition that is traced from Indians; in this case, Kino tends to hear songs playing in his head every time he has a strong feeling about something.
A story that started in an idyllic environment, it unfortunately ends in a violent atmosphere, where people turn against each other just for the sake of a Pearl that ends up destroying their lives. For a community that lived peaceful before the discovery of the pearl, the loss of innocence is a theme that is widely explored by the author. The believe that the pearl had the power to change ones status in the community saw many people resulting in violence in order to fulfill their ambitions. Poverty is a degrading issue facing the people of La Paz, and it is because of their desperation to improve their lifestyles that they resulted in cheating and violence.