Sunday, March 30, 2008

The Pearl and Human Morality
By Matthew Cox


John Steinbeck writes The Pearl to teach people about greed and morality. Kino, the protagonist, is a poor Mexican pearl diver. He finds a large pearl and hops that it will bring fortune to his family, particularly his baby son, Coyotito. Shortly after finding the pearl, the man’s infant son gets stung by a scorpion. The people in his village, including Juana his wife, believe that the gem is evil. The main character does not believe this at first and tries to sell it. He is not able to find anyone who will buy it at a reasonable price. However, other people try to steal it from Kino. He and his family try to escape from the village and hide in the mountains. Coyotito becomes more and more fussy on the journey. Three men with a gun follow them. When Kino’s family hides in a cave by a pool, the patrollers camp by it. He steals their rifle and shoots two of them. However, he returns to the cavern and finds Juana crying and holding their dead baby. Distraught, they return to the village and throw the pearl back into the sea. The book explores many themes and symbols. For example, it shows how greed and ignorance destroy people. Also the book explores moral choices including protecting one’s family and the value of honesty. Various people represent the themes including the doctor and priest who represent desire. John Steinbeck explores ethics and greed in his story, The Pearl.

The Pearl by John Steinbeck concerns a poor Mexican fisherman, Kino, trying to support his family (Reed and Ellis). One day, Coyotito, the baby of the protagonist and his wife Juana, get stung by a scorpion. The horrified parents take their child to a neighboring town to the doctor. He refuses to look at Coyotito because Kino and Juana cannot pay. Both parents take the baby with them and go pearl diving. The father finds an expensive pearl just as the baby recovers. He thinks that the gem will provide the money for Coyotito’s future with health, education, and success. Juana thinks that the pearl will help them pay for a wedding at the church. However, the superstitious villagers tell her that their treasure is evil and bring misfortune. The village priest who did not want anything to do with Kino or Juana warns them “I hope thou wilt remember to give thanks, my son, to Him who has given thee this treasure, and to pray for his guidance in the future (Reed and Ellis)." The doctor learns of their new fortune and comes to cure the baby. He gives the baby a fake dosage of medicine which makes the baby ill. This confirms Juana’s fear that the pearl is cursed. Kino does not believe this right away. However, one night, he stabs an intruder who tries to steal the gem from its hiding place. The protagonist now believes that pearl brings bad luck. His wife begs him to get rid of it.

The next morning, the family and several villages go to the town of La Paz to sell the pearl. Juan Tomas, Kino’s brother, advises them to watch for cheaters. When the main character ties to sell the treasure to dealers, they say that it is too large to sell. One of the men offers a big sum to Kino for the pearl. He knows that he is being cheated and turns the deal town. Defeated, he and the villagers return home. Kino buries the pearl and fears that somebody will steal it. The protagonist travels a long distance on foot to sell it in the capital city. Juana tries to throw the pearl away. Her husband gets it back and tries to beat her up. As Kino leaves his house, a man tries to steal the pearl. The protagonist kills him. His wife ways that the “old life as gone forever.” The couple tries to start their journey in the canoe, Kino’s prized possession. However, they see a hole in it. As Juana goes back home to get Coyotito, she finds the house burning down. Kino takes his family to his brother’s house. They ask him to the villagers that everyone in the house is killed and the pearl stolen. All three of them escape from the village “in the dark of the moon” with the wind covering their tracks.

During the night, they walk until morning. Tired and weary, Kino, Juana, and Coyotito sleep under the shade of a tree. The main character wakes up from bad dream and tells his wife to quiet the baby. He sees one man on a horse and two on foot searching for them. They pass by the hiding family. Kino knows that they will return. He helps his family escape into the mountains. All three hide in a cave by a pool of water. However, the three patrollers make camp by the cavern. As the baby cries, one of the men lights a match. Kino sees that they have a rifle. After the patrollers go to sleep, Kino takes advantage of the moonlight to steal the gun. Just as he takes it, Coyotito cries and the men wake up. The main character fires the weapon and kills two of the men. After that, he hears Juana sobbing. Kino knows all too well that his baby died. Both of them return to La Paz as broken people, but as if in a trance. The main character throws the pearl into the sea.

Settings in stories develop the plot, symbols, themes, and characters. For example, the poor village symbolizes oppression and ignorance. Steinbeck personified the town to help the readers understand how important it is. Although the villagers depend on the sea for their living, it also represents how things in life are unpredictable or what they seem. This is represented by the passage "Although the morning was young, the hazy mirage was up. The uncertain air that magnified some things and blotted out others hung over the whole Gulf so that all sights were unreal and vision could not be trusted....There was no certainty in seeing, no proof that what you saw was there or not there (Reed and Ellis)." Another important image is the pearl. In the beginning of the story, it appears to be “clear and beautiful, rich and warm and lovely, glowing and gloating and triumphant (Reed and Ellis).” However, the tone and choice of words foreshadows that the gem is not what it appears to be. By the end of the story, it “ugly; it was gray, like a malignant growth (Reed and Ellis).” The pearl becomes many things to Kino, a way to get a new harpoon or a gun. He even sees it as "beauty of the pearl, winking and glimmering in the light of the little candle" but hears evil music once Juana and the villagers warn him of the misfortune it might bring (Reed and Ellis). To his wife, the pearl is cursed and “It will destroy us all...Even our son (Reed and Ellis)." The canoe is another important symbol. It shows traditions as the boat belongs to Kino’s father and grandfather. Also, the vehicle is the family’s livelihood and lets the protagonist fish in ways that others cannot. This shows how owning it will provide a better life. When Kino finds the boat ruined before starting on his trip to the capital city, we realize how important it is. Other symbols including the scorpion which foreshadows death and evil.

Besides providing readers with symbols, Steinbeck also gives various themes as well. Many of them deal with moral lessons. For example, he focuses on the way uneducated people in the village act. People who are educated often exploit o look down on those who are not worldly wise. Therefore, ignorance one of the major themes explored in the book. Many of the villagers believe that the pearl will bring evil. Ironically, readers may dismiss this as superstition, another theme. However views may not understand if the pearl is “cursed” or not until the end other book; after seeing how the pearl apparently brings misfortune to Kino’s family, they realize that wealth brings evil. However, learners may not understand the subtle themes of the book including: ignorance leads to subjugation; things are not always what they seem; goodness does not always come from knowledge; evil comes in many forms; and sometimes people and intuitions that we respect are the evil things that they preach against or claim to heal.

Various characters in the story also represent different aspects of human nature. For example, the doctor is wealthier than the villagers, but not as wealthy as he would like to be. This is shown by "In his chamber the doctor sat up in his high bed. He had on his dressing gown of read watered silk that had come from Paris, a little tight over the chest now if it was buttoned" and "The doctor had once for a short time been a part of the great world and his whole subsequent life was memory and longing for France (Reed and Ellis)." This symbolizes greed. He gets fat off of of other people’s suffering. The doctor also has the power to heal, but turns down patients if they cannot pay. This also shows oppression and promoting ignorance. He also thinks that he can get the pearl for treating the baby with medicine that does not work or might be dangerous. The priest is similar to the doctor. Although he speaks for Christian morality, the clergyman acts the opposite, He does not may Kino or Juana because that are too poor to give money to the church. Also, the priest does not help when he baby becomes ill. After he hears about the pearl, the cleric tells Kino that God gives them good fortune. The pearl dealers also symbolize human greed and ignorance.

John Steinbeck explores ethics and greed in his story, The Pearl. The main character is Kino, a poor Mexican pearl diver. After finding a large pearl, he suffers misfortune. For example, his infant son, Coyotito gets stung by a scorpion. The people in his town believed that the pearl is cursed. Kino’s wife also believes that the gem will bring bad luck. He does not believe this at first and tries to sell it. However, he cannot get a good deal with it. Several people try to steal the pearl. The main character’s family tries to escape from their village by hiding in the mountains. Coyotito becomes ill as they try to leave. However three men with a gun follow them. After hiding in cave near a pool, the three men camp by the unsuspecting family. He takes their gun and shoots two of the followers. Kino returns to the cave and sees his crying wife holding their baby who dies. The couple return to their village very sad. Kino throws the pearl back into the sea. Steinbeck explores both ethical behavior and greed in the story. He also shows how dishonest individuals exploit ignorant people.





Work Cited

Reed, Arthea and Ellis, Guy. Penguin/Putman Publications. 2008 27 March 2008
http://www.teachervision.fen.com/curriculum-planning/teaching-methods/3760.html?page=2

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