the pearl essay conclusion

Introduction to The Pearl

A short novelette, The Pearl , is considered a masterpiece of the phrase -coiner, John Steinbeck . The story was published in 1947. The story explores man’s defiant behavior against accepted social conventions. It also is a perfect example of greed in human nature and the consequences. The story revolves around a Mexican-Indian fisherman, who finds the biggest pearl, and wants to sell it in the capital city to get a huge amount in return to pay his debts and become a rich man in La Paz, the Mexican town. The story is stated to have originated from Mexican folk tales and was also set as a popular movie, La Perla in 1947.

Summary of The Pearl

The story is set in La Paz, Mexico. Kino, his wife Juana, and their infant son, Coyotito. They live in a simple and peaceful life in a hut by the seashore. Kino is involved in diving and angling, which is his source of livelihood. One day, Kino is watching while Coyotito is asleep. He sees the scorpion and tries to catch it. Unfortunately, the scorpion falls on him. Kino kills the scorpion, but it stings the baby. Juana and Kino go to see the local doctor. The doctor is a greedy man and refuses to treat Coyotito because Kino cannot pay his fee.

Disappointed Kino and Juana take Coyotito to the seashore. Juana prepares a poultice from seaweeds. The baby’s condition continues to become worse. Kino dives for searching for oysters and hopes to find pearls. After a long search, he finds a very large oyster. Surprisingly when Kino opens the oyster, he finds a large pearl. Kino can’t contain his happiness and howls like a wolf with joy. This reaction grabs the attention of other divers and they gather around Kino.

Once the news of Kino’s find travels throughout the town. The greedy doctor who had sent them away without treating Coyotito visit Kino after knowing about the pearl. On another side, Kino’s neighbors are jealous of his fortune. Sadly, Kino and Juana are not aware of the neighbors and the possible danger to their peaceful life. Juan Tomas, Kino’s brother asks him about his plan with the money he would get from the pearl.

Kino dreams about getting married to Juana in a church. While the ceremony is going on, Coyotito is cutely dressed in a yachting cap and sailor suit. Kino hopes to send Coyotito to school and also purchase a rifle for himself. One day, the local priest visits Kino and tells him to offer his thanks and ask God for guidance. The greedy doctor also continues to visit using Coyotito as an excuse. The baby keeps getting better but the doctor insists that Coyotito is in danger and needs treatment. Kino agrees and informs the doctor that he can only pay after he sells the pearl. The doctor tries to get the hints and look for the pearl in Kino’s house. He is not aware that Kino has buried it in the corner of his hut. On the same night , a thief enters Kino’s hut. Kino is able to drive him away. Juana who is shaken by the entire experience, warns Kino that the pearl is not meant to be with them. She believes it will destroy them, but Kino convinces her that the pearl is their one chance. He promises to sell it the next day.

Kino’s neighbors are jealous and they are eager to know about the pearl and Kino’s plans. They tell him to give the pearl to the Pope as a gift, including conducting the prayers for his family’s souls and sharing the amount with the needy people of La Paz. Kino takes his neighbors along with him to sell his pearl. However, when the dealer offers a thousand pesos, Kino thinks the pearl is much more valuable and should get at least fifty thousand pesos. Most dealers check the pearl and quote a similar rate. Hence, Kino doesn’t take their offer. Then he decides to go to the capital city to sell the pearl. That same night, Kino is attacked by thieves once again. Juana begs Kino to see that the pearl is an evil thing and is putting them in danger. Sadly, Kino refuses to listen to her and tells her that he would not let people cheat him.

The same night, Juana takes the pearl and tries to throw it into the ocean. Kino catches her before she can do that and punishes her. After a while, few men attack Kino, knocking the pearl from his hand. Kino kills one of the men as Juana watches from a distance. He tells her that they must leave their home. While the murder was an act of self-defense, Kino believes that he will be charged for it. Their escape plan is jeopardized as his canoe is damaged. To their shock, Kino’s house destroyed and set on fire. Kino and Juana hide at Juan Tomas and his wife, Apolonia’s home. The next night, they leave for the capital city.

Kino and Juana continue to hide during the day, escaping attention and travel night. They hide in a cave after seeing a group of sheep trackers. To avoid further attention, Kino removes his clothing too. In the cave, the trackers imagine that they hear a coyote pup. They shoot in that direction. Kino finds the three trackers and kills them too. When Kino returns he doesn’t hear Coyotito’s voice or cry. Instead, he hears Juana’s cry of death. Kino realizes that Coyotito has died from one of the shots of the trackers. Heartbroken, Juana and Kino return to La Paz. Kino takes a rifle from one of the dead trackers as Juana is holding Coyotito’s lifeless body. When they are near the gulf, Kino Coyotito’s head blown away like a pearl. Finally, Kino comes to know that the pearl was indeed evil and throws it into the ocean and sigh in relief.

Major Themes in The Pearl

• Family: Family and man’s efforts for its preservation is the major theme of the novel , The Pearl. Kino and Juana want their son to recover from the scorpion’s sting and want to pay everything they had to the physician. When they find the large pearl, they plan most about their son and the preservation of the family. Hence, Kino takes risks in getting more money, than he is offered in the town. Even the murders of the trackers, prove his desire of keeping his family safe and keep his son’s welfare at the top.
• Wealth as a Bad Omen: When Kino does not have wealth, he lives a happy life with his wife and son, Coyotito. However, as soon as he gets the pearl, he starts facing trouble such as getting nearly robbed and killed until he decides to throw the pearl in the same place he had found it. Thus hoping for the same satisfaction and peace of mind he used to live with before finding the pearl. Therefore, according to Juana, the pearl is a symbol of the arrival of wealth which is has been painted as a bad omen or a sign of bad luck.
• Paradox : This thematic strand appears when Kino finds a pearl through his hard work and thinks that it would bring good luck. Instead, it brings destruction and bad luck for him. Death is lurking everywhere while robbers are on the lookout of his pearl. This proves rather a paradox that instead of resolving his issues, it has created more troubles for him.
• Perseverance : Several characters in The Pearl demonstrate the theme of perseverance. For example, Kino displays it in keeping the pearl with him waiting for a better price, while his wife has had to fight with him to throw it away to escape the bad luck chasing them. The trackers, too, show perseverance in chasing them unless they get killed.
• Greed : The novel also sheds light on the theme of human greed through the character of Kino as well as the physician who asks for more money to treat Coyotito, while Kino asks for more price of the pearl to fulfill his dreams. Despite repeatedly occurring incidents demonstrating their bad luck after he finds the pearl, Kino refuses to listen to his wife or abandon the pearl. It is because of his greed that he does not want to give it up and loses his son on that journey.
• Gender : The significance of gender in the Mexican coastal regions is another thematic strand that runs parallel to several other themes in the novel . There are just a couple of female characters; Juana, his wife, and Apolonia, the wife of his neighbor. However, both of these characters are secondary. Here, Juana fails to convince Kino to throw away the pearl, while Apolonia’s character, too, is subservient to her husband, Juan Tomas.
• Primitivity : The Pearl also shows the primitivity of human nature in that despite having learned things, man is still prone to follow his primitive nature of saving himself and his progeny. Kino tries his best to benefit from the pearl in terms of making others be at his beck and call but fails.
• Power : Kino is aware that with money comes power , he also knows that others will try to snatch away his power. This is transformed into bad luck. Hence, Juana asks him to abandon the search for power by throwing the pearl back into the sea. However, Kino knows that with the pearl gone, he would not have any power left to do anything. When his son dies, he abandons the pearl and relinquishes the power, which could not save his son.
• Man and Nature : The Pearl also sheds light on the nature of man and his importance in the world of nature. Kino fails to fight against all the forces of nature. Despite his stubborn nature and persistence, including refusal to his wife’s plea, Kino has to learn that man can never win against nature.

Major Characters in The Pearl

• Kino: Kino is the protagonist and the central character of the novel, The Pearl. He is a Mexican-Indian and a professional pearl diver who works for others and owns a canoe. When his son, Coyotito, suffers scorpion stinging, he does everything to save him from the pain and torture, but cannot afford to pay the town physician for his son’s treatment. When he fishes out a large pearl, he begins to face troubles. In the end, he has to throw the pearl after losing his son, becoming a criminal for murdering robbers and the trackers.
• Juana : Juana is Kino’s wife and stays with him. She stands by Kino until the end despite losing her son, Coyotito. After the first robbery, she suggests Kino sell the pearl as soon as possible and also believes that the pearl will bring evil. She tries her best to save her son and her husband. However, Kino accepts her suggestion and throws the pearl back into the ocean, but it is already too late.
• Coyotito : He is a young child of Kino and Juana. A scorpion stings him and he is taken to the doctor. However, the greedy doctor refuses to treat him as Kino may not be able to afford his fees. Later Juana’s home remedy helps Coyotito heal from the sting. When Kino and Juana are on the run, the story takes a tragic turn. He is killed when the trackers fire shots in the air to scare Kino.
• The Doctor : The doctor is greedy and a shame to his profession. He refuses to treat Coyotito when a scorpion stings him. However, when he comes to know about the biggest pearl, he reaches their home, treats the boy, and promises to return shortly after demanding his heavy fees. Here the doctor must be a Caucasian. The doctor occasionally expresses his desire to leave for Paris with the heavy fees he tries to collect from his patients.
• Juan Tomas: He is the brother of Kino, who warns Kino that the pearl might bring serious repercussions on their simple lifestyle. He, along with his wife, hides the couple, when Kino kills one of the robbers.
• Apolonia: She is Juan Tomas’s wife. A kind woman, who along with her husband extends shelter to Kino and his wife when both of them confront robbers after Kino kills one of them.
• Pearl Dealers: Most of them are locals and have conspired to purchase Kino’s biggest pearl at the least price. When he brings his pearl to them, they only offer him 1,000 pesos to which he refuses.
• Robbers and Trackers: There are several anonymous robbers and trackers in the novel who occasionally appear to harass and snatch the pearl from Kino. One of them is killed during the first scuffle at home. Kino also kills three trackers on their way to the capital.

Writing Style of The Pearl‎

The language of the novel, The Pearl, is not only simple but also straightforward. John Steinbeck has used narrative to show the characters and their motives, keeping dialogs minimum. It could be called a fabular style , for he has adopted this fable to transform it into a novella in which he has succeeded.

Analysis of Literary Devices in The Pearl

• Action: The main action of the novel comprises Kino’s finding of the Pearl of the World. The rising action occurs when he faces robbers and kills one of them. The falling action occurs when he kills three of the trackers, finds his son Coyotito dead, and returns home resigned at the fate with the resolution of throwing away the pearl.
• Allegory : The Pearl shows the use of allegory in the novel through its characters in that Kino is a symbol of independence, while the doctor represents rapacity and greed. The dealers are blackmailers of the society, while Juan Tomas shows the ancient wisdom, and Kino and his wife also shows the spirit of the story of the human being: Adam and Eve.
• Antagonist : Although it seems that the robbers and trackers are the main antagonists of The Pearl, it is the Pearl of the Wisdom that becomes the antagonist for Kino, as it shows how it has bred greed and hostility among others when they see Kino getting tons of wealth.
• Allusion : There are various examples of allusions given in the novel, The Pearl. The first allusion is of the Gospel of Matthew as the storyline resembles the parable of the pearl. The second allusion of the storyline resembles the story of Adam and Eve. Kino’s love for the pearl and resulting money is also a reference to Timothy 6:1. It means that The Pearl has various Biblical allusions.
• Conflict : The are two types of conflicts in the novel, The Pearl. The first one is the external conflict that starts between Kino and the people who are against his getting the wealth. The second conflict is in his mind about its being evil that Kino’s wife has stated, and it resolves when he finally throws it in the sea.
• Characters: The Pearl presents both static as well as dynamic characters or round ones. Kino, though, seems the protagonist, is not the dynamic character ; his brother, Juan Tomas, is rather the dynamic character, while all others are static or flat including Kino, as they do not change themselves in the contexts . Only Juan proves unpredictable.
• Climax : The climax takes place when Kino kills one of the robbers after they attack him. This climax again appears when he kills all the trackers and subsides after he decides to return home when he sees that his only son is dead.
• Foreshadowing : There are various examples of foreshadowing in the novel. For example, i. “Hush,” said Kino. “Do not speak any more. In the morning we will sell the pearl, and then the evil will be gone, and only the good remain. Now hush, my wife.” His dark eyes scowled into the little fire, and for the first time he knew that his knife was still in his hands, and he raised the blade and looked at it and saw a little line of blood on the steel. (Chapter-III) ii. Coyotito: The very name of their son is a use of a good foreshadowing which alludes to coyote. iii. Song: Whenever Kino hears some song, he senses that something bad is going to happen to his family. iv. Juana’s realization of the pearl as a bad omen for the family.
• Hyperbole : Hyperbole or exaggeration occurs in the novel at different places. For example, i. She froze with terror for a moment, and then her lips drew back from her teeth like a cat’s lips. (Chapter-IV) ii. His heart thundered in his chest and his hands and face were wet with sweat. (Chapter-VI) Both of these examples show how emotions have been exaggerated.
• Imagery : The novel shows very good examples of imagery . For example, i. Kino awakened in the near dark. The stars still shone and the day had drawn only a pale wash of light in the lower sky to the east. The roosters had been crowing for some time, and the early pigs were already beginning their ceaseless turning of twigs and bits of wood to see whether anything to eat had been overlooked. Outside the brush house in the tuna clump, a covey of little birds chittered and flurried with their wings. (Chapter-1) ii. Kino lifted the flesh, and there it lay, the great pearl, perfect as the moon. It captured the light and refined it and gave it back in silver incandescence. It was as large as a sea-gull’s egg. It was the greatest pearl in the world. (Chapter-II) The first example shows images of color, sound, and sight, while the second shows the images of touch as well as sight.
• Metaphor : The Pearl shows good use of various metaphors . For example, i. The dawn came quickly now, a wash, a glow, a lightness, and then an explosion of fire as the sun arose out of the Gulf۔ (Chapter-1) ii. A town is a thing like a colonial animal . A town has a nervous system and a head and shoulders and feet. A town is a thing separate from all other towns, so that there are no two towns alike. (Chapter-II) iii. All manner of people grew interested in Kino. (Chapter-III) These three short examples of metaphors show John Steinbeck comparing the dawn with an explosion, the town with the animal, and manners with human beings.
• Motif : The most important motifs of the novel, The Pearl, are the pearl, the canoe, and Kino as an individual struggling against the social norms of the town.
• Narrator : The novel is narrated by a third-person narrator . It is also called an omniscient narrator who happens to be the author himself as he can see things from all perspectives . Here John Steinbeck Austen herself is the narrator.
• Personification : Personification means to attribute human acts and emotions to non-living objects . For example, i. The brown algae waved in the gentle currents and the green eel grass swayed and little sea horses clung to its stems. (Chapter-II) ii. And a town has a whole emotion. (Chapter-II) iii. And the beauty of the pearl, winking and glimmering in the light of the little candle, cozened his brain with its beauty. (Chapter-III) Both of these examples show algae, town, and beauty personified.
• Protagonist : Kino is the protagonist of the novel. He appears in the novel from the very start and captures the interest of the readers until the last page when he comes back to throw the pearl in the sea.
• Paradox : The Pearl shows the implicit use of paradox in that both Juana and Kino knows that the pearl is proving a bad fortune for them, yet they want the good fortune to sprout from it.
• Rhetorical Questions : The novel shows good use of rhetorical questions at several places. For example, i. Why should he, when he had more than he could do to take care of the rich people who lived in the stone and plaster houses of the town?  (Chapter-I) ii. “That is true,” said Kino, “but how can we know? We are here, we are not there. (Chapter-IV) Price in capital iii. I found it in the path. Can you hear me now? Here is your pearl. Can you understand? You have killed a man. We must go away. They will come for us, can you understand? We must be gone before the daylight comes.” (Chapter-V) These examples show the use of rhetorical questions posed by different characters such as first by Kino, second by his brother Juan and third by his wife Juana.
• Theme : A theme is a central idea that the novelist or the writer wants to stress upon. The novel, The Pearl, not only shows the titular thematic strands of The Pearl, but also life, struggle, racial discrimination, gender parity, and human luck.
• Setting : The setting of the novel is the town of La Paz, Mexico, where Kino and his family relations live, including the coastal area and the way to the capital city.
• Simile : The novel shows good use of various similes. For example, i. In the canoe she was like a strong man. (Chapter-1) ii. A town is a thing like a colonial animal, (Chapter-III) iii. The news stirred up something infinitely black and evil in the town; the black distillate was like the scorpion, or like hunger in the smell of food, or like loneliness when love is withheld. (Chapter-III) The first simile compares Juana to a man, the second the town to an animal, and the third compares the news to several different things simultaneously.

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John Steinbeck

• Literature Notes
• A General Critical Approach
• Book Summary
• About The Pearl
• Character List
• Summary and Analysis
• Character Analysis
• Introduction
• The Doctor and the Priest
• John Steinbeck Biography
• Critical Essays
• Source of The Pearl
• Essay Questions
• Cite this Literature Note

Critical Essays A General Critical Approach

As Steinbeck mentioned in his introduction to this novel, "If this story is a parable, perhaps everyone takes his own meaning from it and reads his own life into it." Likewise, as was noted in the introduction to these Notes, there are many different critical approaches. The following interpretation is only one of many which the novel can support, and it need not be seen as the only definitive approach.

Basically, there are two forces working through the novel — primitive man alone with his labors, toiling close to nature and possessing an innate dignity; and opposing him, man as a predator, as a parasite or a vampire, sucking at the vein of life and bringing about death and destruction to the more primitive unit.

The first group is, of course, represented by Kino, his family and his friends who make up the primitive community of fishermen and divers. When we are first introduced to Kino's world, it is warm and content, bathed with the beautiful Song of the Family, which gently soothes his heart and makes his life seem fulfilled. Kino and Juana speak very little to each other — it is as though there is no need for words — their communication is innocent and innately understood. In contrast, there is the world of the pearl buyers and the world of the doctor and the priest, representatives of the world with whom Kino and Juana cannot communicate. This is a world which feeds parasitically on these simple people of Kino's village; the doctor's avarice, for example, sends numerous corpses to the church, and the priest is only a puppet of the pearl buyers who are, in turn, only fingers on the arms of some unknown force which has no concern for Kino's class of people.

These two groups are brought together by the use of animal imagery, which Steinbeck uses constantly throughout the novel to comment upon the predatory nature of so-called civilized society. As an illustration, when Coyotito is bitten by the scorpion, the baby's life is in danger, and this horrible, deadly insect makes Kino and Juana realize their ignorance; thus, because of their love for their son, and because of their not knowing about the doctor's fraud, they turn to him for assistance. They believe that because of the doctor, there appears to be a world of possibilities, but in trying to move from one world to another (represented by the long processional, in which the entire village follows Kino and Juana), Kino encounters obstacles which he cannot overcome. For example, Kino suffers mental torture, which is expressed physically when he splits his knuckles battering against the doctor's door in futile rage.

Kino's rage is further expressed when he rows out into the Gulf, and on his first dive, he goes deeper than usual — so deep as to possibly endanger his life; he stays down much longer than usual, but he returns with the Pearl of the World. The animal imagery (or the prey imagery) is now highly functional in relationship to Kino's attitudes. Steinbeck has clearly shown us prior to the discovery of the pearl how the dogs of La Paz feed upon the fish, the larger fish feed upon smaller fish, and every organism depends upon preying upon some other animal. Similarly, as Kino's mind becomes tainted because of his attempted association with the foreign doctor, the pearl also becomes symbolically tainted. When Kino acquires the pearl, it is indeed the most beautiful pearl in the world. But Steinbeck is careful to let us know that this pearl was created through the irritation and the suffering of another organism — the oyster. The beauty of the pearl is not necessarily either evil or good. It only becomes either good or evil when Kino and the pearl buyers begin to project their individual desires on it.

When Kino dives for the pearl, his heart is filled with anger and frustration; he is fierce and animal-like in this predatory mood. When he returns to the world above the floor of the Gulf, he is in possession of the Pearl of the World, but the beauty of the pearl slowly begins to dim; it turns ulcerous because Kino's heart changes. Here, Steinbeck's irony is extremely subtle. On a surface level, it seems that the things which Kino wants are good things: he wants to be married in the church, and he wants Coyotito christened. Juana has been saving the baby's christening clothes until they could find a pearl worthy enough to pay for the occasion. The ultimate achievement to be wrought by the pearl is an education for Coyotito and a rifle for Kino. On a surface level, it appears that Kino wants the right things. But the irony is that Kino and Juana are a truly married couple — they are one as man and wife — they are body and soul. Yet, Kino wants the social recognition of a "foreign marriage" performed by a circumspect priest in a "foreign" religion, and he wants the elegant religious sanction of this foreign religion. (We should remember that earlier, when the scorpion bit Coyotito, Juana first uttered charms in her native religion, and it was only as an afterthought that she added a couple of Hail Marys. Furthermore, Kino's new desires are apparently to please members of this new world and its priest rather than his native gods and people. And while it is noble that he wants Coyotito to have an education, the advantages that Kino wants for him lie in the new, foreign world. Kino, still suffering from his recent encounter with the foreign doctor, still wants his son to become a part of the world which has just rejected him.

The ugliness of the new world which Kino so desperately desires to become a part of begins to express itself immediately, but in the same way that Steinbeck shows that the real community is hidden behind paved streets and in gardens that are protected by stone walls, so also the people who attack him are never seen; they remain simply evil forces in the dark. Openly, the doctor comes first with the poisonous white powder which has the power to kill Coyotito; then the priest comes, blessing a marriage that he never performed. But Kino's simple ignorance cannot understand whether or not the doctor has some miraculous knowledge, and thus he yields to the doctor's horrid practice; likewise, the priest represents a similar mysterious religious force. Even though Kino instinctly knows that he is being cheated by the pearl buyers, he clings to the pearl because his very manhood has been challenged by the "dark ones," the unknown ones who attacked him during the night. Kino's predicament is that of any primitive man — his manhood will not allow him to surrender; to complicate matters, Kino has lost one world and has not gained another. In short, Kino is without a society.

As Kino becomes aware of the evil forces trying to rob him of his treasure, he realizes that the pearl has now taken on a different meaning. Earlier, it meant an education for Coyotito and a marriage in the church: now, as Kino and Juana plan their escape, Juana recognizes and Kino acknowledges: "This pearl has become [Kino's] soul." Now Kino is fighting only to prove that he is a man who can protect that which is his. As he becomes like a hunted animal, it is ironic that the reader's sympathy is even more with him now than it was earlier. Earlier, Steinbeck used Juana's fears to express the readers' fears. We heard of the attacks from her point of view, and we followed her as she joined Kino in his fight with the "dark ones." But after Steinbeck shows us how Kino's brush house was burned, his canoe destroyed, and how he is being tracked by experts, we sympathize entirely with Kino. For him to relinquish the pearl at this point would not be brave, and at this point, bravery is foremost in Kino's mind.

However, after Coyotito has been killed and after Kino has killed the three trackers, there is nothing left for Kino and Juana to do but to return to town. Yet they do not return in defeat. Counting the three trackers and the man who attacked Kino and was knifed by him, Kino has now killed four men; he has lost his only child, has had his brush house burned and has his canoe destroyed, and yet through it all he has retained his primitive sense of his own manhood and his own worth. The return to the town was Kino's voluntary choice; thus, it is also a moral choice. Kino does not return to accept whatever price that the pearl buyers will offer him, he does not return seeking forgiveness, and he does not return out of fear; Kino's return to town indicates that even though everything that a man possesses, including his beloved son, may be lost, yet man need not be defeated. The throwing of the pearl back into the Gulf, along with his return to the village, comprise Kino's ultimate defiance of a world that refuses to grant him the dignity to which he thought he was entitled. We feel that Kino must know that returning to town could mean his death, but in returning to town, Kino attains a dignity which cannot be stripped from him. Kino's return is not only his defiance of a corrupt world, it is also a simple victory of all that is good in man. As Steinbeck let us know through the animal imagery, in the mountains Kino became an animal; he was tracked and hunted without mercy. In contrast, by returning to his known world, Kino becomes larger than life because no force can now defeat him.

As the people watch Kino and Juana pass through the town to the shore of the Gulf, they all recognize this change that has taken place in him; they all recognize Kino's towering strength and his absolute majesty. Juana also recognizes this as she stands proudly beside him and refuses to throw the pearl herself; it is for the newborn man who is still master of his soul to dispose of the pearl as he sees fit.

Therefore, we realize more fully the meaning of Steinbeck's statement "If his story is a parable, perhaps everyone takes his own meaning from it and reads his own life into it." In these lines, Steinbeck sets up no antitheses such as good versus evil, or black versus white. Steinbeck even inverts the major symbol of the pearl. A pearl usually signifies purity and innocence, qualities which a man loses and tries to find. In this novel, Kino possesses innocence and purity at the beginning of the novel, and these simple, beautiful qualities are destroyed after his discovery of the pearl. By inverting the symbolism, Steinbeck emphasizes the parable aspect of his story — that is, we examine what happens to a man when he acquires something so valuable as the Pearl of the World but, after doing so, loses his human dignity and worth in the process. The pearl, then, is a complex symbol — it makes man vulnerable to attacks on his life, but it also makes him stubborn and determined to protect that which is his. Kino and his people have been exploited for four hundred years, and while they fear the foreigners and the unknown, there is also rage and hatred against these intruders. Yet like Kino, they believe that one day they will find the Pearl of the World which will set them free. Thus, if Kino's life is a parable, then it is a parable for many people's own lives: nothing in life is black or white, innocent or evil; everything is a shade somewhere in between. Kino is tricked into seeing and wanting things that are not, in themselves, innately good. He feels that education brings a knowledge that sets a man free. He feels that the church blesses and makes proper husbands and wives. But these things are good only if man is not forced to crawl like an animal to achieve them — that is, a church wedding is not good if one has to lose his manhood to achieve it.

Previous Source of The Pearl

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John Steinbeck

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The Pearl takes place in a small village on the outskirts of La Paz, California. It begins in the brush house of Kino , Juana , and their baby, Coyotito , a family of Mexican Native Americans. In the midst of Kino and Juana’s morning routine, Coyotito is stung by a scorpion that has fallen into his hanging box.

Aware of how poisonous the scorpion’s sting is, Juana orders that the doctor be gotten and when the doctor refuses to come to them, insists they go to the doctor themselves. Kino, Juana, Coyotito, and their neighbors proceed together to the city. When the servant reports their arrival at his gate, the doctor, lounging indulgently in bed, is insulted by the mere notion that he would “cure insect bites for ‘little Indians’” without compensation. The servant informs Kino that the doctor will not be able to see them and Kino punches the gate, infuriated by the doctor’s evident discrimination.

Kino and Juana set off in their canoe to search for pearls. Kino dives down to the seafloor and finds one oyster lying alone, gleaming from within. Upon returning to the canoe, Kino opens this oyster last and finds within it the most perfect pearl in the world.

News of Kino’s pearl spreads rapidly through the town, inspiring desire and envy in everyone who hears of it. When Juan Tomas asks Kino what he will do as a rich man, he responds that he and Juana will be married in a church, that they will have new clothes, that he will have a rifle, and that his son will receive an education.

The priest visits the brush house to remind Kino and Juana to thank God. Then the doctor, inspired by the news of the pearl, arrives in order to treat the baby. He administers a first treatment and predicts that the poison will strike within the hour. Within the hour, Coyotito indeed becomes ill and the doctor administers a second treatment to cure him. Kino promises to pay the doctor after selling the pearl, which the doctor feigns not to have heard about.

That night, after dark, Kino hears noises in the house and manages to strike a thief looking for the pearl with his knife, but is also struck in return. Juana begs, to no avail, that they get rid of the pearl.

The next day, Kino and Juana, followed by their neighbors, go to visit the pearl dealers . The first dealer Kino visits assesses the pearl at a mere 1000 pesos, declaring it too big and clumsy to be worth anything more, though it is clearly more valuable than he lets on. Kino accuses the dealer of cheating him, so the dealer instructs Kino to ask around for other appraisals, which are even worse than the first. Kino concludes that he’s been cheated and decides to go to the capital for a better estimate.

That night, Kino fights off another attacker. Juana tries to throw the pearl into the ocean, but Kino follows her, rips the pearl away from her, and beats her to the ground. Some minutes later, Juana rises to discover that Kino has been attacked yet again, and, this time, has killed his attacker. Now that Kino is guilty of murder, Kino and Juana truly must leave the town.

As Kino approaches the canoe to prepare for their departure, he sees that someone has made a hole in its bottom. Then, upon seeing that their house is engulfed in flames, the family seeks refuge in Juan Tomas’s house. They flee north at nighttime, pursued by trackers who have followed them from the village.

The family retreats into a cave on a mountainside, under which the trackers come to rest at night. When it’s completely dark, Kino prepares to attack them but, as he is about to, Coyotito lets out a cry, provoking one of the trackers to shoot at what he assumes to be a coyote. Though Kino succeeds in killing the men, Coyotito has already been shot dead.

Juana and Kino, united and beleaguered, walk back to the village side-by-side with Coyotito’s dead body in Juana’s shawl. Kino throws the pearl back into the sea.

57 pages • 1 hour read

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Consider the priest and the doctor as foil characters. How do their characteristics and roles overlap, and how do they differ?

The narrator says that The Pearl is a parable, which is a simple story that teaches a moral or lesson. What morals or lessons might Kino’s people derive from the story? Do those morals and lessons differ from the ones Steinbeck intends readers to take from it?

Consider dialogue within The Pearl . Though Kino and his people speak an unidentified “old language,” the dialogue is recorded in English. What tone and style does Steinbeck adopt for the dialogue, and how does it influence your perception of the characters and events?

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Home — Essay Samples — Literature — The Pearl — The Pearl Theme

The Pearl Theme

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Published: Mar 14, 2024

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Imagery and character analysis in the pearl.

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1. Imagery And Character Analysis In The Pearl

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3. Theme of Greed in John Steinbeck’s Novel The Pearl and Jack London’s Story A Piece of Steak

4. John Steinbeck’s The Pearl Through the Prism of New Formalism

5. John Steinbeck: Literary Works, Life and People Who Inspired Him

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A Dollar Cannot Buy a Smile: Riches vs. Happiness in 'The Pearl' Benjamin Paul Wilson 8th Grade

What is greed? Should family be sacrificed in return of money? Does greed ruin a person? These are all questions that are answered in the book, The Pearl, by John Steinbeck. In The Pearl, a simple man named Kino, and his wife Juana, risk their lives to protect a pearl which they believe can ultimately cure their sick son. While some may say that money can buy happiness, John Steinbeck's narrative suggests that money cannot buy happiness because money can destroy a family and money makes people a target for evil.

After Kino obtains the pearl, Steinbeck shows that money can destroy a family. Kino wakes up in the middle of the night after hearing Juana leave their house, planning to throw the pearl in the ocean. Kino reacts swiftly to protect his wealth because he believes it will bring him happiness: “He struck her in the face with his clenched fist and she fell among the boulders, and he kicked her in the side.” (Steinbeck 76). The pearl caused Kino to physically abuse Juana. This does the opposite of making the couple happy. Towards the end of the book, Kino begins to realize the effects of having the pearl. He is looking at the pearl when he realizes the trouble that it has caused him: “And in the surface of the pearl he saw...

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KCSE SET BOOKS ESSAY QUESTIONS and ANSWERS

Enjoy free KCSE revision materials on imaginative compositions, essay questions and answers and comprehensive analysis (episodic approach) of the set books including Fathers of Nations by Paul B. Vitta, The Samaritan by John Lara, A Silent Song, An Artist of the Floating World by Kazuo Ishiguro and Parliament of Owls by Adipo Sidang'. This blog is useful to Kenyan students preparing for KCSE; and their teachers.

Saturday 22 June 2019

30+ amazing the pearl kcse essay questions for candidates , follow @wafulawekati  .

      KCSE English paper 3  requires  mastery of content  and proper  interpretation of kcse essay questions  . The answers provided should exhibit a candidate's understanding of the question and ability to analyse and make proper judgement.    Learners should avoid  these common mistakes  in order to score desirable marks in their essay. 

    Before you attempt a few questions you should study  how to write amazing KCSE essays .    

    Tip:  Some of these sample essays may lack full textual illustrations and are simply meant to guide the learner on how to go about essay writing. Ensure you know the process of essay writing before you attempt writing the essays.        Always support every claim with sufficient  textual  backing while attempting to clearly highlight the embedded  moral value .

Here are some KCSE Revision essay questions on  The Pearl  for teachers and students of Literature;

THE PEARL SAMPLE ESSAY QUESTIONS

The pearl essay question , appearance can be deceptive. write an essay to validate this statement basing your argument on john steinbeck’s  the pearl . (20 marks),       things are not always as they seem. the outward appearance of someone or something may conceal their true nature or intentions. when kino finds a beautiful pearl he hopes to sell it and improve his family’s life but instead his old life is ruined even further.      first, we do not expect the priest to join the bandwagon of people trying to exploit kino for his wealth. priests ostensibly represent virtues. when he hears the news about kino’s pearl while walking in his garden he immediately thinks about necessary repairs in the church. he also thinks about the worth of the pearl. he cannot remember whether he married kino and juana in church and whether he baptized their son coyotito. he visits kino, something he hardly does. he claims that kino is named after a great father of the church. he also reminds him to give thanks for his newly found wealth. it is baffling that a clergy man would try to take advantage of a poor man. surely, appearance can be deceptive.      when the doctor gets wind of the news of kino’s pearl, he claims that kino is his client and that he is treating his child for a scorpion sting he comes to kino’s brushwood hut apparently to treat coyotito. however, he has ulterior motives. he warns kino about the effects of a scorpion sting. he gives the baby a white powder enclosed in a capsule of gelatine. this makes him very sick. he later “cures’ him with three drops of ammonia. the doctor deceives kino and the villagers that he came to treat the child but his real intention was to get the pearl for himself. he asks when kino could pay the bill hoping to get the pearl. he coerces kino to tell him where it is hidden, even offering to keep it safely for him.      it appears like there are many pearl buyers when in real sense there is only one he keeps many agents in several offices to create a semblance of competition. when kino finds the pearl he decides to sell it to improve his living standards. one of the dealers, the man behind the desk, appears benign and fatherly. he knows all the jokes. he is however a part of a conspiracy to cheat kino out of the true value of his pearl. after examining the pearl he offers a paltry 1000 pesos when kino wants 50,000 pesos. the other schemers play the same game. they pretend to be disinterested. one offers 500 pesos claiming he could sell it for 600 pesos. they are shocked when kino refuses to sell his pearl. the fatherly man quickly improves his deal to 1500 pesos but in vain. it appears like they are trying to offer kino the best price when in reality they are hell-bent on exploiting him.      lastly, the appearance of the pearl itself is deceptive. it appears beautiful but underneath the beauty is evil and destruction. its curve is perfect. it is as big as a seagull’s egg. when kino finds it he knew that this is the end of all his problems. he could not be more mistaken. he hopes to marry juana in church, buy a rifle and a harpoon, take coyotito to school and even purchase new clothes and shoes. none of this happens. juana and juan thomas warn kino that the pearl is evil. he beats juana when she tries to throw the pearl away. he strikes her with a clenched fist and kicks her in the side. his canoe is destroyed, his hut is burnt and his son coyotito is killed by people trying to steal the pearl. kino eventually throws the pearl back into the sea.      to sum up, it is indeed true to say that appearance may be deceptive since not all that glitters is gold., basing your argument on john steinbeck’s  the pearl,  write an essay to show how juana is the pillar of kino’s home. (20 marks) , juana is depicted as the stalwart of kino’s home.  she has the ability to make sound judgements  and offer practical solutions in the face of impending calamity. she helps to keep kino's strong desire for wealth in check and acts as the strength of the family both in calm days and during the shaky days after they found the pearl.  juana's ability to make swift judgement  is first seen when the child is stung by the scorpion. she takes several quick steps to save his life. first, she sucks the poison out of coyotito's body. she then rushes the child to the doctor to seek treatment when it became apparent that the doctor would not come to the brushwood houses where they lived. after praying and chanting ancient magic spells, she gathers brown seaweed and makes a poultice which she then applies to the child's shoulder to help reduce the pain. she manages to save the child's life since the poison eventually recedes from his body. indeed, she is the pillar of kino’s home. juana is wise enough to see the potentially harmful nature of the pearl. a thief tries to steal the pearl and kino fights him while trying to protect it. he bruises his forehead in the process. juana says that the pearl is evil and that they should get rid of it. kino is obstinate. he is blinded by his desires.  he refuses to heed to juana's warning. then, after they failed to sell the pearl, someone lurking outside kino's hut at night injures kino badly when he slashes him and leaves him with a deep cut running from ear to chin. after this attack , juana reiterates her earlier sentiments that the pearl is evil and that they ought to destroy it or throw it back into the sea before it destroys them together with their son. had kino listened to her, maybe, just maybe they would still have their hut and canoe intact and their son coyotito would still be alive. juana is surely the strength of kino’s family. moreover, she takes a bold step of trying to throw the pearl away. she had grown tired of kino's inaction. this plan fails. kino strikes her face with a clenched fist and kicks her on the side. juana is so considerate since she remains reasonably level-headed even after kino attacks her. there was no anger in her for kino. she collects the pearl and hands it back to kino after he is attacked. she tried to throw the pearl away in a desperate bid to save her family. she is content with the little they have unlike kino who is blinded by greed. this action makes us conclude that juana is indeed a reasonable person.   lastly, juana is also seen as a voice of reason when she sticks by kino throughout; appearing caring and protective. she takes care of the family by cooking for her husband and child. kino could never remember seeing her eyes closed when he awakened. she advises kino to leave the village after he killed a man. she offers to go with him to the north. when kino suggests that they split up so that he tries to mislead the trackers, she refuses and says that they stick together. she asks him to remove the white clothes as he readied himself to attack the trackers. after coyotito's death, she remains close to her husband when they return the village with their lifeless baby. she obviously puts in a lot of effort in trying to protect her family. she is indeed the pillar of kino’s family. .   to sum up, it is apparent that juana is definitely the pillar of strength that kino lies on.  (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});, all that glitters is not gold. write a composition to substantiate this claim, drawing your illustrations from john steinbeck’s  the pearl .  (20 marks),         appearance may be deceptive.  some people appear good at face value but may have hidden intentions. kino’s beautiful pearl appears like a promise of comfort and security and a poultice against illness but turns out to harbour evil, misfortune and death.     first, we do not expect the priest to join the bandwagon of people trying to exploit kino for his wealth. priests ostensibly represent virtues. when he hears the news about kino’s pearl while walking in his garden he immediately thinks about necessary repairs in the church. he also thinks about the worth of the pearl. he cannot remember whether he married kino and juana in church and whether he baptized their son coyotito. he visits kino, something he hardly does. he claims that kino is named after a great father of the church. he also reminds him to give thanks for his newly found wealth. it is baffling that a clergy man would try to take advantage of a poor man. surely, not all that glitters is gold.     when the doctor gets wind of the news of kino’s pearl, he claims that kino is his client and that he is treating his child for a scorpion sting he comes to kino’s brushwood hut apparently to treat coyotito. however, he has ulterior motives. he warns kino about the effects of a scorpion sting. he gives the baby a white powder enclosed in a capsule of gelatine. this makes him very sick. he later “cures’ him with three drops of ammonia. the doctor deceives kino and the villagers that he came to treat the child but his real intention was to get the pearl for himself. he asks when kino could pay the bill hoping to get the pearl. he coerces kino to tell him where it is hidden, even offering to keep it safely for him.     it appears like there are many pearl buyers when in real sense there is only one he keeps many agents in several offices to create a semblance of competition. when kino finds the pearl he decides to sell it to improve his living standards. one of the dealers, the man behind the desk, appears benign and fatherly. he knows all the jokes. he is however a part of a conspiracy to cheat kino out of the true value of his pearl. after examining the pearl he offers a paltry 1000 pesos when kino wants 50,000 pesos. the other schemers play the same game. they pretend to be disinterested. one offers 500 pesos claiming he could sell it for 600 pesos. they are shocked when kino refuses to sell his pearl. the fatherly man quickly improves his deal to 1500 pesos but in vain. it appears like they are trying to offer kino the best price when in reality they are hell-bent on exploiting him.    lastly, the appearance of the pearl itself is deceptive. it appears beautiful but underneath the beauty is evil and destruction. its curve is perfect. it is as big as a seagull’s egg. when kino finds it he knew that this is the end of all his problems. he could not be more mistaken. he hopes to marry juana in church, buy a rifle and a harpoon, take coyotito to school and even purchase new clothes and shoes. none of this happens. juana and juan thomas warn kino that the pearl is evil. he beats juana when she tries to throw the pearl away. he strikes her with a clenched fist and kicks her in the side. his canoe is destroyed, his hut is burnt and his son coyotito is killed by people trying to steal the pearl. kino eventually throws the pearl back into the sea.     to sum up, it is indeed true to say that not all that glitters is gold since appearance may be deceptive. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});, unchecked desire can change an individual. basing your illustrations on john steinbeck’s  the pearl,  write a composition to back up this statement. (20 marks) ,   in the pearl kino is poor but happy but when he finds a great fortune he becomes obsessed with being rich and this makes him sad, suspicious and irrational. this is because greed for wealth can change a person. before kino finds the pearl he is a caring, protective father and husband. he seems contended and happy despite living in poverty. he is satisfied with the simple lifestyle and the little they posses. when he finds the pearl, he has great dreams for his family. he hopes to marry his wife in church. he hopes to buy her new clothes including a new shawl, new skin and new shoes. when someone tries to steal the pearl and kino is hurt trying to protect it, juana suggests that they get rid of it. kino is adamant. he is blinded by desire for money. when she tries to throw it away, he strikes her badly. excessive desire turns kino into an abusive husband that he was not at first. desire for money turns kino into a heartless murderous man. kino lives the simple life of a fisherman like the other natives of la paz. when he finds the great pearl, he turns into “an animal”. he fights and kills a man on the path that tries to steal his pearl. having grown tired of kino’s inaction, juana decides to go and throw the pearl back into the sea. kino catches her and strikes her with a clenched fist and kicks her on the side. on his way back to the hut, he fights and kills a man forcing them to flee from their home. his obsession with changing their simple lifestyle and acquiring material possession dehumanizes him. the excessive ambition for riches makes kino irrational. kino seems like a wise family man. he provides for his family through fishing and pearl diving. he loves and protects his young family. when he finds the great pearl, he hopes to take his son coyotito to school so that he frees them from the bondage of ignorance. his preoccupation with this desire blinds him. he fails to see the danger such an ambition puts his family into. while fleeing to the north, he is pursued by three trackers, two on foot and one on a horse with a rifle. his son is eventually killed even when he manages to kill the three men. had kino been wise enough he would have gotten rid of the pearl as soon as he saw the red flags. he is blinded by wild desire for wealth. lastly, the doctor changes his mind about treating coyotito because of his desires. when coyotito is stung by a scorpion, the doctor refuses to treat the child. he has no time to treat “little indians” for insect bites because they never have any money. he sends them away claiming he was out attending to a serious case. when kino finds the great pearl the doctor hopes to get it so that his dreams of a “civilized” european lifestyle in paris could come to pass. he rushes to kino’s home pretending he was there to treat the child. he says kino is his client. he never goes to the brushwood huts until kino gets rich. he has no intention of treating the child. he is finally interested in kino because of his strong desire for money. in brief, it is indeed true to say that money and desire can change an individual.  (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});, the villagers in la paz are highly superstitious. basing your answer on kino and juana in john steinbeck’s  the pearl , write an essay to validate this statement. (20 marks) , the villagers in la paz are ignorant and thus tend to have strong beliefs based on fear of the unknown. juana has deep-seated faith in magic spells and luck. she believes that kino’s pearl is evil. through the prayers, incantations and ancient magic spells juana is portrayed as a superstitious individual. she mutters an ancient magic incantation when coyotito is in danger of being stung by a scorpion. she also mutters a hail mary. in the boat she does not pray directly for the recovery of the baby. she prays that they find a pearl. she attempts to force from the gods the luck she and kino need to protect coyotito. (ancient magic p 21, 33, 35) kino’s superstition is clear when he is reluctant to open the large shell first since he doesn’t want to show the gods or god that he wants the pearl so much. kino is afraid that gods will take revenge against him if he finds success.  gods do not love men’s plans. while fleeing the village, when kino looks at the pearl he only sees tragedies that have befallen the family. he begins to see that the pearl is cursed but he still cannot part with it.  (p 36,37.46, 98) juan tomas and juana believe that the pearl is evil. juan tomas tells kino that there is a devil in the pearl. he advises kino to get rid of it by selling it and buying peace for himself. juana says that the pearl is like a sin. he warns kino that it will destroy all of them if they don’t throw it away. kino ignores her warning and keeps the pearl. she tries to throw away the evil pearl but kino catches and beats her further proving her fears that the pearl is cursed. it has made kino attack and harm his loving wife. (p 90) the villagers in la paz mainly survive on pearl fishing and they believe that the pearls are accidents and finding one is luck, a pat on the back by god or the gods or both. they believe in luck so much that when juana senses kino’s excitement when he finds the pearl she pretends to look away because it is not good to want a thing too much. it sometimes drives the luck away. (p 34, 36)  in brief, the behavior of most people in la paz is based on faith and luck as a result of ignorance, fear and false conceptions. .

Juana and Juan Tomas are depicted as the voices of reason in La Paz. Write a composition to substantiate this claim, drawing your illustrations from John Steinbeck’s  The Pearl.  (20 Marks)

In the pearl by john steinbeck juana and juan tomas are individuals who try to influence kino to act sensibly. they try to use practical and logical reasons to convince kino to get rid of the pearl that brings misfortunes to their family.  they are therefore voices of reason.  when coyotito is stung by a scorpion, juana is seen as the voice of reason when she suggests that they go to the doctor, which is the most sensible thing to do. this is after she sucks the poison out of coyotito’s body and spits. this shows quick, practical thinking on her part. when the doctor refuses to treat the baby, she accompanies kino when he goes out pearl fishing. she prays that they may find a pearl with which to hire the doctor to cure the baby-she does not pray directly for his recovery. this shows that juana is a reasonable woman. juana tries to influence kino to do the most sensible thing-throwing the pearl away. when a thief tries to steal the pearl and kino bruises his forehead in a bid to protect it, she tells kino that the pearl is like a sin and will destroy them because it has brought evil. she advises him to throw it away. kino fails to heed this advice since he plans to sell the pearl. juana is reasonable since she advises him to throw it away again when he is attacked and slashed from ear to chin. she urges him to destroy it before it destroys them. this is after she tries to stop from confronting his assailant. kino does not comply claiming he is a man but juana cautions him sensibly that a man can be killed. the pearl turns out to be destructive since because of it kino loses his boat, his hut and his son coyotito. juana is undoubtedly a voice of reason. juan tomas, kino’s elder brother, is a reasonable and far-sighted man. he advises kino to be careful that the pearl buyers do not cheat him. since he is the elder, kino looks to him for wisdom. he says he is afraid for kino since he has defied not only the pearl buyers, but the whole structure of life. he cautions kino about going to the capital where he has no friends or family. juan tomas is indeed a reasonable man. throughout the novel, juan tomas gives his younger brother good meaningful pieces of advice. when kino kills a man, juan tomas tells him that there is a devil in his pearl. he advises him to sell it and buy peace for himself. he offers to protect kino after his hut is burnt and goes out to divert the neighbours’ suspicion. he borrows some supplies like salt, food, and a knife to help kino on his journey north. wisely, he advises kino to avoid the shore since there is a party to search the shore. surely, he is a voice of reason. in conclusion, juana and juan tomas are indeed the voices of reason owing to their invaluable pieces of advice they offer kino. ,   write an essay to show how poverty is dehumanizing basing your illustrations on john steinbeck's  the pearl  (20 marks)    lack of money and possessions can make one feel or appear somehow less human. poverty deprives people of human qualities such as feelings for other people. kino and others in la paz endure such suffering because they are poor and his efforts to escape the shackles of poverty prove futile. first, as a result of poverty kino’s family and their neighbours live in semi permanent shacks that are hardly good enough for humans. kino, juana and coyotito live in a brushwood hut in the impoverished neighbourhood of la paz. kino and juana sleep on a mat, whereas coyotito sleeps in a hanging box. the shelter is barely any good for a baby as he is stung by a scorpion. a thief easily sneaks into the house and kino bruises his forehead trying to fight him. the hut is razed to the ground in a matter of minutes as thieves look for the pearl. what miserable living conditions indeed poverty is dehumanizing. apart from that, kino can barely afford some basic needs and simple luxuries of life. he only dreams of buying a rifle (winchester carbine) and a harpoon after finding a great pearl. he also hopes to marry juana in church. kino sees juana and coyotito and himself kneeling at the high altar getting married now that he could finally pay. he hopes to purchase new clothes-blue sailors’ suit from the us and a yachting cap for coyotito for example. he also plans to pay for coyotito’s education. kino and his family have lived a life of oppression, misery and ignorance as a result of poverty and that is why he has dreams of unshackling his family from the bondage of poverty and to give them a life fit for a human being.   also, poverty turns people into heartless brutes. when kino finds the pearl, everyone becomes interested in him with the hope of reaping some benefits. people would do anything to get the pearl. kino on the other hand is willing to do anything to protect it. even after seeing the danger and the evil surrounding the pearl he still clings onto it. he strikes juana with a clenched fist and kicks her in the side when she tries to throw it away. he kills a man on the path and three trackers who were pursuing him. when someone destroys his bought, kino turns into an animal because the canoe is all he has. he commits all these atrocities because poverty has stripped him of qualities like reason and compassion. poverty is surely dehumanizing. kino cannot access proper medical care for his son after he is stung by a scorpion because he is poor. when coyotito is stung by a scorpion, kino and juana rush him to the european doctor. the doctor contemptuously remarks that the “little indians” never have any money. kino can only offer eight misshapen seed pearls that look ugly and grey like ulcers. he dismisses claiming he was out handling a more serious case-more serious than curing insect bites for “little indians”. he says he is not a veterinary doctor. kino is so angry that he strikes the doctor’s gate with his bare knuckle. the european doctor despises kino because he is poor. in conclusion, it is true to say that poverty is dehumanizing.  ,     , "some individuals are quick to make sound decisions during challenging times. basing your illustrations on juana in john steinbeck's  the pearl ; write an essay to validate this assertion."  in a world full of irrational and impulsive people, it's really delightful to have some individuals who have the ability to make sound judgments and offer practical solutions in the face of impending calamity. juana is one such person. she helps to keep kino's wild desire for wealth in check and acts as the pillar of the family both in calm days and during the tumultuous days after they found the pearl.  juana's ability to make swift judgment is first seen when the child is stung by the scorpion. she takes several quick steps to save his life. first, she sucks the poison out of coyotito's body. she then rushes the child to the doctor to seek treatment when it became apparent that the doctor would not come to the brushwood houses where they lived. after praying and chanting ancient magic spells, she gathers brown seaweed and makes a poultice which she then applies to the child's shoulder to help reduce the pain. she manages to save the child's life since the poison eventually recedes from his body. indeed, she is a voice of reason.  juana is wise enough to see the potentially harmful nature of the pearl. a thief tries to steal the pearl and kino fights him while trying to protect it. he bruises his forehead in the process. juana says that the pearl is evil and that they should get rid of it. kino is obstinate. he is blinded by his desires.  he refuses to heed to juana's warning. then, after they failed to sell the pearl, someone lurking outside kino's hut at night injures kino badly when he slashes him and leaves him with a deep cut running from ear to chin. after this attack , juana reiterates her earlier sentiments that the pearl is evil and that they ought to destroy it or throw it back into the sea before it destroys them together with their son. had kino listened to her, maybe, just maybe they would still have their hut and canoe intact and their son coyotito would still be alive. juana is surely rational.  moreover, she takes a bold step of trying to throw the pearl away. she had grown tired of kino's inaction. this plan fails. kino strikes her face with a clenched fist and kicks her on the side. juana is so considerate since she remains reasonably level-headed even after kino attacks her. there was no anger in her for kino. she collects the pearl and hands it back to kino after he is attacked. she tried to throw the pearl away in a desperate bid to save her family. she is content with the little they have unlike kino who is blinded by greed. this action makes us conclude that juana is indeed a reasonable person.   lastly, juana is also seen as a voice of reason when she sticks by kino throughout; appearing caring and protective. she takes care of the family by cooking for her husband and child. kino could never remember seeing her eyes closed when he awakened. she advises kino to leave the village after he killed a man. she offers to go with him to the north. when kino suggests that they split up so that he tries to mislead the trackers, she refuses and says that they stick together. she asks him to remove the white clothes as he readied himself to attack the trackers. after coyotito's death, she remains close to her husband when they return the village with their lifeless baby. she obviously puts in a lot of effort in trying to protect her family. she is indeed a voice of reason.   in conclusion, it is apparent that juana is without a doubt a voice of reason., "when an individual is over ambitious, he suffers” write an essay to validate this statement using kino in john steinbeck's the pearl .  (20 marks), when one wants something so much, the end result is usually pain, misery or suffering.  when kino finds the pearl, he becomes greedy for material possession (rifle, harpoon, shoes, and clothes) and a change of lifestyle. this excessive desire causes pain to him and his family. eventually, he loses his property and his child. due to greed, kino loses his son coyotito. when kino finds the pearl his desire to change his life blinds him. he hopes to take coyotito to school. he says that his son will go to school and learn writing. that he will know and they will know through him. they will be free. even when he suffers attacks and physical pain because of the pearl his ambition clouds his reasoning.  he refuses to let go off the pearl. he flees the village with juana and coyotito with a view to protect and sell his pearl, hoping to use the funds to educate his son. coyotito is killed by one of the 3 trackers at the mountains as they were fleeing to the north. kino suffers the pain of losing his only son. kino loses his brushwood hut and canoe as a result of his excessive ambition. when he finds the pearl, everybody else is interested in it. the priest, the shopkeepers, the doctor, the beggars, and the dealers all want a share of his newly found wealth. someone tries to steal the pearl.  kino is injured trying to protect it. kino is attacked twice because of the pearl. his hut is set ablaze after intruders ransack it looking for the pearl. he wants to go and sell the pearl in the capital after failing to secure a deal with the local dealers. to stop him someone punches a hole in his canoe. this hurts kino and turns him into an animal. he inherited it from his father and grandfather and treasured it a lot as a fisherman. kino loses is valuables as a result of too much ambition. kino suffers physical pain because of the pearl. kino suffers attack after attack. he is determined to get his hands on new material possession. he suffers in the process. when someone tries to steal his pearl, he injures his forehead while trying to protect it. it his sole hope of new wealth. the night they came from the dealers, kino is attacked outside his hut and slashed. there is a deep cut on his cheek from his ear to his chin. juana pleads with him to get rid of the evil pearl but he refuses since is so ambitious to give coyotito education and to acquire wealth.  he is attacked again after striking juana. he manages to kill the man but is left with injuries. too much ambition causes pain. kino lives a life of fear and suspicion after he finds the pearl. although it causes him to problems he does not want to lose it. this is because he is overambitious. he wants to buy a winchester carbine rifle, a new iron harpoon, and white clothes for himself, a blue suit for coyotito, and shoes. juana asks who he fears. he says that he fears everybody. he lives in constant fear of attacks and intruders since people want to steal his pearl. he is eventually forced to flee from la paz a place he calls home.   kino would do anything to protect his pearl and acquire wealth. juana suffers this violent nature when she tries to throw the pearl away. he strikes juana in the face with a clenched fist. she falls among the boulders. he then kicks her in the side. this destroys their peaceful co-existence as a poor but happy (contended) family. he kills the man who attacked him on the path. he kills the three trackers who were pursuing him because of the pearl. he could not let them steal his pearl because he has big dreams. over ambition causes kino to become a dangerous ‘animal’ who wrecks his family and structure of life. to sum up, greed/ excessive ambition causes pain/misery/suffering. , “family members always want the best for us”. write an essay to validate this claim basing your illustrations from john steinbeck’s  the pearl . (20 marks) , in the face of adversity, our relations are always there for us. for instance juana kino’s wife does everything in her power to protect her husband kino and their child coyotito. she risks her life by sucking the scorpion’s poison out of the child’s shoulder for she cares for her son coyotito. first, juana cares for her son coyotito. when he is stung by the scorpion, she does everything within her means to save his life. first, she sucks the poison out and spits and sucks again. she suggests that they go to see the doctor. she also sticks with kino while he was pearl finishing and prays that they find a pearl with which they can hire the doctor to treat their son coyotito. meanwhile she gathers brown seaweed and makes flat damp poultice which uses as a remedy for coyotito’s pain. her quick thinking saves coyotito from the adverse effect of the scorpion sting; a withered leg, a crumpled back or a blind eye. surely, family members are always there for us. kino is a simple family man who loves and strives to protect his family. kino finds solace and contentment in the song of the family. he knows the value of family since he inherited his only prized possession, a canoe, from his father and grandfather. he cannot take a chance that the doctor is lying to him about coyotito’s health since he doesn’t want his child to suffer. when he gets the pearl kino only thinks of how to improve his family; clothes for juana and coyotito, education for coyotito and a marrying juana in church. although the pearl causes pain, kino only clings on it because he wants the best for his family. juan tomas cares for and values his brother kino. he shows up when coyotito is stung and accompanies kino to the doctor. he advises kino to be careful so that the dealers don’t take advantage of him. he also accompanies him to the dealers. when kino kills a man, he offers him and his family shelter in his hut and tries to divert the attention of the neighbours and gathers supplies for the journey; a bag of beans, a gourd of rice, dried pepper, salt, a knife and an axe. although he doesn’t manage to convince kino to get rid of the evil pearl, he does all he can to help him escape it. juana cares for her husband kino and is always there for him. she wakes up early to prepare breakfast for her family. she is always on kino’s side and acts like his chief advisor. she sees the potentially harmful nature of the pearl and asks kino to get rid of it. she gets tired of kino’s inaction and tries to throw the pearl away. even after kino attacks her she has no anger for him in her. she advises kino to escape the village after he kills a man and sticks with him through thick  and thin as they return to the village with their dead son. she is on his side when he flings the pearl back into the sea. in conclusion, it is indeed true to say that family members are always there for us. surely blood is thicker than water. , write an essay to show how a steadfast spirit makes one the pillar of strength of the family, using juana in the pearl .  juana is a dependable and devoted member of kino's family. her steadfast loyalty makes her a tower of strength for kino and the son coyotito. she is subservient but surprisingly judicious and resolute and these endearing qualities make her the anchor of the family. when coyotito is stung by a scorpion juana, swings into action and saves his life. first, she sucks the poison from the reddened puncture and spits and sucks again while the baby screams in pain. the baby’s screams attract the neighbours. she sucks until the hole enlarges and its edges whiten. she is aware that the poison could easily kill the baby. the sucking helps to relieve coyotito's pain and the screams turn into moans. later on she collects some brown seaweed and makes a flat damp poultice and applies it to coyotito's shoulder. this was a good cure and could be better than the doctors remedy. the symptoms of the scorpion sting like swelling, fever, tightened throat and cramps are worrying but luckily cramps do not come to coyotito. finally the poison recedes from coyotito’s body and the swelling goes out of his shoulder. juana's unwavering empirical actions save her son’s life. juana surprises kino when she demands that they go to the doctor. he had wondered often at the iron in his patient fragile wife. she is respectful and cheerful but could stand fatigue and hunger better than kino himself. he is surprised when she demands for the doctor. everyone knows that the doctor does not come to the cluster of brush houses. he prefers prefer treating the rich who live in stone and plaster houses in town. to want him is wonderful, but to get him would be remarkable. the people in the yard, those at the door and kino tell juana that the doctor won’t come. she uncompromisingly demands that they go to him. she covers the baby to protect him from light and together with kino they lead the procession to the doctor's house. she had sucked the poison out but she is still worried because coyotito is his first baby-almost everything that was in her world. when the doctor turns them down and everyone else leaves she stays at his gate with kino for a long time. juana's determination makes the music of his family jovial in kino's head with a steely tone. when a thief a thief tries to steal kino’s pearl while he sleeps, he hurts his head while fighting the intruder. he could feel warm blood down his forehead. juana uses her shawl to swab the blood from his bruised forehead. she astutely warns kino that the pearl is evil. she equates it to a sin that will destroy them. she asks kino to throw it away, break it between stones, bury it or throw it back to the sea. kino is adamant because he wants his son to go to school but juana knows that it would destroy even their son. when kino fails to sell the pearl juana is worried. she knows the only help she can offer is being near him and being silent. kino is attacked a second time and is slashed from his ear to chin. she wipes his face and offers him a pulque to drink and reiterates that the pearl is evil and will destroy the family. kino foolishly asserts that he is a man. juana prudently tells kino that a man can be killed. juana is clearly determined to save her family but kino is blinded by limitless desire. juana is indeed an unrelenting woman. her steadfast spirit is evident when she grows tired of kino’s obstinate inaction. she decides to secretly throw the pearl herself. this is because the pearl has caused fear and brought enemies who were inflicting physical and emotional agony to her family. kino catches her just in time and hits her on the face with a clenched fist. he kicks her on the side when she falls among the boulders. he hisses at her like a snake but she stares at him with wide unfrightened eyes. even after he attacks her she remains rational. there’s no anger in her for kino. her quality of woman would cut through kino’s manness and save them.  juana resolutely fights to protect her family. juana advises kino to flee from la paz after he kills a man. she fights bitterly to rescue the old peace but she is wise enough to know that it’s futile now. kino says did it in self defence but she tells him that no one would buy his account. he concedes. they head north together. she sticks by his side to the bitter end. the trek is tedious but juana's steadfastness gives kino strength. juana’s mouth is swollen where kino hit her; her ankles are cut and scratched by stones and brushes but she sits unflinchingly like a sentinel. she dissuades kino from splitting up with them when he suggests they go to loreto or santa rosalia and when he offers to let the trackers take him. she says the trackers would still kill them. kino yields to her unwavering goading. she also advises him to remove the white clothes when he wills to attack the trackers. after coyotito is killed, she walks with kino walking side to side. to sum up, juana is surely the pillar of strength in kino’s family. she unrelentingly tries to control kino’s excessive desire that eventually proves destructive when he does not heed her sagacious. read more on juana as a voice of reason  in the pearl., “the greedy indulge in vices that cause suffering to the victims around them.” using illustrations from steinbeck’s the pearl, write an essay in support of this statement. people with unchecked material desires often commit bad deeds that cause pain and misery to those around them. some characters such as kino and the doctor in john steinbeck’s the pearl are greed and thus cause suffering around them as my essay illustrates. the doctor refuses to cure coyotito but he gets greedy when kino finds the pearl of the world and now wants to attend to coyotito. the doctor is a man of fine tastes and he thinks of the pleasures he experienced while in france. when coyotito is stung, he is rushed to the doctor who after seeing the ugly valueless pearls from kino asks the servant to dismiss them. when he hears of kino’s new pearl he rethinks of paris and imagines how he can benefit. he leaves the old woman he is attending to as he now wants to attend to coyotito. he first poisons the already healing coyotito leaving him to suffer as his face was flushed, throat was working, and drooled saliva and the spasm of the stomach muscles began. he later comes back to treat coyotito and immediately asks for payment as he knows about the pearl. he makes coyotito to suffer all because he was greedy for the pearl and its proceeds. kino’s greed for the pearl is clear as he hopes to buy a harpoon, rifle, new clothes, take coyotito to school and have a church wedding as soon as he sells the pearl. as he is possession of the pearl, mishaps start happening to him. first, coyotito is poisoned by the doctor, then there is an attempted robbery and he is also attacked outside his hut. juana notices these events and advises  kino to do away with the pearl by crushing it between two stones or throwing it back to the sea or forget it altogether. her pleas fall on deaf ears as kino blatantly refuses to act on her advice. juana decides to steal the pearl and toss it back to the sea herself and this makes her suffer as a result of kino’s greed. kino follows her to the sea and physically assaults her, he struck her face and as she was on the bank, he kicked her side leaving her aching. because of kino’s greed, juana suffers as he beats her up and leaves her bruised. the attackers also were greedy for the pearl and end up hurting kino in the process. from the onset of the pearl’s discovery, the neighbors also coveted kino’s find. kino’s pearl went into the needs, the lust, the speculations and the hungers of everyone and he became curiously every man’s enemy. it was only a matter of time and they would start to want the pearl for themselves. after the doctor’s visit, there is an attempted robbery, the second comes on the day he failed to sell the pearl when he is attacked outside his hut and had a bleeding scalp and a deep cut on his chin. he is also ambushed on the night he beats up juana and greedy fingers ransacked him for the pearl and here kino commits his first murder. besides the physical harm, kino’s hut is burned down and his canoe punctured to hinder his movement. greed for the pearl turns his neighbor’s vicious and they make kino suffer as they also wanted the pearl to themselves. lastly, the trackers kill little coyotito as they also wanted the pearl for themselves. as kino was heading to the capital, three men follow him through the terrain for days while in pursuit of the pearl. they do the assignment keenly as they did not want kino to get away with the pearl. kino tells juana that even if they were to find the pearl with them, they would still kill them and coyotito too. the trackers force kino and juana to hide in a cave and endure rough terrain in a bid to shake them off. while in their hideout, coyotito let out a cry and the trackers assume that the cry is from a coyote and the one with a gun shot towards the sound and thus killing coyotito. kino ends up killing the three men but the damage had been done already, the life of his dear son had been lost. as a result of kino’s greed, coyotito is killed and this proves his intentions futile as they throw the pearl back to the sea. in conclusion, greed is a vice that if unchecked can lead to pain and even death.  .

Poverty causes suffering. Making reference to Kino in The Pearl by John Steinbeck, write an essay to qualify this assertion .

Kino’s misery is as a result of his lack of money. Being poor is synonymous with extreme suffering. In a bid to escape poverty, his situation is further compounded. Kino and his family members suffer because of their destitution.

First, the doctor refuses to treat Coyotito, Kino’s son, because of his penury. When a scorpion stings Coyotito , Juana suggests that they go to get the doctor. Kino, the people in the yard and the people in the door tell her that the doctor will not come. He prefers taking care of the rich people who live in stone and plaster houses - not poor people like Kino and his family. There is a wide gap between the rich and the poor of La Paz. While Kino lived a destitute life in the cluster of brush houses, the rich lived in the city of stone and plaster, with harsh outer walls and cool inner gardens. They keep caged birds and enjoy the splash of cooling water against the flagstones. The beggars conclude that Kino and Juana are poor when they see her old blue skirt, tears in her shawl and her green ribbon and they read the age of Kino’s blanket in the thousand washings of his clothes. At the doctors big gate, they are greeted by the aroma of good bacon. The doctor curtly refuses to attend to his baby since they never have any money. Kino has eight misshapen seed pearls, as ugly and grey as little ulcers, and they are flat and valueless. The doctor says he is not a veterinary to cure insect bites for "little Indians". Kino is publicly shamed. He strikes the doctor’s gate and splits his knuckles. Surely, poverty is compounded by misery.

Secondly, Kino suffers when his canoe, the only thing of value he owns in the world, is destroyed. A canoe is once property and a source of food. It is a bulwark against starvation since a man with a boat could provide for his family. In a desperate bid to escape poverty, Kino decides that he will perhaps sell his pearl at the capital. He is utterly shocked to find a great hole knocked at the bottom of his canoe. He is gripped by a searing rage. This was the canoe of his grandfather. He had plastered it over and over using a secret method he learned from his father. A splintered hole was broken in it. Kino considers the killing of a boat more evil than the killing of a man. A wounded boat does not heal, cannot have sons and cannot protect itself. Kino feels sorrow and rage which tighten him beyond breaking. He becomes an animal that is ready to hide and attack, living only to protect his family. Kino’s pain arises from the fact that he is poor and it is inconceivable that the only valuable thing he owns is destroyed. This is evil beyond thinking. Indeed, poverty brings misery.

Kino is attacked while trying to protect the pearl which is supposed to be his sole silver bullet out of poverty. When he gets the pearl, he says that Coyotito would go to school. He can picture him sitting at a little desk in school, just as he had once seen through an open door. Since he is poor, he cannot afford to take his son to school until he sells the pearl. Education would make them free since they will know or be enlightened through him. His brain burns during his sleep. He dreams that Coyotito could read. When someone sneaks into their house to try and steal his pearl Kino is gripped with wild fear and rage. While trying to fight the intruder, Kino crashes his head and it explodes with pain. He feels warm blood running down his forehead. He is terrified. Juana swabs the blood from Kino’s bruised forehead using a wet head shawl. Kino’s eyes and voice are hard and cold when he speaks. Juana’s tension boils up to the surface and she cries that the pearl is evil – a sin that will destroy them. She suggests that Kino throws it away, breaks it between stones or buries it and forgets the place. She desperately urges Kino to throw it back to the seas lest it destroys them. She is frightened when she says it will destroy even their son. Kino insist that their son must go to school and break them out of the pot of poverty that holds them in. Kino suffers in a bid to escape poverty.

In his bid to escape and give his family a better life, Kino and Juana endure a difficult journey to the north. Kino had killed a man who tried to rob him of his pearl. They had to run. As they escape at night to avoid being caught, he is wary and cautious that they may be attacked by some animal. They walk all night. The sun is hot and the air is dry and hot. Nevertheless, Kino is determined to acquire a rifle, get married in a great church and take his son to school. When he realises that they are being pursued by the trackers, he panics and becomes hopeless and helpless. The journey also takes a toll on them. Juana gives the child water and he greedily sucks at it. Her ankles are cut and scratched by the stone and brush. Her face is tired while Kino’s lips are cracked. They struggle wearily up the slope and are utterly weary when they get to the pool. The baby is weary and petulant and cries softly. Kino drinks thirstily and long after the harrowing trek. That notwithstanding, Kino pays the biggest price when his son Coyotito is shot dead by a stray bullet. They returned to La Paz, utterly fatigued. They walk side by side, not in a file like before. Juana is as remote and as removed as heaven. Kino carries fear with him. They seem removed from human experience. They had gone through the pain and come out on the other side. They walk through the city as if it were not there, staring straight ahead. Kino and Juana move jerkily, like wooden dolls, carrying black pillars of fear with them. Kino feels immune and terrible. This was the pain of losing their son Coyotito, while trying to escape poverty. Surely poverty results in agony.

In conclusion, it is clear that lack of money is synonymous with unending misery. 

THE PEARL ESSAY QUESTION

Write a composition based on John Steinbeck's The Pearl to show how deceitful people take advantage of ignorance to cheat others.

Lack of knowledge is dangerous. Unprincipled individuals prey on ignorant people. Characters like the doctor and the priest in the pearl use their guile to cheat Kino who is unenlightened. 

Kino is cheated by the crafty pearl dealers since he does not know the true value of the pearl. Juan Tomas, Kino’s brother, cautions him to be careful lest the dealers cheat him. Kino admits that they do not know how much the pearls cost in other places and are thus ignorant of fair prices for their pearls (pg 67). When Kino finds the great pearl, he instinctively knows that it is valuable. His pearl is the greatest pearl in the world since it is as perfect as the moon, as large as a seagull's egg, and its shape is perfect (pg 37). The scheming pearl dealers collude to cheat Kino out of the true value of his pearl. The best and happiest pearl dealer is the one who buys for the lowest prices. Kino hopes to take his son to school, in a bid to enlighten his family and free himself from bondage of ignorance (pg 46) He values his pearl at 50, 000 pesos. The stout man offers to give him 1000 pesos taking advantage of his ignorance. He says the pearl is too large and clumsy. It is fool's gold and only a museum would take it. Kino cries that it is a pearl of great value. The greatest pearl in the world since no one has ever seen such a pearl. Kino’s face grows dark and dangerous since he feels cheated. The first dealer calls it a monstrosity, the second one says it is soft and chalky and the third one offers 500 pesos. Feeling cheated and helpless, Kino decides to try and sell it at the capital instead. That evening, Kino feels a lethargy and a little gray hopelessness. The dealers take advantage of Kino’s incomprehension to try and cheat him.

Secondly, the insincere doctor takes advantage of Kino’s ignorance to poison Coyotito in an effort to cheat Kino and get a fortune from the pearl. Kino hates the doctor and his race because of years of subjugation. When the doctor visits him, Kino informs him that the baby is nearly well now. The doctor plays on Kino's ignorance and tries to fool him on the supposed curious effect of the scorpion sting. After apparent improvement, the doctor informs Kino in a liquid tone, Coyotito could potentially suffer a withered leg, a blind eye or a crumpled back. Since Kino’s race loves and trusts tools of any craft, the doctor ensures that the guileless fellow can see his small black bag (pg 50). The doctor claims to know all about the scorpion sting and it’s cure. Kino on the other hand is trapped because of his certain ignorance. He cannot take a chance with Coyotito’s life. Kino knows that he will remain ignorant until they are enlightened and literate to comprehend what is in the books. The cunning doctor informs him that the poison had gone inside and would strike soon. He shows Kino Coyotito’s eyelid which is blue and since Kino lacks knowledge, the trap is set. The doctor poisons Coyotito using a white powder that is enclosed in a capsule of gelatin. The baby becomes terribly sick. The doctor returns after an hour to “treat” him. All along, his focus is on the pearl. He asks about the payment and when Kino mentions the pearl, he act surprised but offers to keep it for him lest it's stolen. Although Kino is wary of the doctor’s ulterior motive, the doctor manages to cheat him because of his ignorance.

The priest also exploits Kino’s ignorance to try and benefit from his newfound fortune. The Father considers Kino and his people children and treats them like children. He tells Kino that he is named after a great man and a great father of the church. Exploiting his lack of knowledge, the conniving priest makes this sound like a benediction - utterance of blessing. He adds that Kino’s namesake tamed the desert and sweetened the minds of his people. And to remove any iota of doubt from Kino's dubious but naïve mind, he cleverly adds that it is in the books. He knows that Kino is illiterate and cannot double check to ascertain whether these words are true. Kino also knows that he is ignorant. He hopes that someday Coyotito would know what things were in the books and what things were not. Before long, the cunning clergyman reveals his true purpose of the visit when he asks about Kino’s great fortune. He gasps a little when he sees the size and beauty of the pearl. He then reminds Kino and Juana to give thanks for their newfound fortune. His true intention is to try and benefit from Kino's pearl. He wonders what the pearl is worth, he thinks about repairs necessary to the church, and wonders whether he baptized Coyotito or married Kino for that matter. He also makes a sermon year in year out to discourage pearl fishers from pooling the pearls and selling them at the capital. Playing on their ignorance, he claims that God punishes any soldier who leaves their station. In reality, he only hopes to benefit from the pearls. Surely, ignorance allows people to manipulate us.

Lastly, the villagers feel that the pearl dealers cheat them because of their ignorance. The dealers fight for the lowest prices a fisherman could stand. The calculating men once lost when a despairing fisherman gave the pearls to the church. Taking advantage of the villagers' naïveté on the intricacies of pearl business, one buyer keeps many agents in several officers to create a semblance of competition. This is to avoid the extravagance of bidding against each other. The news of Kino’s pearl makes their eyes to squint and their fingers to burn at the prospect of cheating him and acquiring capital for themselves. The villagers don’t know that there is only one buyer with many hands. They do not know that the pearl buyers were not individuals competing against each other. Discussing about Kino's ordeal at the dealers' offices over a meal of corn-cakes and beans that evening, the neighbors admit their lack of comprehension. They know that the dealers know more about the value of the pearl than they. They don’t know that the dealers discussed beforehand. They foolishly think that all the three knew that the pearl is valueless. But if they had discussed, the villagers have been cheated all their lives. Kino tells Juan Tomas that the dealers are cheats and his brother concurs. He says that they are cheated right from birth to the overcharge on their coffins. Indeed, crafty people exploit lack of knowledge to fool others.

In conclusion, the assertion that deceitful people take advantage of people’s ignorance to deceive them is true. Kino and his people are disadvantaged because of their incomprehension versus the enlightened people’s knowledge .

MORE PRACTICE QUESTIONS ON THE PEARL

THE PEARL ESSAY QUESTION  "For it is said that humans are never satisfied, that you give them one thing and they want something more." Using clear illustrations from John Steinbeck’s  The Pearl , write an essay to validate this claim. (20 marks)      THE PEARL ESSAY QUESTION  Fate is a force beyond our control. Write an essay to validate this statement basing your argument on John Steinbeck’s  The Pearl . (20 Marks) THE PEARL ESSAY QUESTION  "It is not good to want a thing too much. It sometimes drives the luck away." How true in this in relation to  The Pearl  by John Steinbeck? (20 marks)     THE PEARL ESSAY QUESTION  Too much ambition leads to frustration. Write a composition to validate this statement with illustrations from the  The Pearl.  (20 Marks)  THE PEARL ESSAY QUESTION 

Too much ambition is often accompanied by misery. Write a composition to substantiate this claim, drawing your illustrations from John Steinbeck’s  The Pearl.  (20 Marks)

Click here for essays on Inheritance ,  A Doll's House ,  Memories we Lost , A Silent Song   and Blossoms of the Savannah . 

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218 comments:.

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i got a question tho in the first essay would you mind elaborating the point on the pearl buyers?? how do they seem to be something they are not??

Thanks for the feedback. Read the following page 42, 43, 64, 67, 69. There are many dealers but only one buyer. Creates a semblance of competition. They cheat Kino and other ignorant brush wood house dwellers. They appear friendly but are scheming.

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In times of crisis men tend to be guided by emotions while women remain realistic write an essay supporting this observation basing your illustrations on John steinbeck's text need help plz

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I have like the essay because I understood the pearl well.can I ask...Who do you blame for Kino’s demise?

Thanks for the feedback. I think you mean Coyotito's demise. We blame Kino for his imprudence, greed, obstinacy and failure to heed wise counsel/advise. The big question is, what moral do we learn from this?

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Is embodiment of reason the same as voice of reason

Is embodiment of reason the same as voice of reason?

A voice of reason is a person who gives sound/meaningful advice or wise counsel. Embodiment/ paragon/ epitome mean the perfect example of something.

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The Pearl Essay Examples

The theme of greed in the pearl by john steinbeck.

When wanting spirals into destruction, a family is broken apart, shattered by a rare discovery. A pearl that seems so pure, so innocent that it seems as if nothing evil can come from it. The Pearl by John Steinbeck appears to be a story about...

Literary Analysis of the Pearl by John Steinbeck

“Steinbeck illustrates the tragic consequences of the loss of that freedom of the spirit in The Pearl, expressing a profound sympathy for the individual and the community that suffers under such an oppressive system.” (Perkins). In The Pearl, John Steinbeck describes that he feels great...

Brutal Reality and Hardship: "The Pearl" by John Steinbeck

A lot of issues of the world rotate around the wealthy. In The Pearl, by John Steinbeck, he recounts the story of a couple and their child who experience the ill effects of the outcomes of needing. Subsequent to finding 'the pearl of the world,'...

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About The Pearl

John Steinbeck

United States, Mexico

The Pearl is a novella by the American author John Steinbeck. The story, first published in 1947, follows a pearl diver, Kino, and explores man’s purpose as well as greed, defiance of societal norms, and evil. Steinbeck's inspiration was a Mexican folk tale from La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico, which he had heard in a visit to the formerly pearl-rich region in 1940.

The pearl, The Scorpion, Kino’s Canoe

Nature Imagery, Kino’s Songs

Greed, Dreams and Ambition, Family, Money versus Happiness.

Kino, Juana, The doctor

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