Key Facts
Title: The Pearl
Author: John Steinbeck
Genre: Parable, allegory
Setting: La Paz (a Mexican coastal town), presumably on the Baja
Peninsula
Protagonist: Kino
Antagonist: Song of Evil, the scorpion, the doctor, the pearl, the
buyers, the assassins, Kino himself
Introduction
John Steinbeck was born and raised
in California at the beginning of the twentieth century. The son of a
schoolteacher, he was often read to from the great literary works of the
world—an education that prepared him for his vocation as a novelist.
Steinbeck’s first published work was
Cup of Gold in 1929 at just 27 years of age. He followed that work with
several more, showing just how prolific of a writer he actually was. In 1935,
he published Tortilla Flat, which caricatured the mythical knights of
King Arthur’s court by describing the adventures of a group of hooligans,
drifters, and riffraff in post-WWI California. Rather than a celebration of
virtue and honor, it was a celebration of lawlessness and intemperance that, however,
was found to be rather appealing in the midst of the dreariness of the Great
Depression.
Throughout the Depression, Steinbeck
studied the lives of common men and women and illustrated them in novels, often
rising to levels of great pathos, such as in The Grapes of Wrath (1939),
which chronicled the movements of migrant workers from Oklahoma to California
during that time.
A big influence on Steinbeck’s life
and career came in the form of his friend and business partner Ed Ricketts.
Rickets had an interest in marine biology and often invited Steinbeck on boat
trips along the Baja Peninsula. It was during one of these expeditions that
Steinbeck was inspired to write The Pearl, which was published in 1947.
Like all of Steinbeck’s works, The
Pearl focused on a group of people that he had gotten to know personally
and with whom he could relate. The struggles of Kino and Juana against an evil
that threatened to destroy them was a theme that appealed to the writer and one
that he could make his own. He also saw in the local narrative a kind of
allegory and modern-day parable suitable for his times.
For that reason, The Pearl
begins with an epigraph that doubles as a brief prologue and leads right into
the main narrative as though the story were the very parable which Steinbeck
had heard during his expeditions. Although The Pearl is only a novella,
it highlights the struggles of the common man to lead a noble and good life in
the face of temptation, trickery, greed, deception, and attempted murder. These
were themes that would occupy Steinbeck for the whole of his career. Indeed,
upon his reception of the Nobel Prize for literature in 1962, Steinbeck
reported that writers who did not believe in the perfectibility of man had no
business writing. It was Steinbeck’s belief that man’s destiny was to strive
continually toward the good and to hold onto it once it was attained.
In The Pearl, Kino begins the
novel thoroughly possessed of the good. However, with the entrance of the
pearl, Kino’s goodness is tested and ultimately strengthened—but only after a
fall, as it were, from paradise.
Cast of Characters
Kino—The central figure of the narrative, Kino is the young
Mexican Indian who finds the pearl of the world. Content and happy with life
before the pearl, Kino falls under the evil spell of the pearl and begins a
determined course of action that results in the death of his child.
Juana—She is Kino’s young wife (although the two have not
had the marriage witnessed by the priest). She is obedient, loyal, and loving
to Kino. However, when she realizes that the pearl is a threat to her family,
she tries to get rid of it herself. This action sends Kino into a violent rage.
She is strong, courageous, and never vindictive or resentful—even when beaten.
Coyotito—He is Kino and Juana’s infant son. At the
beginning of the narrative, he is stung by a scorpion. This event introduces
the concept of evil into the narrative. His illness drives the parents to seek
the assistance of the doctor (even though Juana seems to know already of a
remedy that is sufficient to restore her baby’s health). Coyotito’s illness,
however, also inspires the parents to seek their treasure in the sea. His death
(at the hands of assassins) prompts the parents to return the pearl to the sea.
His death is also foreshadowed by his very name, which means “coyote” in
Spanish. His cries at the end of the novella are mistaken for a coyote, which
prompts the tracker to fire his rifle.
Juan Thomas—Juan is Kino’s brother in the fishing village.
He is older and seemingly wiser than Kino. He advises Kino to part with the
pearl, but only after he sees the evil that the pearl inspires in men. Earlier,
however, he supports Kino in his attempt not to be cheated by the buyers.
Afterward, his common sense tells him that selling the pearl for any price is
better than keeping it.
Apolonia—She is Juan’s fat wife. She helps Juan keep the
whereabouts of Kino and Juana a secret after their hut burns down.
The doctor—The doctor is both a classist and a racist. He
refuses to treat Kino’s child when he learns that Kino has no money, yet when
he learns that Kino has found a great pearl, he comes personally to Kino’s hut.
However, since the baby is already better, the doctor deliberately makes the
baby ill again so that he can return with a curative and give Kino a bill.
There is some suggestion that the doctor may be involved in the later attempts
to rob Kino of his pearl.
The buyers—The buyers only pretend to be in competition
with one another. In reality, they all work for the same man. Together they
attempt to drive the prices down so that they can purchase pearls more cheaply
from the fisherman. They offend Kino with their offers, and he refuses to sell
his pearl to them. It is also speculated that they (or their servants) are the
ones who later try to kill Kino and steal his pearl.
The priest—The priest shows little interest or concern in
the spiritual lives of his flock in the fishing village. He does not even know
if he has baptized Coyotito or, for that matter, married Kino and Juana.
Nonetheless, when he hears they have discovered a pearl, he heads straight for
their house and reminds them to give thanks to their Holy Father by
(presumably) giving alms to the Church.
The assassins—The assassins arrive throughout the course of
the night, each time engaging in a violent struggle with Kino, who continually
has to ward them off. Finally, when his canoe is smashed and his hut is burned
to the ground, Kino makes off through the mountains. Three pursuers follow, and
Kino is forced to kill them. One of the assassins, however, unintentionally
kills Kino’s baby by way of a stray bullet.
Plot Summary
Kino, together with his wife Juana and infant son Coyotito, live a happy and
peaceful life in a fishing village on the coast of Mexican town. Kino is
content and takes part in the Song of the Family, a kind of mystical music that
includes all the good things in his life. That song, however, is threatened by
the appearance of the Song of Evil, first represented by the scorpion which
stings and wounds Coyotito.
To re-establish the peace, Kino and Juana seek the assistance of the doctor,
but he represents the second kind of evil in the story—the evil found in man.
The doctor is a hypocrite who loves only money and comfort and despises those
who are different from and beneath him. He refuses to help the baby primarily,
however, because Kino has no money to pay for his services.
So, Juana and Kino turn to the sea in hopes of finding a pearl that will
induce the doctor to help them. Meanwhile, Juana resorts to the ancient methods
of healing that her people have passed down to her. She prepares a poultice of
seaweed that helps heal Coyotito. As one evil is turned back, however, another
comes to replace it—and this is the evil of the pearl, whose power is far more
dangerous because it is so deceptive and seductive.
This pearl is found by Kino in a large oyster. The whole town seems to know
about the discovery as fast as the wind can fly. Those who have ignored Kino
now present themselves to him. The priest comes, and so does the doctor.
Neither is really concerned about anything other than the pearl.
The pearl causes Kino to dream and plan for a future that he did not think
of before. He wants to sell the pearl for a great price, but the buyers refuse
to give him what he wants. He angrily rebukes them and threatens to go to the
capitol himself to sell the pearl. That night, assassins come to rob Kino. He
is able to ward off the first attack. This attack, however, causes Juana to
sense the evil of the pearl, and she steals it in an attempt to return it to
the sea. Kino chases her and then beats her and returns to the hut. Afterward,
he himself is jumped and loses the pearl on the ground. He also kills one of
the attackers. Juana finds the pearl, but seeing that Kino has killed a man,
she no longer has the heart to throw it away; instead, she sees that their old
life is gone forever and that now they must go forward with the pearl. She
returns it to Kino.
They go back to their hut, but it has been set on fire. They hide in Kino’s
brother’s hut, and then set out on foot at night toward Loreto. Trackers follow
them into the mountains. Kino engages them in a struggle. Kino kills the
trackers, but the baby Coyotito is killed by a stray bullet.
Kino and Juana return to their town with their dead son and the pearl. They
walk to the shore, and Kino hurls the pearl back into the sea, where it
belongs.
Kino
Kino—Kino is the main character in the parable that
Steinbeck relates to the reader. He is a young husband, a descendant of generations
of fishermen and pearl divers. Kino lives an uncomplicated life and appreciates
the harmony that surrounds him, from the way the sun rises each day to the
simple satisfaction given by a regular and ordinary breakfast prepared by his
young wife. All of these things rouse in him the notes of what Steinbeck calls
the Song of the Family. It links Kino to his ancestors, who knew many songs; it
also links him to the harmony found in nature and to a spiritual harmony that
he seems to have found (with little thanks to the priest).
Kino’s problems arise when he breaks from the traditions he knows to be good
and true. This break comes when the Song of Evil is introduced into his life by
the scorpion, which stings his young child Coyotito. Kino, rather than trusting
in the medicine of his people, allows himself to be led by the emotional
reaction of his wife, who convinces him that the only cure for Coyotito can
come from the town doctor—who, of course, wants a hefty payment for such
services. Kino dives for a great pearl in the hope of paying off the doctor—and
finds one. However, this pearl is a destroyer, not a healer, and it seduces
Kino even further from his Song of the Family by inspiring him to compose a
song that is a dream. This new dream song that Kino composes suppresses his
original song of the family. The problem is that the dream song of the pearl is
like a siren song, and it is capable of inspiring great evil in the form of
greed and delusion.
Kino pursues the ends promised by the pearl to the detriment of his own
family. He beats Juana when she tries to take action against the pearl’s evil
influence. He kills (in self-defense) four men who try to steal the pearl from
him, and he loses his baby in the fighting. Kino is poorer at the end of the parable
of the pearl than he was at the beginning—all because he sacrificed his Song of
the Family and his traditions for the deceptive song of the pearl.
Juana
Juana—Juana is Kino’s young wife. She is far more intuitive
than Kino, who only gradually comes to understand the evil power of the
pearl—and only gives it up after he has paid a great price for trying to profit
from it. Juana often acts in the best interest of the family; for example, she
is quick to suck the poison from Coyotito’s shoulder, whereas Kino simply vents
his anger and frustration by destroying the evil. Juana is a practical woman.
She also sees that the pearl is a magnet for evil and attempts to return it to
the sea—but her reward is to be beaten for it. She also never even thinks of abandoning
Kino even when he beats her and even though he is possessed by the evil of
pearl. She knows that their lives are united in one and that she will follow
him, even if he will lead them to their destruction.
However, it is Juana who also first inspires the break from tradition.
Rather than appeal first to the ancient medicinal customs of the village, she
insists that they must see the “official” doctor. This is a mistake because the
doctor has no better medicine than what the sea itself can give in the form of
a seaweed poultice. Juana turns to the sea after the doctor denies them, but by
that point, she has already inspired her husband to dive for a pearl that will
convince the doctor to help them. Juana is not led by reason in her break from
tradition, but rather by an emotional appeal to authority. She mistrusts the
authority of generations that have surely dealt with scorpion stings before.
Still, it is Juana who best symbolizes devotion, even if it is a devotion
that is partly mixed of the old and the new, the true and the false. She falls
for the deception of the doctor, but also understands the practicality of the
traditional. She prays to the Holy Virgin, but also mutters magical spells that
she thinks may work. She is a mixture of paganism and Christianity, of old
traditions and a longing for novelty—but in the end, she too returns to the
village with Kino, sadder and poorer but wiser and stronger.
Chapter 1-Chapter 3
Chapter 1
After a brief prologue in which Steinbeck likens the tale of the pearl to a
parable into which men may read their own lives, the author begins the
narrative. The primary characters are introduced: They are Kino, his wife
Juana, and their baby Coyotito. Their lives on the Baja Peninsula are simply
and somewhat idyllically painted by Steinbeck .
Steinbeck describes their abode as simple and humble—a typical Mexican
Indian fishing village. The family lives a life full of habit and routine.
Kino, the young hero of the novel, is satisfied with this life and with his
young wife and their young baby. Kino watches the sun rise, eats his simple
breakfast of cornmeal and juice (same as always), and sighs with satisfaction.
The image, of course, is characteristically utopian. Kino and his wife and
child exist in a kind of garden paradise. That paradise, however, is about to
be intruded upon by an outside evil. It makes its appearance first in the shape
of nature—the scorpion; then in the shape of materialism—the pearl; and then in
the shape of man himself—the doctor, the buyers, and the assassins.
Steinbeck calls Kino’s paradise the Song of the Family. Kino, his wife and
baby, the world around him, the sun, the air—all of it takes part in this
happy, peaceful song. That song, however, is interrupted by the Song of Evil,
manifested by the appearance of the scorpion, which creeps down the rope of the
hanging basket in which Coyotito is lying. Both Kino and Juana are startled out
of their beautiful song. Juana whispers magic and says a Hail Mary to ward off
the imminent danger (an illustration of the mixture of religion and
superstition present in the village life). Kino springs into action but cannot
stop the scorpion before the baby shakes the rope, causing the scorpion to fall
and sting the child on the shoulder.
Kino snatches the scorpion, grinds it to a pulp in his hands, and smashes it
into the ground. Juana tries to suck the poison out of the baby’s wound. Kino
is astonished at her strength and equanimity.
The neighbors hear the baby’s screams and come running. Juana asks them to
fetch the doctor—a scorpion sting can be deadly for infants.
Unfortunately, the doctor cares more about tending to the rich upper class.
The people assure Kino that the doctor will not come. Juana tells them that
they will then go to him.
Juana and Kino are followed by all of their neighbors into the center of
town. Among the neighbors are Kino’s brother Juan Thomas and his “fat wife
Apolonia.” The procession grows with more and more additions as it passes the
church. The beggars join out of curiosity and because it is a “slow” morning.
The beggars are described as great students of human nature, having nothing
more to do than sit and see the faces of the penitents who come and go for
confession. A reference is made to the callousness, foolishness, and cruelty of
the doctor.
Kino hesitates at the doctor’s house because he knows that the doctor is not
of his people but belongs to the race that has “beaten and starved and robbed
and despised Kino’s race” for hundreds of years. In fact, Kino would sooner
kill the doctor than ask for his help. Still, the baby is in need, so he
knocks.
A servant answers, and the message of need is relayed to the doctor. The
doctor wants to know if Kino has money. He also likens the Indians to animals
and tells his servant that he is a doctor, not a veterinarian.
All Kino has by way of payment are some poorly formed pearls. The doctor
will not take the payment, and the servant shuts the gate on Kino and the
throng. Kino is stunned. Then he smashes the gate so hard with his fist that
his knuckles bleed.
This chapter, along with the introductory prologue, establishes the mood and
context of the story: It is about simple and decent people (Kino and his wife
and child) whose bliss is shattered by the presence of evil. The evil appears
in the likeness of the scorpion. Yet it is quickly revealed that the evil is
also present in man, too, and particularly the doctor. The doctor is a classist
and a racist. He is also a miser and is unashamed to deny medicine to a child
in danger of death. His lack of goodness compels Kino to strike out angrily,
but his way back to happiness and the Song of the Family is no closer at hand:
His way is blocked by the shutting of the doctor’s gate. A new way will have to
be found.
Chapter 2
This chapter begins with a description of the beach of the fishing village
and the way that some points along the coast may be visibly discerned in detail
while other points appear hazy and like a mirage. Steinbeck assumes that this
accounts for the religiosity of the people and why they will trust more to the
things they believe in their imaginations than to the things that they are able
to see. Sight often proves deceptive, and this theme of deception will be
explored through the finding of the pearl and all that it can possibly offer.
The narrative resumes with Kino and Juana taking to the beach and to Kino’s
canoe, which is noted as being his sole possession in the entire world. This
poverty of substance and of spirit will contrast sharply with the temptation of
riches and comfort that the pearl introduces into their lives. The canoe also
has a generational value: It has been passed down from his grandfather and is
thus a possession that Kino desires to preserve, which he does with the
shell-like plaster he applies to it.
Juana makes a poultice out of seaweed and applies it to Coyotito’s wound.
Steinbeck describes this medicine as better than any the doctor could likely
have produced. This begs the question of why Juana even thought it necessary to
consult the doctor at all. A simple villager would seem to understand that
nature’s medicine is the best. Such distrust of nature’s remedies is part of
the modern Western world, but Kino and Juana do not belong to such a world;
therefore, one wonders at Steinbeck’s inclusion of the scene with the doctor.
Yet, in the novel, the doctor represents another aspect of the evil that
Steinbeck desires to examine: He is a foil to the simple goodness of Kino and
Juana. His introduction may be contrived and the result of a projection of the
author’s own feelings onto an incident, but for the overall structure of the
battle between good and evil, humble simplicity and rich charlatanism, the
doctor appears to be necessary.
Thus, when Juana is described as not praying for the recovery of the baby
but that Kino might find a pearl of great price with which to hire the doctor,
it is only so that this battle may be explored. In reality, it is unlikely that
a simple villager would participate and practice in all of the traditional
wisdom handed down by generations except in the restoration of health.
Steinbeck explains this inconsistency by stating that “the minds of people are
as unsubstantial as the mirage of the Gulf.” Juana’s prayer might also be
understood as a lack of faith in tradition and a as false trust in the power of
wealth, progress, and modern medicine.
The creation of the pearl, which is found in an oyster, is then described by
the author. It begins as a grain of sand that acts as an irritant to the
oyster, which coats the grain of sand again and again with a layer of smooth
cement. Pearl divers for centuries, Steinbeck tells the reader, have been
searching for these treasures. The pearl is described as a gift from God or the
gods or both, a cryptic assertion that points to the nature of belief in Steinbeck’s
own time, where knowledge of the supernatural appears to be a mesh of both
Christian and pagan lore.
The creation of the pearl also serves as a metaphor for the creation of vice
in man. It begins as just a small, single grain of sin, a little irritant, but
then grows and grows until it becomes a habit or an obsession. This is seen in
the doctor who obsesses over wealth and fantasizes about the luxuries of Paris.
It is also to be seen later in Kino himself as he falls deeper and deeper into
his own dream of what the pearl might afford him.
As he dives, Kino now sings the Song of the Pearl That Might Be. It is a
song of good hope, yet of ill portent. Just as with the scorpion, Juana’s
prayers are described as magical incantations rather than Hail Marys. Kino’s
song, too, contends with the Song of the Undersea.
When Kino ascends, both he and his wife practice a kind of mystical show of
respect to God or the gods (again illustrating the ambiguous mixture of pagan
and Christian belief). Finally, however, Juana encourages Kino to open the
great oyster that he has found—and inside is the great pearl, perfect in shape
and formation. It is the size of a seagull’s egg.
As though the pearl has powers of healing, Juana bends over Coyotito and
discovers that the swelling has gone down and that the poison has receded.
Rather than attribute it to the poultice, however, the two seem to sense that
the great pearl has delivered them from evil. Kino’s fist closes jealously over
the pearl, and he howls with delight.
In this chapter, the pearl is introduced as a great good and an object to be
desired. It is, however, a deception: It promises health, and appears to
deliver, but really it is the poultice—the traditional medicine of the
people—that helps cure the baby (that, and Juana’s prudent and initial sucking
out of the poison). Yet, the hopes and dreams of not only Kino and Juana but of
people for centuries have been tied up in the search of the costly pearl of
great price. The true pearl of great price, however, is found in the simple and
humble lifestyle and tradition that Kino and Juana are part of. The pearl is
actually a temptation away from that, as the following chapters will
illustrate.
Chapter 3
The whole town seems to hear of the pearl faster than word can even spread.
Everyone begins to think of how it might benefit himself or herself—the priest,
the shopkeepers, the beggars, the doctor. The pearl is repeatedly referred to
as the Pearl of the World. This title may be assumed to have an allegorical
significance. The pearl is akin to worldliness, to the here and now, to
pleasure, comfort, security, or material gain. It causes the doctor to dream of
past romances and French wine in Paris. It causes the beggars to dream of alms.
It causes the shopkeepers to dream of sales. It causes the priest to dream of
alms and stipends. The pearl unites them all in a kind of web of selfishness
and greed, or, as Steinbeck writes: “The news stirred up something infinitely
black and evil in the town,” and a comparison is drawn between it and the
scorpion. The pearl, in other words, is the same evil as the scorpion, just
manifested in a different appearance—a far more seductive appearance.
Kino and Juana, however, are ignorant of the power of the pearl. Their
innocence protects them from its power for the time being. They are happy. The
pearl merges with the music that Kino sings in his mind. His brother, Juan
Thomas, asks what he will do now that he is rich. Kino looks into the pearl
like he is looking into a crystal ball and dreams of a future with Juana. He
answers that now that they have money, they will be married in the church.
Steinbeck seems to imply that poverty kept them from being married properly,
but this idea is never explored or developed. Steinbeck seems to suggest that
the priest is as corrupt as the doctor and will not exercise his spiritual
duties unless paid handsomely for them. This idea, however, is only implied.
Perhaps it is that Kino has simply stayed away from the church out of shame. At
any rate, Kino looks into the pearl and dreams of other things he might now
acquire: a harpoon, a rifle, a wedding dress for Juana, and an outfit from the
United States for his boy. The neighbors all seem to see into his dreams as
well. The pearl has a powerful hold on them all.
Kino imagines that the pearl will enable his son to go to school. Juana
watches him excitedly, as do the neighbors. Later, they recall that it was then
that madness overtook Kino and that God punished him for his foolish words.
The priest comes to visit Kino and Juana. When he arrives, the good music
goes out of Kino’s mind, and he begins to hear the evil music. The priest
invites Kino to remember to give thanks for his finding of the pearl. Then he
departs.
That night, Kino reflects that he had made plans for the future and that
this displeased the gods. Kino is obviously not as orthodox as perhaps the
priest suspects. His superstition entreats him to withdraw from his foolish
plans and visions, for it is disrespectful to the gods, who only like success
for men when it comes by accident. They are angered by men who make their own
success. Yet, Kino knew now that he could not unmake the plans he had already
made. Thus, he decides to protect himself against all that the gods might throw
at him: “Kino was already making a hard skin for himself against the world. His
eyes and his mind probed for danger before it appeared.” The pearl has taken
over Kino.
Next to arrive are the doctor and his servant. The doctor makes up an excuse
for why he was unable to see Kino’s child that morning. Kino is angered and
tells the doctor that the baby is better now. The doctor tricks Kino into
thinking that the poison can come back, and Kino’s anger turns into fear. So,
Kino lets the doctor treat the baby.
The doctor, however, simply makes the baby sicker by giving it some white
powder. That way, he can return later and really “cure” the baby and justify
billing Kino for his troubles. This happens exactly as he plans. The baby
becomes sicker, and the neighbors all see it as the universe balancing out
Kino’s good luck with bad. The doctor returns to cure the baby and feigns
ignorance about the knowledge of Kino’s pearl.
The doctor watches Kino’s eyes, and when he warns Kino that the pearl might
not be safe in his hut, he sees Kino glance in the direction of where he has
hidden the pearl. Then the doctor departs. Kino is troubled by evil music.
Juana asks him what he fears, and he replies, “Everyone.”
Kino goes to sleep but is awakened in the night by the sound of something
intruding into his hut. Kino is infuriated and leaps at the intruder in the
dark, slashing at him with his knife. A blow is landed on Kino’s head, and the
intruder escapes. Juana tends to Kino and produces a consecrated candle, which
she lights, again displaying her belief in the power of the divine. She seems
to understand now that the pearl is not good. “The thing is evil,” she says.
She likens it to sin and tells Kino that it will destroy them. She begs him to
throw it away.
Kino, however, will not give up the dream. He says that Coyotito must go to
school. The life that they lead is not good enough for him. He must have more.
As dawn approaches, Kino sees the light glimmering in the pearl. He also sees
the reflection of the candle in its surface. He hears the good music once more.
In this chapter, Kino shows that he has fallen under the spell of the pearl,
just like all the others in the town. His simple life no longer contents him.
He says that he is afraid of everyone, but now he must also fear himself, for
he has made plans for his own future, in spite of what Fate or the gods or
Providence might have in mind. He knows that this is dangerous, but he cannot
help himself. The power of the pearl transfixes him.
Juana, on the other hand, realizes that the pearl has evil power. She
realizes this because an intruder comes into her family to rob them and her
husband is injured. As a protector of her nest and of her family, she sees that
the pearl is something that draws those who will not stop at destruction in
order to obtain the pearl. She would rather abandon the pearl than abandon her
family. Kino, however, has bound his family to the pearl in his dreams. The two
cannot be separated now.
Chapter 4-Chapter 6
Chapter 4
This chapter begins with a description of the way a town functions. When
every unit—every man, woman, and child—operates according to custom, then the
town goes peacefully on its way. On the other hand, when one unit steps out of
the ordinary and does something different, all of the parts of the town sense
it and communicate to the whole. This is the case with Kino when he decides to
sell his pearl. Everyone knows about it and feels it, from the altar boys at
mass to the Chinese grocery store owners.
Then a description of pearl buying is given. In the old days, the pearl
buyers competed against each other so that the fisherman could receive a good
price. Now, though, there is only one pearl buyer who exercises a monopoly over
the trade. This one buyer has many hands who are all acting on his behalf.
Thus, each “buyer” is acting in conjunction with one another so as to pay the
lowest price possible. This arrangement does not bode well for the fisherman.
The neighbors, meanwhile, talk among themselves and imagine what Kino might
do with the pearl. Some speculate that he will give it as a gift to the Holy
Father, while others suppose that he will sell it and distribute the wealth
among the poor. All hope that the pearl does not change Kino’s character. They,
too, sense that power and wealth are dangerous enticements. They seem to be
aware of the pearl’s evil; they like Kino and do not want him to be destroyed
by it.
Kino and Juana set off to the market with the neighbors following to see
what will happen. Kino wears his hat tilted aggressively forward. Steinbeck
notes that much can be told from the way a man wears his hat.
Juan Thomas reminds Kino that he must be sure not to be cheated. He tells
the story of the old days when the men sent their pearls off with a seller whom
they trusted to get better prices for them in the capital, but from whom they
never heard again. Kino admits it was a good idea in theory but that in reality
it did not work well. Then Kino reminds Juan Thomas of the priest’s sermon,
which he makes every year—that it is every man’s duty to protect that part of
the universe in which God has stationed him.
The first buyer offers Kino a thousand pesos. Kino protests that it is worth
50 thousand. The buyer complains that the pearl is too large and would not
easily sell on the market, that it would only be bought, perhaps, as a
curiosity by a museum and placed in a collection of seashells. The crowd
grumbles at the buyer’s offer, and the buyer (cool and collected until now)
feels a sensation of fear. He calls for the other appraisers to support him.
The crowd, however, admits that the pearl does have a strange color and that
they have been suspicious of it from the start. They reflect that a thousand
pesos is more than Kino had yesterday, which was nothing, and that perhaps he
ought to accept it. Still, Kino is adamant. He senses evil all around him and
is determined to get what he feels he deserves.
Three new dealers arrive. The first dismisses the pearl as a monstrosity and
says that he does not want it. The second dealer analyzes it and says that it
will die shortly and lose its color. The third offers 500 pesos. Kino snatches
the pearl from them and says he will go to the capital himself. The dealers
become nervous. The initial buyer ups his offer to 1500 pesos, but Kino leaves
them.
The town discusses Kino’s actions. Some say he has cut off his own head by
refusing their offers. Others are impressed by Kino’s courage and are proud of
him. Kino, meanwhile, broods in his hut. He feels that he has lost one world
and not gained another. He is in a kind of limbo. He is afraid.
Juan Thomas visits. He tells Kino that he has defied not just the buyers but
an entire structure and that he is afraid for his brother. He says he is
voyaging into new territory. He does not know what will happen. Kino
acknowledges as much, but he still insists that he must try. Juan Thomas tells
him to “go with God.” Kino repeats the admonition and feels a strange
sensation.
That evening, an assassin tries to kill Kino outside the hut in the dark.
Juana rushes out to help fend off the killer. By the time she gets there, Kino
is alone on the ground. His face is cut and he is bleeding, but he is still
alive. Juana begs Kino to throw the pearl in the sea, where it belongs. She
says again that it is evil and will destroy them all. Kino, however, says that
he is a man and that he will defeat the evil.
In this chapter, the attempt to sell the pearl is met with deception on the
part of the buyers. They conspire to undermine the seller, for they all work
for one man above them. Kino cannot obtain a fair price, so he elects to
override the buyers by going directly to the capital himself. This is an
unprecedented move, however. Kino’s brother seems to echo the fear of Juana,
which is that this pearl will bring trouble. Perhaps, after all, it is better
to accept the offer of the buyers. Nonetheless, Kino is determined to see the
pearl sold for a great price, regardless of the consequences.
Chapter 5
In the middle of the night, Kino wakes up to find Juana leaving the hut. He
follows her as she moves toward the beach. She hears him and breaks into a run.
She intends to throw the pearl into the sea. He catches her, hits her in the
face, and kicks her in the side. He is enraged and murderous. She is not
afraid. He takes the pearl from her and turns his back on her, disgusted that
she should try to rob him of his new dream.
As he walks back to the hut, he is attacked once more by assassins. In the
struggle, he kills one of the men. The pearl, meanwhile, rolls away from him,
and he thinks it is lost. However, Juana has emerged from the brush and found
the pearl. She also sees that a man is dead and that they cannot return to the
old peace of their life. Now they must flee, so she returns the pearl to Kino.
They pack their things and go to depart in Kino’s canoe.
They find that a hole has been put in Kino’s canoe. This is worse than
killing man; this is killing his past, his work, his inheritance. Kino does not
even think to take one of his neighbor’s canoes. Such an action would be
indecent. He heads back to the hut, only to find that it has been set on fire.
Daylight is beginning to show, so Kino draws his family into the shade; he is
afraid of the light. He heads for his brother’s hut and asks Juan Thomas to
hide them. Juan Thomas tells him that there is a devil in the pearl and that
maybe he could still sell it, but Kino, insulted by the destruction of his
canoe and home, ignores the admonition.
The neighbors speculate about what has happened to Kino and Juana, but Juan
Thomas and his wife Apolonia cover for them and do not give their whereabouts
away. In the evening, Juan Thomas bids Kino and Juana farewell. He tells Kino
that even now men are looking for him, and that he should steer clear of the
shore. He tells him to “go with God” again, but this time it is like a death
sentence. He asks whether Kino will give up the pearl. Kino says that the pearl
has become his soul and that if he loses it, he will lose his soul.
In this chapter, Kino shows that he has traded over his formerly contented
soul for a soul of dreams. He has lost his faith and confidence in the old Song
of the Family. He has struck his wife and lost his canoe, which was his
livelihood. Now the pearl is everything to him, even though he knows that it is
his misfortune to bear. Should he lose the pearl, however, the despair will be
too much for him. He is afraid of facing a world without his old song and with
no dreams to replace it. He will see the adventure of the pearl through to the
bitter end.
Chapter 6
Kino and Juana head through town in the direction of Loreto. An allusion is
made to a miracle involving the mother of Christ. Some of the old world still
exists, and it is toward this idea that Kino and Juana head. Their journey has
now become like a journey back to the good they once possessed. Unfortunately,
as long as they are possessed by the pearl, they cannot reach that old world.
Kino is operating according to a primal spirit of survival.
In his mind he hears the music of pearl, and below it plays the melody of
the family. As they go on, however, the music of the pearl becomes sinister to
him. He sees Juana’s beaten face, and he hides the pearl in his clothing.
Trackers arrive, and Kino panics. In his desperation, he runs with Juana and
the baby for the mountains. There is no water here, and it is a symbolic point
that the author makes. In abandoning the sea, they have abandoned grace and the
old world. Now they must climb a rocky and barren path while evil pursues them.
Without grace, Kino loses courage and even contemplates whether it is better to
let himself be caught. He is in despair. He knows they will find the pearl.
Still, they push onward. He does not attempt to cover his tracks as he did
previously. Kino hears the evil music loudly in his ears.
Kino tells Juana to take the baby and head north toward Loreto and that he
will catch up with them once he loses the trackers, but she refuses to abandon
him.
They reach a tiny spring in the mountain, which gives them a chance to drink
and rest. Night falls, and Kino waits for the trackers to approach. Finally, he
sees a match flare in the distance. Its light reveals three men: two asleep,
and one on watch. Kino plans to attack the watcher and get his rifle. Juana
tells him to “go with God.”
As Kino crawls out of the cave where Juana and the baby are hiding, his wife
utters Hail Marys and ancient magic, again combining the pagan with the
Christian. Kino, meanwhile, is driven by the Song of the Family in his ears;
this song is compelling him to defend himself from the evil of the trackers.
The baby’s cries suddenly make the men alert. They cannot tell if it is a
coyote or a human baby. The watcher fires the rifle, anyway. Kino attacks him
with his knife, takes the rifle, strikes another man in the head with its butt,
and then aims at the third, who is attempting to escape. Kino fires and kills
him.
Now a new signal tries to capture Kino’s attention. His head clears, and he
recognizes the sound—it is a moan coming from the cave. It is a moan of death.
Steinbeck flashes forward to the return of Kino and Juana and their
reception back in the town of La Paz. The author describes their return: Kino
carrying the rifle, and Juana carrying her shawl like a sack. In it is the dead
Coyotito.
Their expressions are formed by their journey through pain and suffering. Having
come out at the other end, they now seem to be surrounded by a magical
protection, as though all human experience were removed from them. In Kino’s
ears is the Song of the Family—but now it is like a battle cry.
They walk straight to the sea. Kino takes out the pearl and hears its insane
music. He holds it out, but Juana declines his invitation to throw it. He
himself flings it into the sea with all of his might. The pearl catches the
light of the setting sun, glinting as it flies through the air. It plunges into
the deep and disappears in the cloud of sand, kicked up by a crab. The music of
the pearl also disappears.
In this chapter, the tale is concluded. The music of the pearl is like the
siren song, meant to lure Odysseus and his ship into the rocks so that they
might crash and die. Kino does not learn this lesson, however, until his own
son is killed by the bullet set lose by the trackers. In all, five have died
because of the pearl—and no one has gotten any richer. What the pearl promised,
it did not deliver. It was merely in the vain imagination of Kino. Had he and
Juana simply trusted the old ways and customs and not deviated from what they
knew, they would have had no need for the pearl. They would not have even felt
the desire to look for it. Their sole intention, after all, was to find a pearl
that would allow them to afford the doctor for Coyotito. Yet all along, the sea
had the solution for that: The seaweed poultice helped heal the child better
than the doctor could. The pearl was vanity. Believing in it, Juana and Kino
lost what was most precious to them—their baby, their way of life (Kino’s
canoe), their home, and their past. In the end, they had to choice but to
return the pearl to the sea. Only then could they possibly attempt to rebuild their
life on the coast.
Symbols and Themes
The Pearl—The pearl represents evil in its most destructive
form by masquerading as good. The pearl at first represents hope, health, and
prosperity for Kino and his family. However, it also inspires greed in the less
noble. Moreover, it follows on the heels of the other two evils already
introduced into the story by way of the scorpion and the doctor. Both the
scorpion and the doctor seem to work in conjunction to draw Kino away from the
peace he knows through traditional living. Inevitably, the pearl pushes Kino
over the edge into a world governed by fancy, whim, and force of will. As
others try to force their will onto Kino through manipulation, deception, or by
outright theft and/or violence, Kino must struggle to keep from being
overwhelmed by the dream that the pearl has granted him. The pearl is evil
because it destroys by way of seduction: It convinces the bearer of it that his
wildest dreams will come true, yet all the pearl is really worth is whatever the
next buyer is willing to give for it.
The pearl is also a metaphor for the creation of sin or vice in man. Just as
the pearl starts off as a grain of sand in the mouth of an oyster, man starts
out with grain of evil within him. This evil may be ambiguous and undefined,
but it is there in Kino and Juana and their lack of faith and trust in their
traditions. As their faith is placed more and more in the dreams inspired by
the pearl, their own sins grow—just as the pearl grows in the oyster, coated
over and over again with more and more layers that are meant to soothe the
irritation but, of course, only add to it.
The Sea—The sea is seen as both a healer and a destroyer.
It yields the right medicine for Coyotito, but it also produces storms that can
destroy life. Its fruits, such as oysters and pearls, can sustain the
villagers, but sometimes it offers fruits that are more harmful than helpful,
such as Kino’s pearl. What is required in dealing with the sea is prudence and
moderation. When Juana abandons the sea’s ointments in favor of the doctor’s,
she unwittingly sets the family on a path of destruction. When Kino abandons
the sea for the mountains (in an attempt to escape from his pursuers), he
inadvertently leads his family into a death trap. The lesson is to accept the
good that the sea gives, but beware the evil that sometimes lurks behind the
good, hoping to snare the righteous.
The Canoe—The canoe represents Kino’s livelihood and
tradition. Handed down to him from his grandfather, the canoe has been protected
from wear and tear by constant application of a traditionally produced coating.
The coating itself is a symbol of the villagers’ adherence to helpful customs.
When the canoe is smashed, it symbolizes Kino’s own departure from custom—his
departure from the custom of trusting in nature’s remedies, his departure from
the custom of selling to the buyers in town, and his departure from his custom
of simple living.
Tradition—Tradition plays a major role in The Pearl.
The very story itself is set up as a parable, which is an ancient form of
narrative used to convey important morals and/or teachings. Thus, The Pearl
is founded in a literary style that is itself highly traditional. Tradition,
furthermore, is embedded into the plot. It is tradition that is most important
to Kino and his life with his family on the beach. Every morning is like the
last, and he is content. However, there are within Kino the signs of deviation
from tradition; for example, he has not married in the church, as custom
prescribes. The reason is unclear, but it is said to have something to do with
money. Then, with Coyotito’s illness, Kino and Juana depart further from
tradition by seeking the assistance of the doctor who is known only to assist
the upper classes. This is an extraordinary action on their part, and once
again, the reason is unclear. Nevertheless, their initial departure from the
traditional methods of dealing with scorpion stings propels them onward to the
pearl, which completely upturns Kino’s life as he ignores all traditional
prudence, asserts his own will, and trusts in his own strength and manliness.
He is strong and manly, as is demonstrated, but these virtues are not enough to
sustain him against the evil that follows the pearl.
The Song of the Family—This is the song that Kino sings
when he is in harmony with tradition and with God (or the gods—as the author
himself points out, illustrating the ambiguous nature of Kino’s stance with
regard to the eternal). The Song of the Family is a product of the ancient
songs the elders sang in the past; here it is Kino’s song, and it includes all
that is good in life. It is the song that he lives for, and it is this song
that the pearl ultimately displaces, even as it promises to make the Song of
the Family even better. The real song that the pearl inspires is The Song of
Dreams, or more accurately, The Song of Evil.
“The Song of Evil”—The Song of Evil is first introduced by
way of the scorpion. It comes to disrupt the Song of the Family and to try to
destroy it. It is pronounced again by the doctor, who does not care for the
family but only for his own dreams of France. It is finally conducted by the
pearl, which promises a better song for the family, but in reality only brings
destruction. The Song of the Family can only be maintained by simplicity,
humility, acceptance, and adherence to tradition.
“Go with God”—This is often said by Juan Thomas and Juana,
and is repeated by Kino. There is a certain measure of awe, menace, and dread
that accompany the utterance, and it is tinged with both hopefulness and fear.
There are tones of fatalism in the expression, felt keenly by Kino as he does
battle with the evil that threatens to overwhelm him. The sense is that Kino
was in fact going with God at the beginning of the narrative, but that with the
introduction of evil (first through the scorpion, then the doctor, and finally
the pearl) Kino has abandoned God’s way and relied solely upon his own strength
to secure his happiness. Each reminder to go with God is, for Kino, like a
sharp prick to his conscience. Ultimately, Kino does go back to God’s way by
renouncing the pearl and returning to his village (and accepting his poverty
and place in the world), but he pays a terrible price for his deviation.
Take The Quiz
1. What is the setting of the story?
a) La Paz
b) Arizona
c) San Antonio
d) Loreto
2. How does Kino express his contentment in the morning after his
simple breakfast?
a) He tells his wife that is was good
b) He sighs with satisfaction
c) He sings a song out loud
d) He writes a poem about it
3. How is the Song of Evil introduced?
a) the appearance of a snake
b) the arrival of ill tidings from Kino’s brother
c) a storm out at sea
d) a scorpion crawling toward Coyotito
4. What does Kino do when the scorpion stings Coyotito?
a) He immediately runs for the doctor
b) He takes the baby to the priest for anointing
c) He crushes the scorpion in his hands and pounds it into the ground
d) He joins in prayer with Juana
5. What does Juana do when the scorpion stings Coyotito?
a) She runs for help from the neighbors
b) She prays with the rosary
c) She begins sucking the poison out of the baby’s shoulder
d) She joins Kino in destroying the scorpion
6. Why does the doctor refuse to see Kino?
a) The doctor is a racist
b) The doctor is a classist
c) Kino does not have enough money for the doctor
d) All of the above
7. The doctor’s refusal to see Kino draws what immediate reaction
from Kino?
a) Kino strikes the gate with his fist
b) Kino breaks into the doctor’s home to confront him
c) Kino whips the crowd into frenzy, and they protest in the streets
d) Kino writes a letter to the doctor
8) Coyotito is healed thanks to what measure?
a) Medicine from a neighbor is acquired
b) A hospital outside of town offers its services
c) Kino secretly robs the doctor of the essential pills
d) Juana makes a seaweed poultice and puts it on the wound
9) From whom did Kino inherit his canoe?
a) A friend
b) His brother, Juan Thomas
c) It was passed down from his grandfather
d) It belonged to Juana’s uncle
10) What does Kino want for his son after he finds the pearl?
a) a better canoe
b) an education
c) a better diet
d) a new home
11) Why does the doctor come to see Kino?
a) He has had a change of heart
b) He has heard of the pearl
c) He is genuinely concerned about the baby despite his racism, classism,
and greed
d) He happens to be passing by
12) What is the first buyer’s final offer to Kino for the pearl?
a) 500 pesos
b) 750 pesos
c) 100 pesos
d) 1500 pesos
13) With whom does Juan Thomas always tell Kino to go?
a) God
b) Their grandfather’s spirit
c) Juana
d) the gods
14) What convinces Juana to take the pearl and try to throw it back
into the ocean?
a) She sees that it is defected and will never be worth anything
b) An attacker breaks into their hut at night
c) The priest tells her to do it
d) She suspects that Kino will run off so long as he has it
15) What does Kino do when he catches Juana trying to throw the
pearl into the sea?
a) He punches her in the face and kicks her in the side
b) He strangles her
c) Her rebukes her publicly
d) He calmly tells her not to do it
16) What happens to Kino’s canoe?
a) It is stolen
b) It is set adrift
c) A hole is punched through it
d) It is set on fire with the rest of the hut
17) Where do Kino, Juana, and the baby hide after their hut is
destroyed?
a) in the church
b) in the hut of Juan Thomas
c) among the beggars
d) with the doctor
18) Why does the tracker fire his rifle?
a) He thinks he sees Kino
b) He hears a cry and cannot tell if it is a baby or a coyote
c) He fires it for fun
d) He falls asleep and fires it by accident
19) How does Kino kill the trackers?
a) One he stabs, one he hits in the head with the butt of the gun, and the
one he shoots between the eyes
b) He cuts the throats of all three
c) He lines them up and shoots them all with the rifle
d) He stabs one, strangles another, and shoots the third in the back
20) What becomes of the pearl?
a) It is thrown back into the sea and disappears in a cloud of sand
b) It is donated to the church
c) It is sold for 500 pesos
d) It is lost in the battle in the mountains
Answers: 1) a; 2) b; 3) d; 4) c; 5) c; 6) d; 7) a; 8) d; 9) c; 10)
b; 11) b; 12) d; 13) a; 14) b; 15) a; 16) c; 17) b; 18) b; 19) a; 20) a
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