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Symbolism in the book the pearl
Symbolism in the book the pearl
Symbolism in the pearl
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If you were given a million dollars, what would you do? Spend it in a short amount of time? Or save it responsibly for the future? Many would say the latter, confident that they will accomplish that. But for a few, it doesn’t turn out that way. In the book, The Pearl, a family, Kino, Juana and their child, Coyotito, go through various hardships after they have found a pearl, eventually losing everything they had loved. With three examples from the novel, I will explain what the pearl in the book symbolizes. The pearl symbolizes many different things. To Kino, at first it symbolized happiness and hope. On page 39 in chapter 3, it has stated, "So lovely it was, so soft, and its own music came from it- its music of promise and delight, its guarantee of the future, of comfort and security. Its warm lucence promised a poultice against illness and a wall against insult. It closed a door on hunger." Kino sought happiness and riches, and as he was desperate he was blind to the greed that was enveloping him. All he saw was impossible hopes and dreams in the pearl. In other words, to him, the pearl guaranteed money and the comfort of a tranquil life. …show more content…
On page 89 it states, "He looked into its surface and it was gray and ulcerous. Evil faces peered from it into his eyes, and he saw the light of burning. And in the surface of the pearl he saw the frantic eyes of the man in the pool. In the surface of the pearl he saw Coyotito lying in the little cave with the top of his head shot away. And the pearl was ugly; it was gray, like a malignant growth." In the end, Kino had finally realized that the pearl was nothing but a waste. Nothing good has come out of his journey to the rich life. He just suffered. The pearl held nothing but horrible memories. Now the pearl meant evil and
Kino found one of the most valuable and precious pearls in the world and being convinced of its worth was not going to be cheated by only minimally upgrading his condition of life. Instead he wanted to break the fixed life and role that he and his family had and always would live. Kino refuses the maximum offer of fifteen hundred pesos that would easily ease his and his family’s pain and suffering for the coming months. Kino is then determined to trek to the capital to find a fair and just offer. Kino continues determined through the mountains after an attempt at the pearl, his canoe destroyed and his hut set a blaze. Continuing to put his family’s life on the line. It eventually takes the death of his beloved son Coyotito to make him realize he needs to stop being so greedy, no matter how hard he tries and to shut his mouth and know his role.
For all of these reasons, Kino is a fool. The death of his son, the destruction of his house and canoe, and the loss of his pearl is all his fault. He easily could have avoided all 3 of those things by never even taking that pearl and just throwing back into the ocean when he knew and could sense that it was evil. If I was in Kino’s place I would have sold the pearl as soon as I could to have to the highest bidder just to get rid of it and to make some money since the pearl was evil. THat way my family would still be alive and my canoe and house would still be
Kino overall symbolizes clearly good and innocent. Kino is thought of as 'a wise, primitive man' who is hungry for fortune because of the great pearl, which he discovers and later in the story he becomes 'an angry, frightened, but resolute man, determined to keep what he has earned'. He is a young diver who lives in a small village on the coastline of Mexico. In the beginning of the story he has come to o...
He is driven by greed, so much so that he could even see dreams form in the pearl. Kino is the head of a modest household and until he finds the pearl he lives a satisfied life with all he needs for his family to be happy. As soon as Kino finds the pearl he starts to want possessions he never wanted before. He dreams of education for Coyotito, marrying Juana in a Catholic church, purchasing new clothing for his family, and getting a harpoon and a rifle for himself. “It was the rifle that broke down the barriers . . . for it is said that humans are never satisfied, that you give them one thing and they want something more” (Steinbeck 32). Located within a small poverty-stricken community, a pearl diver named Kino finds “the Pearl of the World” and becomes suddenly rich, he begins to want items that he thought were impossible before. As Kino thinks more and more of what the pearl can do for him, he starts to think that it will raise his social status as well. This is only the beginning of Kino’s greediness, for the more he gets, the more he will want, and this begins to dehumanize him. Kino focuses on the wealth of the pearl and causes him to change his values about life. In the beginning, Kino is only focused on his family, once Kino finds the pearl he becomes more focused on the pearl, rather than his family. Kino cares a lot more about losing the pearl rather than something bad happening to his loved
Readers can tell from the statement that many of the people Kino encounters after finding the pearl become bitter “friends”. At this point, Kino and Juana begin to realize that the pearl is bringing bad luck upon them. They are taken advantage of by the doctor and he decides to visit them after knowing they have the pearl. “This pearl is like a sin”(56). Juana begins to realize the pearl is bringing them bad luck, but Kino still trusts that it’s a gift. Readers can also assume that people are trying to take the pearl when Kino is suddenly attacked during the night. “Blood oozed down from his scalp and there was a long…”(56). Readers can now confirm that the pearl has changed and now represents evil. The pearl also begins to destroy Kino and Juana’s relationship as they have different opinions on what to do with the pearl. After Kino wakes up and follows Juana when she wakes up and walks out, readers know he has started to lose full trust in her. “He rolled up to his feet and followed her silently as she had gone” (58). Through the symbolism of the pearl and what it brings upon Kino and Juana, the author emphasizes how the pearl is not what it first appears to be, which was
He wanted a rifle, a bow and arrow to hunt, and protect his family with it. Kino started to get agitated and angry with his wife when he started changing. When his son died, he saw the pearl as ugly and he felt nothing, just the same way as his wife.
And Kino heard the music of the pearl, distorted and insane”(89). There are numerous excellent literary devices in this section of imagery. When Steinbeck metions Kino seeing evil faces in the pearl, he indicates the evil pearl causes dreadful things. A malignant growth is dangerous and fatal, much like the pearl. The author states the pearl is gray and ulcerous and ugly.
First viewed as a beautiful and valuable prize, Kino’s pearl is used as a device for Steinbeck to drive the parable in The Pearl. Kino saw “the great pearl, perfect as the moon,” (Steinbeck 19). Kino saw the value in the pearl, and thus he wanted to get the most money he can out of it. The greed that was inside Kino took control of his actions until he sees Coyotito shot and killed, snapping Kino back to reality. As a result of what happened to his son, he sees that, “[the pearl] was gray and ulcerous,” (Steinbeck 89).
The story The Pearl has many people facing challenges. Many people in the story are punished for stepping out of their place in society. The author conveys throughout the story that bad things happen to those who step out of place in society. Every year, this was the priest's sermon. Every priest was a white Spaniard; part of their duty was to help keep the natives in their place.
After Kino found his great pearl bad things started happening, Kino and Juana's lives were in trouble. Two men notified in the book as the "dark ones" tried to steal the pearl, luckily Kino had been prepared and got rid of the enemies but that was not the end of the misery. Coyotito got very sick and the Doctor had deliberately made things worse. When it was time to sell the pearl, the buyers offered prices that Kino thought were too low. Kino was angry with the pearl buyers for what they had said. "I will not make an offer at all. I do not want it. This is not a pearl - it is a monstrosity." Kino got angry and decided he wanted to go elsewhere and find a buyer for the pe...
It represents this because the pearl is evil in the way where it brings others who are jealous of Kino having a pearl of such riches and then them trying to steal it in any way possible. In The Pearl Juana tells kino after a unknown person come and attacks them Juana says, “It will destroy us all … Even our son”(39). This connects this to the topic because the evil in the pearl will ruin them and will most likely kill them. Another thing that Juana say in the book about the pearl is, “This thing is evil … This pearl is like a sin”(33).This quote connects to the overall topic because the pearl is so evil that it is like a sin(a bad thing done against your god or gods.).
In the beginning, it seemed to bring good fortune to Kino, Juana and Coyotito. Kino had numerous plans for what he would do with the money made off of “The Pearl of the World” (Steinbeck 23). “We will be married-in the church… We will have new clothes… A rifle, perhaps a rifle… My son will go to school” (Steinbeck 24-25). Kino had expected great things from the pearl, but throughout the novella, all his plans seemed to backfire. When he tried to sell the pearl, he was offered low prices, ones he refused to accept. “I will offer five hundred pesos”(Steinbeck 52) Kino was furious. “I am cheated, my pearl is not for sale here. I will go, perhaps even to the capital” (Steinbeck 52). He was under the impression that he had found the greatest pearl known to man, and that he was becoming a victim of fraud. The family’s perspective of the pearl changed drastically by the end of the book. At first, the saw a bright future and their entire life as positive, in the end, they saw danger and
Due to human nature, we tend to seek out the best materialistic things. We work hard to earn more money to get newer and nicer things and sometimes this greed can get to even the best of us. When reading The Pearl by John Steinbeck I found that Steinbeck proposed many universal themes that are highly relatable to my life. Many themes and symbols have been cleverly weaved within Steinbeck’s novella allowing the reader to connect to Kino’s experiences. All things considered, Steinbeck’s symbols can clearly relate to my life through shared experiences with manipulation, chaos, and over obsession.
Over history, women have had a stereotype of being subservient, passive, and deferent. However, John Steinbeck’s novella The Pearl disproves this epithet. The story revolves around a husband and wife, Kino and Juana, and their baby son, Coyotito. The characters experience a meaningful journey and learn a manifold of lessons. Although multiple themes unravel in the story, the author highlights the roles and development of women. Steinbeck’s The Pearl depicts various women’s roles and their development, primarily in Juana’s words and actions.
This leads to change and, eventually, downfall. Before he finds the pearl, Kino “was a well-liked man” (43), and adored by all of his neighbors. Everyone looked up to his kindness and sympathy, but when he finds the Pearl, he changes. The pearl takes control over him, and he becomes too obsessed with getting his money. He loses his many things over it: “now it is my misfortune and my life and I will keep it” (66). The neighbors even suspect, “‘what a pity it would be if the pearl should destroy them all.’” (43) For example, KIno loses his family when he tries to protect the pearl and defies the pearl buying system, and when he mishandles Juana. Loisng his canoe symbolizes thi sloss of his family. He also loses his sanity. he beats Juana and kills four men. He “‘killed a man’” (61) and joins in many fights. For greed, he turns down the salesman`s offer for the pearl and ends with nothing left. Kino has the chance to take the money offered to him and be done, but he is greedy and he wants more. Then, at the end of the book, Kino throws the pearl into the sea, and with it, all the money he could possibly gain. He also lets the doctor treat Coyotito, even with his doubts, and now can not pay him because the pearl is his payment method, which is now gone. He thinks his money is secure, and in his mind, he is a rich man. This is not necessarily true, as readers learn, and because he was so secure, he must now pay for unnecessary