The Pearl

The Pearl by John Steinbeck

In The Pearl by John Steinbeck, Kino, the main character, did not

succeed in his dreams of a luxurious life. There where many reasons why Kino

did not succeed. One may believe that it was a combination of fate, the pearl

buyers, and his own greed.

Fate was a major aspect to why Kino did not succeed in his dreams of

having a luxurious life. When Kino discovered the Pearl he thought that it would

take him out of poverty and into a life of happiness. “But the pearls were

accidents, and the finding of one was luck, a little pat on the back by God or the

gods both”(Chapter 2). This quotation occurs when Kino is about to go pearl

diving for the Pearl of the World. This quotation also shows that certain things

happen that we have no control over, therefore one can feel that Kino’s downfall

is not entirely his own fault. The Pearl ended up bringing ultimate unhappiness

to Kino and Juana.

The pearl buyers were also major reasons to why Kino did not succeed. If

the pearl buyers had given Kino a fair price for the Pearl, then Kino would have

sold the Pearl. If Kino sold the Pearl then Coyotitio would have never been shot.

This would give Kino a chance to succeed in his dream of a luxurious life. This

did not happen. The pearl buyers did not give Kino a fair price, they said that

the pearl was fools gold and worth nothing. This caused Kino to decide not to

sell the pearl to them . This leads to Coyotitio eventually being shot by the

gunfire between the trackers and Kino. This ultimately destroys Kino’s dreams.

Kino not succeeding was also partly his own fault. Kino’s desire for the

Pearl was a major conflict in the parable. If Kino wasn’t greedy and gave up the

Pearl when he found out his family was in danger, his son wouldn’t have been