Is Man Inherently Good Or Evil In The Pearl Essay

Essay Ever wished that you were in that all gold mercedes benz that one rich guy on television was driving? That is called jealousy and it is evil. Everyday things that we see as normal are perceived as bad by others. Whether you like it or not all humans are inherently evil and it is not very hard to notice. The Pearl by John Steinbeck is a story about a man named Kino whose vision is clouded by greed when he finds the “great pearl”. He begins worrying more about his wealth than his family and finds himself straying from the way he wants to live. This raises the question, is man inherently good or evil? As shown by characters in The Pearl, their selfishness, and their natural instincts, man is inherently evil. First and foremost, the doctor

“Her arm was up to throw when he leaped at her and caught her arm and wrenched the pearl from her. He struck her in the face… He heard the rush, got his knife out and lunged at one dark figure and felt his knife go home,”pg 59. In the previous quote, Kino’s wife Juana steals the pearl and tries to throw it into the ocean but is beaten and punished by Kino. Soon after this two mysterious figures try to steal the pearl from Kino and he violently stabs one of them. The only reason that this happens is because humans love attention, and if somebody has something that you do not have you want it. Juana wishes that Kino would quit worrying about the pearl so much, and focus more on his family. This pushes her to try to steal the pearl and return it back to its rightful home. Whereas, the unknown figures are jealous of Kino’s pearl and they wish that they had it for themselves, this is why they try murdering Kino, and stealing the pearl. This is not the only instinct shown through this quote though, humans are very protective of there stuff and often times violence can ensue if people try stealing what is rightfully yours. Kino is very protective of his pearl and when everybody tries taking it from him he becomes violent and chaos comes soon after. Being protective is why you have to teach babies how to share, and why many wars break out.

“My son will read and open the books, and my son will write and know writing… he will know and through him we will know.”pg 26. This text shows that even when you want the better for someone you want something good to come out of it for yourself to. Kino proclaims that his child will go to school and learn, and then he will come home and teach Kino and Juana because they never had the opportunity to go to school. Kino wants something good for his child but out of it he gains new knowledge and more power. Not only that, Kino wants good only for his family. There is not one quote in the book where Kino wishes good on somebody that isn’t part of his family (Juan Thomas is considered part of Kino’s family) and this shows that Kino does not want others to succeed ahead of him. This shows that humans do want the best for others, but not all others, and not if it does not benefit them too. “Juana dragged herself up from the rocks on the edge of the water. Her face was a dull pain and her side ached.” Kino loves his wife but he values an inanimate object more than her and because Juana threatens the pearl, Kino violently beats her. Sometimes when you want the best for others you do not realize it but you hurt more people than you are helping. This further proves that man is inherently evil, and not inherently