When Blessings Become Curses
John Steinbeck (1902-1968), was born in Salinas, California. He received his love for literature from his mother. He studied at Stanford University but did not graduate. In 1929 he began writing his first novel. He wrote about working class people and victims of the Great Depression. His inspiration of The Pearl comes from traveling the Sea of Cortez in 1940 and hearing a story about a young man who found a large pearl. He had great appreciation for the Mexican culture. In 1962, Steinbeck was awarded a Nobel Prize (Nobel Lectures).
In The Pearl by John Steinbeck, Kino, the protagonist, is a poor yet hardworking pearl diver. He, his wife, Juana, and his son, Coyotito, live in the village in a simple brush house where they are very content with life. Kinos love and loyalty is with his family as well as the village people.
In the beginning of the story Coyotito is stung by a scorpion. Care from the doctor is refused because of the familys lack of money. Kino, Juana and Coyotito set out in their canoe to find the one thing that could bring the family fortune. Miraculously he finds The Pearl of the World. After finding the pearl, Kinos excessive desire for wealth consumes him and the pearl that once brought so much hope for a brighter future becomes an imprecation.
Coyotito begins to recover from the scorpion sting during Kinos discovery of the pearl. Word of the pearl spreads throughout the town. Kino dreams of he and Juana being married, having new clothes, getting a rifle and most of all sending Coyotito to school, all things that were impossible before the pearl.
Later that night, villagers attempt to steal the pearl from Kino and Juanas brush house. Juana is terrified and tells Kino that the pearl is evil and it will destroy them, even Coyotito. She begins to see a change in Kino and asks him to get rid of the pearl. Kino refuses saying, This is our one chance. (38) He tells Juana they will sell the pearl and the evil will be gone refusing to acknowledge the curse of their great destiny.
Kino attempts to sell the pearl to the pearl buyers of the town. Kino becomes enraged when the buyer insists that the pearl is of no value and offers him 1500 pesos. Kino knows that he is being cheated and decides to go to the city to sell the pearl himself. Some village people feel it was foolish for Kino to refuse the offer because it was more money than he had ever seen. Others felt Kino could suffer great consequences for defying the buyers of the town.
That same night Kino is attacked again outside of his brush house. Juana attempts to help Kino but realizes it was too late. He was cut from his ear to his chin. Juana again tells Kino that the pearl is evil and asks him to throw it back into the sea. Kino refuses insisting they will have their chance and their good fortune would not be taken.
Kino awakens late in the night to find Juana attempting to throw the pearl in the sea. He goes after Juana and she sees a side of Kino she has never seen before as he strikes her in the face and kicks her in the side. She sees murder in him. After picking herself up and heading back to the house, Juana finds that Kino has been attacked again. He is lying on the ground with another man who had a gash in his throat. Juana knew that the old life was gone forever. (60)
Attempting to leave the village because Kino had killed a man, he discovers his boat has been destroyed and their house has burned to the ground. They hide in Juan Thomas house so the village people do not see them. Juan Thomas tells Kino, There is devil in the pearl. (64) Before leaving that night, Juan Thomas asks Kino if he will give up the pearl. Kino replies, This pearl has become my soul. If I give it up I shall lose my soul. (67)
As Kino, Juana and Coyotito travel north to the city, they realize they are being followed by trackers who would kill them for the pearl. They head into the mountains where they hide in a cave until the trackers reach them. Kino kills the three men and unknowingly Coyotito is killed too.
Kino and Juana return to the village with Coyotitos dead body. Now knowing that the pearl that had originally been such a blessing to the family was actually a curse that created such evil, Kino threw the pearl back into the sea.
The pearl was originally found in hopes to help Coyotito and could potentially make the family very wealthy. In the end because of Kinos lack of acknowledgement of the evil the pearl was causing, he and Juana lost everything that was valuable and meant the most to them.
Works Cited
Nobel Lectures, Literature 1901-1967. Editor Horst Frenz. Amsterdam: Elsevier Publishing Company. 1969. Print.
Steinbeck, John. The Pearl. New York: Penguin Books, 1992. Print.
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