The Pearl
By John Steinbeck
Presentation by
Carl Faulcon
The Pearl
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The Pearl is a novel set in the coastal village of La Paz, Mexico in the late 19th, early 20th century. The
characters in the book are Kino, Juana, Coyotito and “The Pearl”.
The author describes La Paz as a paradise, with gardens, the ocean and mountains. The gardens and
ocean are peaceful. When Kino and Juana climb the mountains in the dark that is scary. The mountains
can be interpreted as a warning.
La Paz, Mexico
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The characters in “The Pearl” are happy in the beginning, content with the life that they have. They
are tested when they find a large, beautiful pearl. They think it is a blessing that could bring them wealth
and happiness. The pearl may save the life of their son, but instead it becomes a curse. Kino commits
murder, abuses his wife and Coyotito dies. The theme is that wealth does not solve your problems or
bring happiness. It can make people change for the worse.
Quote:
“We tend to forget that happiness doesn’t come as a result of getting something we don’t have, but
rather of recognizing and appreciating what we do have”. – Frederick Koenig
*Koenig is a German inventor best known for his high-speed printing press.
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The scorpion bit Coyotito. The scorpion is a significant symbol in the book. It represents fate. If the
scorpion did not bite Juana and Kino’s son that day, they probably would not have wished for or found the
pearl and their lives would not have changed.
The Pearl is also a significant symbol because it brings Kino and Juana hope in the beginning. Then
the hope and good that the pearl brings makes Kino greedy and evil. It costs him everything that is really
important.
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There are several quotes from the story “The Pearl” that are important to me.
① “My son will read and open the books, and my son will write and will know writing. And my son will make
numbers, and these things will make us free because he will know – he will know and through him we will
know.”
This is important to me because my parents always tell me how important it is to learn so that I can
do better than them when I grow up. Kino wanted better for his son.
② “He would not come” the people in the yard said. “He would not come” the people in the door said, and
the thought got into Kino. “The doctor would not come” Kino said to Juana. “Then we will go to him.”
Juana said.
This is important to me because they didn’t listen to what other people told them and they were
determined to get Coyotito to a doctor. They didn’t let anything stop them from trying.
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Diary Entry by Kino
If Kino could read and write in a diary, I think that he would write that he is scared and sad.
Dear Diary: I am afraid. I don’t want my son to die. I need help and I don’t know what to do. If I was
wealthy, all of my problems would be solved.
Dear Diary: Now that I have found the pearl I am very wealthy, my life has changed so much. I am afraid that
someone will try to take my wealth away. I will do anything to keep it.
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The author of “The Pearl uses figurative language throughout the novel. My favorite examples are:
① The town is like a nervous system. When I read this simile I immediately understood the comparison
and the point that the author was trying to make. It took little or no effort for the entire town to learn
that Kino found the pearl.
② Kino would hear a song depending on his emotion at the time.
③ It is ironic that the Doctor “had to tend to an important case” which let Kino and Juana know that
Cyotito’s poisonous bite was not important to him – when in fact it was urgent.